Windows 10: Beware - clean install with multiple HDD's and UEFI take care !!!

I almost always disconnected all drives except the one clean install is supposed to go on. By careful installation at first stages it can be avoided, I always give distinct names to all disks and partitions so I can know exactly where installation should go to. Most problems come from an active partition on other disks, specially if there is/was and OS on them. Linux installation is more problematic because it uses different conventions and partition names and partition schemes.

 

Hi there @essenbe

Just re-iterating again the warning that could lose you data if you don't take precautions before a windows clean install.

Also on some computers it's not so easy to disconnect HDD's without performing a "major Engineering" project !! - especially those with newer ones with the SSD M2 type of things (the SSD's that look a bit like memory chips instead of the standard 2,5 inch ones) that are now soldered on to mobos.

Also I still think Windows install should have an option at install time with checkbox to say don't use these HDD's.

Cheers
jimbo

 

With some systems, individual drives could be disabled in BIOS.

 

Hi there @CountMike
the operative word is SOME !!!! but thanks as I hadn't considered BIOS.

Cheers
jimbo

 

My last 3MBs had those options and so did older ones (10 years +) but windows showed them during setup anyway. Right now, on this Ryzen system I'm blocking one HDD with Linux on it.