[Savor the Stick]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

A simple format.exe will work or you can do diskpart.exe. If you are installing windows from a cd, it will overwrite the disk during the install, just as Ghost would.

I would consider partitioning the drive with a partition big enough to store your completed "gold image" and a couple of back up's.

Good luck.

Not sure what this means could you explain?

Originally Posted by 357

Microsoft makes a tool for pulling your data off prior to a reload. You can point it to a folder or external drive. I forget the name of it. You should be able to find it with a Google search.

Then I would just pop in the XP disc, and delete the old partition during setup. Next choose the unallocated space to install to and go.

Make sure you install SP3 if it's not slipstreamed into your media. Then install IE8 or IE9 and all the security and critical updates. Make sure to put a decent AV product on when done. AVG free is decent. MS Security Essentials is very effective but tough on resources.

The most I want to move off is pictures, word files, docs--not a whole lot of stuff. What are partitions and what are their functions?