Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!ut-emx!slcs.slb.com!asc.slb.com!hargrove From: hargrove@asc.slb.com (Jim Hargrove) Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.apps Subject: Re: Disk Manager and MSDOS 5.0 Message-ID: <1991Jun21.141720.13173@asc.slb.com> Date: 21 Jun 91 14:17:20 GMT References: <1991Jun17.221311.15797@aplcen.apl. <1991Jun20.092801.31571@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> <1991Jun20.232129.9266@unixg.ubc.ca> Sender: news@asc.slb.com Organization: Schlumberger Austin Systems Center Lines: 26 In-Reply-To: martell@ucs.ubc.ca's message of 20 Jun 91 23:21:29 GMT Nntp-Posting-Host: bart >>>>> martell@ucs.ubc.ca (Jonn Martell) writes: >>> Nntp-Posting-Host: swiss.ucs.ubc.ca >>> In article <1991Jun20.092801.31571@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> 1h1a0m@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes: >> Why should the drive be low level formatted every 6 months? >> >> Doug > >Perhaps to freshen up the track info which, unlike when writing a new file >to disk, is not written over old track info. I suppose the read/write heads >become misaligned with time, just a like a car goes out of tune. Doing a >low level format sets everything back to zero, as if you had bought a new HD. > >Tony > >>> True, but beginners should use a safe low-level "refresher" such as the ones >>> provided by NU 5.0/6.0 and PC Tools 7.0. >>> Not all HDs can be low-level formatted and improperly low-level formatting the >>> wrong type of HD with the wrong type of utility can seriously damage it. In particular, most of the refreshers won't work properly with SCSI drives. You'll have to do a real LL Format. -- -- jwh