# How Long to Format a 500GB HD---via USB 2.0



## theboy

How Long to Format a 500GB HD---via USB 2.0???
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822100053


Today, I bought this from Circuit City (there last day in business ) for $60 bucks. I think I got a good deal....

Anyways I checked the low level format to start my drive off fresh and its at 3% now and has been going for about 20 minutes. At this point I am just going to leave my computer on and walk away. How long should it take? If I were to cancel the format and then check the 'quick format' would that ruin the drive?


Thanks!


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## johnb35

Formatting that drive will take some time, I would say at least a couple hours or so using USB.  I wouldn't recommend doing a quick format though, I don't trust it.


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## theboy

Yeah, it's at 15% right now. Do you think I got a good buy?

$60 bucks isn't bad


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## tyttebøvs

theboy said:


> If I were to cancel the format and then check the 'quick format' would that ruin the drive?



There is really no difference in writing a .txt file to the harddrive and formatting it - other than it differs in the type of data that gets written.

So no, you don't break a drive by cancelling a format.


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## /\E

tyttebøvs said:


> There is really no difference in writing a .txt file to the harddrive and formatting it - other than it differs in the type of data that gets written.
> 
> So no, you don't break a drive by cancelling a format.



You don't break it...

But the reason it takes a while is because it is setting the storage 'tables' in place and prepping it to store data.

I can't remember how long my 500GB WD My Book took to format. It seems like greater than an hour.


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## tyttebøvs

It takes a long time, because a "full" format checks every sector on the harddrive. The quick format skips that.


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## theboy

Thanks for all the replies. Right now three hours into the format its at 33%. So I expect another 6 hours for a complete format. Kinda funny, I never would of thought it would have taken this long. Am I gaining anything for doing a low level format? Maybe less defrags in the future?


p.s. This HD design is quite interesting. It has aluminum and bamboo, on the external enclosure.  It's been formatting for some time now (3hrs) and the enclosure isn't hot or anything


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## tyttebøvs

You might spot broken sectors (which you might not even notice, if the drive remaps them internally) thats it.


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## theboy

Maybe I am impatient but I had the HD sitting vertically this whole time, and just moved it flat. Maybe the HD has less strain now and going to go faster.

It's at 38%

Maybe next time I will just run a quick format.


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## ChrisUlrich

Is it really necessary to do the regular format?


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## theboy

Good question, is it?


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## tyttebøvs

If the drive is healthy, no. But how do you know for sure that a new drive (you can also happen to buy a drive that has been RMA'ed) doesn't have bad sectors?


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## theboy

Hands down I am happy with my new drive and 9 hrs later it completed the format.


Thanks for all the replies!!


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## Twist86

theboy said:


> Yeah, it's at 15% right now. Do you think I got a good buy?
> 
> $60 bucks isn't bad




Not a bad price since a internal 500GB costs roughly the same.


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## izzy

*ARGH! You are NOT "low level formatting" your drive*



theboy said:


> Anyways I checked the low level format to start my drive off fresh and its at 3% ...



Argh! Friggin kids get off my lawn :gun:

You are not low level formatting your drive. I can't believe no one else in the thread jumped on this. LLF was something us old farts had to do to MFM and RLL drives to define the sector and track boundaries. Starting with IDE/ATA drives, LLF became a lot more complicated. They do it once at the factory for the life of the drive.

You were doing a full format which clears and builds the file structures. A quick format is fast because it is just clears out the file allocation tables (FAT) while leaving the file structures in place. (That is why a quick format is not secure. Your data is still on the drive.)


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## tremmor

have to agree with a new hd and quick would have worked fine with new hd. if the drive had an operating system on with issues and i could not fix it, it was always a wipe. quick formatting with a past installation on with issues the quick format always picked up on it with same issues and had to wipe again the long or low level format. back like new. any rate your ready now. 
cheers....
and then i noticed the post was 14 mo old. 
oh well........


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