Format (command)

Last updated
format
Written in MS-DOS: x86 assembly language
FreeDOS: C
Operating system RT-11, 86-DOS, MS-DOS, PC DOS, OS/2, eComStation, ArcaOS, ISIS-II, iRMX 86, TRIPOS, AmigaDOS, Z80-RIO, OS-9, MSX-DOS, FlexOS, PC-MOS, SpartaDOS X, DR DOS, ROM-DOS, 4690 OS, FreeDOS, PTS-DOS, SISNE plus, Windows, ReactOS
Platform Cross-platform
Type Command
License MS-DOS: MIT
PC-MOS: GPLv3
FreeDOS: GPLv2
ReactOS: LGPL-2.0-or-later

In computing, format is a command-line utility that carries out disk formatting. It is a component of various operating systems, including 86-DOS, MS-DOS, IBM PC DOS and OS/2, Microsoft Windows and ReactOS.

Contents

Overview

The command performs the following actions by default on a floppy disk, hard disk drive, solid state (USB), or other magnetic medium (it will not perform these actions on optical media):

  1. clearing the FAT entries by changing them to 0x00
  2. clearing the FAT root directory by changing any values found to 0x00 [nb 1] [1] [2] [3]
  3. checking each cluster to see if it is good or bad and marking it as good or bad in the FAT

Any storage device must have its medium structured to be useful. This process is referred to as "creating a filesystem" in Unix, Linux, or BSD. [4] Under these systems different commands are used. The commands can create many kinds of file systems, including those used by DOS, Windows, and OS/2.

Implementations

FORMAT.COM, among several other commands, in IBM PC DOS 1.0. IBM PC DOS 1.0 screenshot.png
FORMAT.COM, among several other commands, in IBM PC DOS 1.0.
FORMAT.CMD in CP/M-86 CPM-86.png
FORMAT.CMD in CP/M-86

The command is also available in Intel ISIS-II, [5] iRMX 86, [6] MetaComCo TRIPOS, [7] AmigaDOS, [8] Zilog Z80-RIO, [9] Microware OS-9, [10] DR FlexOS, [11] TSL PC-MOS, [12] SpartaDOS X, [13] Datalight ROM-DOS, [14] IBM/Toshiba 4690 OS, [15] PTS-DOS, [16] SISNE plus, [17] and in the DEC RT-11 [18] operating system.

Microsoft DOS and Windows

On MS-DOS, the command is available in versions 1 and later. [19]

Optionally (by adding the /S, for "system" switch), format can also install a Volume Boot Record. With this option, Format writes bootstrap code to the first sector of the volume (and possibly elsewhere as well). Format always writes a BIOS Parameter Block to the first sector, with or without the /S option.

Another option (/Q) allows for what Microsoft calls "Quick Format". With this option the command will not perform steps 2 and 3 above.[ citation needed ]Format /Q does not alter data previously written to the media.

Typing "format" with no parameters in MS-DOS 3.2 or earlier would automatically, without prompting the user, format the current drive; however in MS-DOS 3.3 and later it would simply produce the error: "required parameter missing".[ citation needed ]

DR/Novell DOS

DR DOS 6.0 includes an implementation of the format command. [20]

FreeDOS

The FreeDOS version was developed by Brian E. Reifsnyder and is licensed under the GPL. [21]

ReactOS

The format command on ReactOS ReactOS-0.4.13 format command 667x514.png
The format command on ReactOS

The ReactOS implementation is based on a free clone developed by Mark Russinovich for Sysinternals in 1998. It is licensed under the GPL. [22] It was adapted to ReactOS by Emanuele Aliberti in 1999 and supports FAT, FAT32, FATX, EXT2, and BtrFS filesystems.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The directory entries get filled with 0x00 since MS-DOS 1.25 and PC DOS 2.0. If the Format command line option /O is provided, the first byte of each directory entry is set to 0xE5h to create a FAT format usable by PC DOS 1.0-1.1. However, not providing /O will significantly speed up directory searches under MS-DOS 1.25 and PC DOS 2.0 and higher. Older versions of MS-DOS, PC DOS, and 86-DOS only supported the 0xE5 marker.

Related Research Articles

File Allocation Table (FAT) is a file system developed for personal computers and was the default filesystem for MS-DOS and Windows 9x operating systems. Originally developed in 1977 for use on floppy disks, it was adapted for use on hard disks and other devices. The increase in disk drives capacity required four major variants: FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, and ExFAT. FAT was replaced with NTFS as the default file system on Microsoft operating systems starting with Windows XP. Nevertheless, FAT continues to be used on flash and other solid-state memory cards and modules, many portable and embedded devices because of its compatibility and ease of implementation.

dir (command) Directory information command on various operating systems

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mkdir Directory creation command on various operating systems

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">86-DOS</span> Discontinued computer operating system for x86 processors and predecessor to MS-DOS/PC DOS

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fdisk Command line utility of DOS and Microsoft Windows operating systems

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In computing, the BIOS parameter block, often shortened to BPB, is a data structure in the volume boot record (VBR) describing the physical layout of a data storage volume. On partitioned devices, such as hard disks, the BPB describes the volume partition, whereas, on unpartitioned devices, such as floppy disks, it describes the entire medium. A basic BPB can appear and be used on any partition, including floppy disks where its presence is often necessary; however, certain filesystems also make use of it in describing basic filesystem structures. Filesystems making use of a BIOS parameter block include FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, HPFS, and NTFS. Due to different types of fields and the amount of data they contain, the length of the BPB is different for FAT16, FAT32, and NTFS boot sectors. Combined with the 11-byte data structure at the very start of volume boot records immediately preceding the BPB or EBPB, this is also called FDC descriptor or extended FDC descriptor in ECMA-107 or ISO/IEC 9293.

tree (command) Shell command in various operating systems

In computing, tree is a recursive directory listing command or program that produces a depth-indented listing of files. Originating in PC- and MS-DOS, it is found in Digital Research FlexOS, IBM/Toshiba 4690 OS, PTS-DOS, FreeDOS, IBM OS/2, Microsoft Windows, and ReactOS. A version for Unix and Unix-like systems is also available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ATTRIB</span>

In computing, ATTRIB is a command in Intel ISIS-II, DOS, IBM OS/2, Microsoft Windows and ReactOS that allows the user to change various characteristics, or "attributes" of a computer file or directory. The command is also available in the EFI shell.

ren (command) Computer command

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">TYPE (DOS command)</span>

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del (command) Command in various operating systems

In computing, del is a command in command-line interpreters (shells) such as COMMAND.COM, cmd.exe, 4DOS, NDOS, 4OS2, 4NT and Windows PowerShell. It is used to delete one or more files or directories from a file system.

help (command) Command in various command line shells

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copy (command)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">MS-DOS</span> Discontinued Microsoft operating system

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">DOS</span> Family of IBM PC-compatible operating systems

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In computing, diskcopy is a command used on a number of operating systems for copying the complete contents of a diskette to another diskette.

In computing, recover is a primitive file system error recovery utility included in MS-DOS / IBM PC DOS versions prior to DOS 6.0 and a number of other operating systems.

In computing, diskcomp is a command used for comparing the complete contents of a floppy disk to another one.

The command-line tool exe2bin is a post-compilation utility program available on MS-DOS and other operating systems.

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References

  1. ↑ Paterson, Tim (2013-12-19) [1983]. "Microsoft DOS V1.1 and V2.0: /msdos/v20source/FORMAT.TXT". Computer History Museum, Microsoft. Archived from the original on 2019-08-14. Retrieved 2014-03-25. (NB. While the publishers claim this would be MS-DOS 1.1 and 2.0, it actually is SCP MS-DOS 1.25 and a mixture of Altos MS-DOS 2.11 and TeleVideo PC DOS 2.11.)
  2. ↑ Shustek, Len (2014-03-24). "Microsoft MS-DOS early source code". Software Gems: The Computer History Museum Historical Source Code Series. Archived from the original on 2019-08-10. Retrieved 2014-03-29. (NB. While the author claims this would be MS-DOS 1.1 and 2.0, it actually is SCP MS-DOS 1.25 and a mixture of Altos MS-DOS 2.11 and TeleVideo PC DOS 2.11.)
  3. ↑ Levin, Roy (2014-03-25). "Microsoft makes source code for MS-DOS and Word for Windows available to public". Official Microsoft Blog. Archived from the original on 2014-03-28. Retrieved 2014-03-29. (NB. While the author claims this would be MS-DOS 1.1 and 2.0, it actually is SCP MS-DOS 1.25 and a mixture of Altos MS-DOS 2.11 and TeleVideo PC DOS 2.11.)
  4. ↑ newfs(8) : EXAMPLE section –  FreeBSD System Manager's Manual
  5. ↑ "ISIS II Users Guide" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-01-26. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  6. ↑ "intel :: iRMX :: 146194-001 irmxR6Intro" – via Internet Archive.
  7. ↑ https://www.pagetable.com/docs/amigados_tripos/tripos_manuals.pdf Archived 2020-10-21 at the Wayback Machine [ bare URL PDF ]
  8. ↑ Rugheimer, Hannes (1988). Quick reference. Abacus. ISBN   9781557550491 . Retrieved 2020-09-14– via archive.org.
  9. ↑ "Z80-RIO OPERATING SYSTEM USER'S MANUAL" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-01-28. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  10. ↑ Paul S. Dayan (1992). The OS-9 Guru - 1 : The Facts. Galactic Industrial Limited. ISBN   0-9519228-0-7.
  11. ↑ "FlexOS User's Guide" (PDF). www.bitsavers.org. 1986. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-09-25. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  12. ↑ "roelandjansen/pcmos386v501". GitHub. 2 January 2022. Archived from the original on 4 May 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  13. ↑ "SpartaDOS X 4.48 User Guide" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-10-10. Retrieved 2019-03-16.
  14. ↑ "Datalight ROM-DOS User's Guide" (PDF). www.datalight.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-04-21. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  15. ↑ "Users guide". archive.org. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  16. ↑ "PTS-DOS 2000 Pro User Manual" (PDF). Buggingen, Germany: Paragon Technology GmbH. 1999. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-05-12. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
  17. ↑ "SISNE plus - Referência Sumária". Datassette. May 14, 2015. Archived from the original on September 28, 2019. Retrieved September 28, 2019.
  18. ↑ "RT-11 HELP FILE". paleoferrosaurus.com. Archived from the original on 2018-07-17. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
  19. ↑ Wolverton, Van (2003). Running MS-DOS Version 6.22 (20th Anniversary Edition), 6th Revised edition. Microsoft Press. ISBN   0-7356-1812-7.
  20. ↑ "DR DOS 6.0 User Guide Optimisation and Configuration Tips" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2019-08-12.
  21. ↑ "ibiblio.org FreeDOS Package -- Format (FreeDOS Base)". www.ibiblio.org. Archived from the original on 2018-11-19. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  22. ↑ "reactos/reactos". GitHub. 3 January 2022. Archived from the original on 11 December 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2019.

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