How to Format a Non-Bootable Hard Drive [2024 Guide]?

If you're encountering the issue where your hard drive won't boot, you might see a black screen displaying an error message like "Disk Boot Failure, Insert System Disk, and Press Enter." The first solution to fix this problem is to format the unbootable hard drive. Therefore, this article will introduce three practical and efficient methods to help you format a hard drive that won't boot.

How to Format a Non-Bootable Hard Drive - 3 Methods

Selecting the appropriate tools or methods to format a non-bootable hard drive is crucial. This section will provide step-by-step formatting guides that can save significant hassle when dealing with an unbootable hard drive. Before proceeding with the instructions, let's examine the details of all the tools and solutions that will be utilized:

Before taking any actions, read the notification and make full preparations.

Method 1: Format This Hard Drive on Another Computer Using Partition Master Tool

When your hard drive fails to boot, you cannot load the Windows system, so you need to create a bootable media (USB/CD/DVD) before formatting the unbootable hard drive. Creating a bootable media can be a challenging task using a Windows-based tool. However, with the help of a tool like Partition Master, which features a "Bootable Media" function, the entire process can be simplified, saving users valuable time.

Aside from creating bootable media, the Partition Master tool also aids users in resolving boot failures with various features. Here's how you can create a bootable media and perform formatting using this tool:

Stage 1. Create Bootable Media

Step 1. To create a bootable disk of tools Partition Master, you should prepare a storage media, such as a USB drive, flash drive, or CD/DVD disc. Then, connect the drive to your computer properly.

Step 2. Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant, and find the "Bootable Media" feature on the left. Click on it.

Step 3. You can select USB or CD/DVD when the drive is available. However, if you don't have a storage device on hand, you can also save the ISO file to a local drive and burn it to a storage medium later. After making your choice, click "Create" to begin.

• Read the warning message and click "Yes".

Step 4. When the process finishes, you'll see a pop-up window asking if you want to restart your computer from the bootable USB.

Here are the translations for the given language segments into English:
• Reboot Now: This means you want to restart the current PC and enter the Bootable Media to manage your disk partitions without an operating system.
• Done: This means you do not want to restart the current PC, but instead, you intend to use the bootable USB on a different/new PC.

NOTE: To use the bootable disk on a new PC, restart the target computer and press F2/F8/Del to enter BIOS, then set the USB bootable disk as the first boot device.

Just be patient, the computer will automatically boot from the USB boot media and enter the WinPE desktop tool.

Stage 2. Format the Hard Drive

Step 1. Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant, right-click the partition on your external hard drive/USB/SD card which you want to format and choose the "Format" option.

Step 2. Assign a new partition label, file system (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3/EXT4/exFAT), and cluster size to the selected partition, and then click "OK".

Step 3. In the Warning window, click "Yes" to continue.

Step 4. Click the "Execute 1 Task(s)" button in the top-left corner to review the changes, and then click "Apply" to begin formatting your external hard drive, USB, or SD card.

Method 2: Create Bootable Media to Perform Formatting via Partition Master Tools Step 1: Download and install tools Partition Master on your computer. Step 2: Launch the software and select "Create Bootable Media" from the left panel. Step 3: Choose the USB drive or CD/DVD as the bootable media. Make sure the chosen drive doesn't contain any important data, as it will be erased during the process. Step 4: Follow the on-screen instructions to create the bootable media. Step 5: Once the creation is complete, restart your computer and enter the BIOS settings to change the boot order, prioritizing the USB drive or CD/DVD. Step 6: Save the changes and exit the BIOS. Your computer will now boot from the created bootable media. Step 7: The Partition Master tool will load. Select the hard drive you want to format and click on "Format." Step 8: Confirm the formatting process and wait for it to complete. Step 9: After formatting, you can either use Partition Master to manage your partitions or exit the tool and reboot your system to start using it with the new formatting. Note: This method is useful when you cannot access your operating system due to issues or need to format the system drive.

If you don't have any other external devices, the second method is what you're looking for. Since your hard drive won't boot in this computer as the system drive, you can add it to another computer as a secondary hard drive. The first step is to remove the hard drive from the computer, and then copy all the data on the unbootable hard drive using tools like Partition Master to safeguard your important files as follows:

Step 1. Select the source disk.

1. Click "Clone" from the left-hand menu. Select "Clone OS Disk" or "Clone Data Disk" and click "Next". 2. Choose the source disk and click "Next".

Step 2. Select the target disk.

Translate these sentences into English:
• Select the desired HDD/SSD as your destination and click "Next" to proceed.
• Read the warning message and confirm by clicking the "Yes" button.

Step 3. View the disk layout and edit the target disk partition size.

When the program warns you that it will erase all data on the target disk, click “Continue” (If you have valuable data on the target disk, back it up in advance).

Here, you can choose to "Autofit the disk," "Clone as the source," or "Edit disk layout" to customize your disk arrangement. (Select the last option if you wish to allocate more space to the C drive.)

Step 4. Click "Start" to begin the disk cloning process.

When finished, proceed to Step 2 of Method 1 to format the unbootable hard drive using Partition Master. Alternatively, you can opt to create a bootable USB from ISO Windows 10.

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Method 3: Format the Hard Drive using Diskpart

If you're up for a more advanced method and have experience using Command Prompt, you can also utilize Diskpart to format the unbootable hard drive. Just be sure to follow the quick guide below carefully:

Step 1. Click the Windows icon, select "Search," then enter cmd. (Remember to Run as administrator.)

Step 2. Type diskpart in the Command Prompt window and press "Enter."

Step 3. Type the following format commands one by one and press "Enter" after each to perform a quick format on the hard drive:

• list disk
• select disk 2 (Replace 2 with the number of your disk)
• list volume
• select volume 10 (Replace 10 with the number of the hard drive)
• format fs=ntfs quick (Replace NTFS with the file system you want to format)

Step 4. Type exit and press "Enter" to close the Diskpart program.

Aside from formatting the hard drive, there are five other methods you can use to fix boot failures and errors on your hard disk:

How to Fix Hard Drive Not Booting [Complete Guide]

If your hard drive fails to boot, attempt these solutions, ranging from altering the boot order to rectifying the BCD error.

Tips for Preventing Hard Drive Not Booting

Hard drives are crucial to any computer, particularly the system drive responsible for OS booting. Hence, it's a nightmare when your hard drive encounters boot failure and fails to start. Nevertheless, you can adopt some precautions to prevent hard drive boot issues: 1. **Regular Updates**: Keep your operating system and firmware up to date to ensure compatibility with the latest hardware and security patches. 2. **Backup Important Data**: Regularly back up important files to an external storage device or cloud service to minimize data loss risks. 3. **Virus Protection**: Install and maintain antivirus software to protect your system from malware that could harm your boot sector. 4. **Avoid Overheating**: Ensure proper ventilation and cooling for your computer to prevent overheating, which can damage hardware components. 5. **Power Surges**: Use a surge protector to shield your computer from power fluctuations that could harm the hard drive. 6. **Safe Ejection of External Drives**: Always safely eject external hard drives before unplugging them to avoid corrupting the file system. 7. **Limited Access to Hardware**: Avoid frequent physical handling of the hard drive to minimize the risk of mechanical damage. 8. **Disk Monitoring**: Utilize tools like Windows' built-in Event Viewer or third-party software to monitor your hard drive's health and detect potential issues early on. 9. **Optimize Storage**: Regularly clean up unnecessary files and defragment your hard drive to maintain optimal performance. 10. **Timely Replacement**: If your hard drive is old or showing signs of wear, consider replacing it before it fails completely. By following these guidelines, you can significantly reduce the chances of encountering a hard drive boot failure.

Regularly check the hard drive status: Frequently checking hard drive health can help detect issues early on, and testing disk speed can enhance the hard drive's performance.

Avoid physical damage or temperature changes: Extreme temperatures and harsh impacts can cause serious hard drive issues and even prevent the system from booting.

Conclusion

This passage primarily outlines three established methods to assist you in formatting a non-bootable hard drive. Two of these methods involve creating a bootable media to carry out formatting operations using tools such as Partition Master or Diskpart. Alternatively, you can connect the non-bootable system hard drive to another computer that can boot successfully, and then utilize Partition Master on the functioning computer to format the hard drive.

Then, we also round up some efficient bonus tips to help users avoid hard drive boot failures. It's easy to note that Partition Master has many options that are quite useful for most hard drive problems. Download it and start a new lifestyle of solving hard drive issues.

Frequently Asked Questions about Formatting a Non-Bootable Hard Drive

To further expand your understanding on how to format a non-bootable hard drive, we have compiled a list of frequently asked questions to assist you:

**1. How to wipe a hard drive that won't boot?**

Utilize a data deletion program to create a bootable USB drive. Insert the USB into your computer and boot from it. This data destruction software will provide options for securely erasing the hard drive.

First, create a bootable media and start from it to perform formatting operations. Restart your computer and access the Boot Settings. Press the F2/F9/F12/Del key (this may vary depending on your computer manufacturer) to enter the boot menu. Set the bootable USB/CD/DVD as the first boot device, then format your hard drive as follows:

Read More: How to Partition, Format, or Wipe Hard Drive Without OS

< strong >3. How to format a hard drive using BIOS?

In theory, you cannot format a hard drive using BIOS as this menu doesn't have a “Format” option. However, you can create a bootable media with tools like Partition Master, which lets you perform a format after booting from this bootable media.