Windows partition has re-appeared after a clean format?

DarkShadow

DarkShadow

DarkShadow

Soldato
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I'm selling my Macbook tomorrow and I formatted and re-installed and I was sure I deleted the partition, but once I had reformatted and logged into Tiger, the Windows partition showed up :confused:

I'm using Disk Utility and I can't use the erase option. Is there a way to delete the partition and re-attach it to the original drive?

Need to know urgently please.

Cheers.
 
You need to use the Boot Camp Assistant. Load it up and the third option will be to restore (remove the Win partition) back to a single Mac OS X Disk.
 
BillytheImpaler said:
If you are selling it would it not be most prudent to zero-out the disk and give the purchaser the installation CDs?
Click to expand...

Seconded. However I would zero out the disk and then install OS X but turning it off after installation instead of restarting. That way they can turn it on as you did when it was new and go through the standard steps.
 
During the re-install you can choose DIsk Utility from the main menu and then Erase, in the Options sections there will be the choice of several overwrite options ranging from an Erase and Install, Zero Hard Disk, 3 Pass, 7 Pass or the daddy of security options a 35 Pass of random data! :eek:

A zero overwrite is secure and will nuke any partitions (and ALL data) on the drive. Don't forget to choose MacJournaled file systema and give the hard disk a name, rather strangley I use 'Hard Disk', otherwise your main hard drive will appear as 'Untitled'.
 
I did the 35 disc zero once...

Needless to say it took a while... I'm guessing the single zero fill will work :)

The default Mac hard drive name is "Macintosh HD" FYI
 
I wouldnt install osx for the new user, they might want to customize the applications that are installed.

Just write zeros over the disk using disk utility, forget any other multiple of passes.

Commercial grade forensics software (Encase/FTK) wont be able to recover anything you overwrite.
 
Right, the guy whom I sold it to, reformatted and is having exactly the same problem as me! He can't get rid of the partition! It won't give him the option to erase even whilst using disk utility during format.

He said when he goes through bootcamp it says startup disk is not supported :confused:

Could someone please help us?
 
I'm guessing it's to do with the boot table remembering the Windows partition.

In XP you usually go to edit the boot.ini and it will say "could not find XP partition 1... do you want to remove it from the list?".

I can't say I don't know why the zero-write wouldnt work! but you could try booting off the OS X DVD and try again. Hopefully, this will mean you aren't loading off the hard drive and thus the files can be deleted / overwritten.

What I did when I sold my iMac was formatted the hard drive, then turned off the iMac when it reached the installer screen. That way it boots up and resumes from the part it left off; this being the main installer screen.. much like they come when you get it from Apple. :)
 
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