Need to reinstall Win7 on SSD, should i format it?

[poohbear]

Hey all, i installed win7 on my new crucial c300 64gb (w/ no formatting), but im upgrading my mobo and wanna do a fresh install. Do i need to format the SSD or is that harmful to it? I'm reading a quick format is best and it should be fine w/ win7, any evidence to suggest otherwise? cheers.

 

[poohbear]

anyone?

 

[abaez]

When I first installed win7 I had forgotten to have the installer use the intel drivers (the press f6 thing). I reinstalled using the quick format in the installer and it was fine.

 

[poohbear]

Thanks Abaez, I appreciate individual experiences, but i mean is there any official word from the manufacturers to show formating SSDs is fine?

 

[bacillus]

fwiw I've formatted my ssd a few times and my performance numbers are still very good.

 

[LokutusofBorg]

I installed Windows three times on my new work PC because of various issues. Just deleted/recreated the partition, quick format, install and go each time. I have the expected performance numbers.

 

[poohbear]

ok great, good to know. Thanks folks.

 

[poohbear]

BTW, do i even need to format when installing a new mobo, or will it suffice to just install the drivers and leave Win7 as is? I never installed the drivers for my old mobo (it was intel, my new one is AMD), so installing the drivers for the newer AMD one should suffice, no? Im worried the default Win7 drivers might conflict w/ the new AMD drivers, but im pretty sure Win7 is smart enough to figure that part out yea? Cheers.

 

[Synomenon]

Don't use a regular formatting utility. Download UBCD (Ultimate Boot CD) and run HDDErase 4.0. That will initiate the Secure Erase feature built into the SSD's firmware to wipe the SSD.