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From: jc58+@andrew.cmu.edu (Johnny J. Chin)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware
Subject: Re: Low-level format of hard disk
Message-ID: <Mb4j5aO00Uw7A2j2Yl@andrew.cmu.edu>
Date: 10 Oct 90 10:01:10 GMT
Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Lines: 28

To format your Quantum 40mb drive on a 286 (or 386, or 486) machine, you
need a utility program like HDFORMAT or Ontrack's Disk Manager or Storage
Dimension's SpedStor Utility.

AT-type computers with MFM controllers DO NOT have a BIOS at location C8000h;
therefore you can NOT use DEBUG to format the hard drive.  Attempts to use
DEBUG and the command "g=c800:5" will cause the computer to hang because you
will be attempting to execute non-existant code.

On 286/386/486-type computers, you must use a utility program of some sort.
In addition to the ones named above, IBM's Advanced Diagnostics also allows
you to do low-level formats.  Some BIOSes have this utility built in.

I hope this information clears up why your computer was hanging.
Low-level formatting a hard drive is relatively easy if you have the right
tools for it.

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Disclaimer:   The views expressed herein are STRICTLY my own, and not CMU's.