How To Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11

Do you want to format a hard drive on Windows 11 without making a mistake that could impact the disk's functionality? Don't worry - this step-by-step guide covers six proven methods to ensure a flawless formatting experience.

Whether you wish to format an external drive on Windows 11 or reformat an internal disk, you can use any method below to partition it and set a new file system. Let's see why you should do it first.

Precautions Before Formatting a Hard Drive on Windows 11

1. Determine the File Format of Your Hard Drive

Formatting entails assigning a file system to your internal or external drive. Here are the file system formats you can choose from when formatting a hard drive for Windows 11:

Here's a quick overview of these file systems' essential features to help you choose the best one for your needs:

2. Save Your Files Before Formatting

If you wish to reformat a hard drive on Windows 11, we highly recommend you save your files first (unless there isn't anything you want to keep). Create a backup with Windows Backup or a third-party tool or move the data to another disk to seamlessly transfer it back later.

What To Do if You Can't Access the Drive

You can't move your files to another location if you can't access the drive you wish to format. Here's the error you'd encounter:

Why would your hard drive be inaccessible? Some reasons include disk corruption, errors due to power failures, and malware.

Either way, it doesn't mean your data is lost. You can retrieve it with the professional data recovery software - Wondershare Recoverit. Here's how:

1. Download and install Wondershare Recoverit on your Windows 11 PC.
2. Connect the problematic drive to your computer.
3. Launch the program, choose Hard Drives and Locations, and select the desired storage disk.

   

4. Recoverit will start scanning for files on the selected hard drive automatically.

   

5. After the scan, choose the files you want to restore, click Recover, and save them to another location.

   

Let's see how to format a drive on Windows 11 once you create a backup.

6 Ways to Format a Drive on Windows 11

Whether you wish to format or reformat a drive on Windows 11, the following tried-and-tested methods will help you install a new file system and enable your OS to read and write data.

Method 1. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 via Settings

Follow these steps to format a disk in Windows 11 via Settings:

1. Go to Settings > System > Storage > Advanced storage settings > Disks & volumes.

   

2. Select the disk you wish to format and click Properties.

   

3. Click Format.

   

4. Name the drive, choose a file system, tick the Perform a quick format checkbox, and click Format.

   

You can also perform a full format on Windows 11, but a quick one enables data recovery and is faster. When you full format a hard drive on Windows 11, all existing data, files, and folders on the drive are permanently erased, making data recovery nearly impossible.

Learn more: Quick Format vs. Full Format

Method 2. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 Using Disk Management

You can also use Disk Management to format a new hard drive on Windows 11 or reformat an existing one. This Windows utility is also excellent for deleting disks and creating partitions.

You can format an external SSD on Windows 11, reformat an internal HDD, or initialize a new disk by following these steps:

1. Use the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run command dialog box.
2. Type “diskmgmt.msc” (without the quotation marks) and hit Enter to launch Disk Management.
3. Right-click the desired disk (connect it to your PC first if it's external) and select Format.

   

4. Name the volume, choose a file system, tick the Perform a quick format checkbox, and click OK.

   

Method 3. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 Using File Explorer

File Explorer provides the most straightforward way to format an HDD on Windows 11 (or another internal volume or external storage medium). Here's what to do:

1. Open File Explorer, select This PC, right-click the desired drive, and click Format.

   

2. Choose a file system, name the volume, tick the Quick Format checkbox, and click OK.

   

Method 4. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 Using CMD

Windows Command Prompt (CMD) is a built-in command-line interpreter for performing administrative functions like disk formatting. It might seem complex, but the screenshots below will make it a breeze.

Here's how to format a disk on Windows 11 using CMD:

1. Connect your storage device to your PC if it's an external drive.
2. Search for Command Prompt in the Taskbar's search bar and select Run as administrator.
3. Run the following commands one by one: diskpart and list disk. Command Prompt will display all the volumes on your PC.

   

4. Choose the one you wish to format by running the following command, ensuring you replace “3” with a corresponding number: select disk 3.

   

5. Run the following commands one by one to cleanly partition the drive and create a new file system: clean, create partition primary, and format FS-NTFS quick. You can replace the NTFS value with FAT, FAT32, exFAT, or ReFS.

   

6. Once the process completes, run this command: assign letter=X. You can use any available drive letter.

   

7. Finally, run the exit command to close CMD.

Method 5. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 Using PowerShell

PowerShell is a program with a command-line shell and scripting language for managing system configuration and automating tasks, among other uses. All newer Windows versions have it, so you don't need to install anything.

Here's how to format a new hard drive on Windows 11 using PowerShell:

1. Connect your storage device to your PC if it's an external drive.
2. Search for PowerShell in the Taskbar's search bar and select Run as administrator.
3. Run the Get-Disk cmdlet (command-let) to see all connected drives.
4. Run this cmdlet to delete data before formatting (unless the disk is new), ensuring you replace “3” with a corresponding number: Get-Disk 3 | Clear-Disk -RemoveData. Confirm the action by typing A and pressing Enter.
5. Run this cmdlet to prepare the volume for formatting: Initialize-Disk -Number 3 (use your disk's number).
6. This cmdlet will format your drive: New-Partition -DiskNumber 3 -UseMaximumSize | Format-Volume -FileSystem NTFS -NewFileSystemLabel myDrive. Remember to use the correct number. You can replace NTFS with another file system and myDrive with another label.
7. Run this cmdlet to assign a new drive letter: Get-Partition -DiskNumber 3 | Set-Partition -NewDriveLetter H (use any available letter).

   

Method 6. Format a Hard Drive on Windows 11 Using a Professional Formatting Tool

A professional third-party formatting tool is an excellent way to format a new drive on Windows 11. Why? Because most solutions pack other valuable features, and some are entirely free.

AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard is one example. It lets you create, merge, clone, resize, format, and delete partitions. You can also clone disks, clean your PC, and convert file systems without losing data.

Here's how to format a hard drive on Windows 11 with AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard:

1. Download and install AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard on your PC.
2. Connect your storage drive if it's external and launch the program.
3. Right-click the desired disk (or one of its partitions and select Format Partition.

   

4. Create a label, choose a file system, and click OK.

   

5. Click Apply in the top left corner and confirm the action by clicking Proceed.

   

Why Do People Format Hard Drives on Windows 11?

Most people format drives on Windows 11 to improve their computers' performance. Formatting an HDD or SSD deletes unnecessary programs and files, many of which might consume significant CPU.

We know what you're thinking. You can delete the files the old-fashioned way. However, that doesn't entirely remove them. They stay in the file system, but you can overwrite them with other data.

Formatting sets a new file system, eliminating ghost records and fixing potential errors. Moreover, it removes malware (if any). You might not be aware of malicious software in your computer, which could spread to all disks (internal and external), so formatting your hard drive will restore your computer's health and performance.

However, you can't format the C drive on Windows 11 (or any other OS version). If you try, you'll see the “You cannot format this volume” message explaining that your PC could stop working because the C drive contains the operating system.

Another reason to format a hard disk on Windows 11 is to change its file system. For instance, you might wish to increase storage capacity, enable file compression and encryption, or set permissions.

Conclusion

You can format a hard drive on Windows 11 in many ways. Whichever you choose, you'll have your disk ready for operation within minutes. However, create a backup beforehand to avoid data loss.

If you can't access the drive, use data recovery software like Wondershare Recoverit because it will help you retrieve data and save it to another location before formatting.