Formatting a floppy diskette in Microsoft Windows

To format a floppy diskette in Microsoft Windows, insert a blank diskette or a diskette you want to erase and follow the following steps.

  • Open My Computer.
  • In My Computer, right-click the 3 1/2" Floppy (A:) icon.
  • Click the Format option.

Alternatively, you can format a floppy diskette from the Windows Command Prompt by following these steps.

Formatting a floppy diskette in MS-DOS

To format a floppy diskette at the MS-DOS prompt, insert a blank diskette or a diskette you want to erase and type the following command.

format a:

After pressing Enter, a prompt asking if you want to erase all information on the diskette appears. If you want to continue, type Y or Yes to continue.

If you need additional information about the MS-DOS format command or available format switches, see the format command page.

  • How to delete a file, directory, or folder.
  • See our floppy disk and floppy drive definitions for further information on each of these terms.
  • Floppy drive help and support.