Clear All Files from a Computer Running Windows XP

1. Back up all of the files that you need, probably onto CDs or an external hard drive.

2. Navigate to "My Computer" on the start menu, and right click on the drive that you want to delete the files from.

3. On the drop down list, select "Format..."

4. Set the file system to NTFS, which is short for New Technology File System.This is the new formatting standard in Windows, and can handle drive sizes of up to six terabytes (6,000 gigabytes).

5. Set the Allocation unit size to the maximum possible, which for big drives should be 4096 bytes.

6. Choose "Start" and continue past the warning that your hard drive will be erased.



7. Wait for a while, depending on the size of the drive. When it is done, the hard drive/partition will be devoid of files.