I'm on a one-user machine using XP sp2. I seem to have made a few booboos and I want to wipe the C drive and start afresh with a brand new install. Trouble is that there's no fdisk on XP, only format. The format works on the F drive but drive C refuses to be reformatted.

How can I tackle this problem?

Your WinXP install disk will give you this option. Start with the install cd and follow the instructions.

Unfortunately, the install CD does not provide this option ...

   If you have a diskette drive on the computer, you can make a boot diskette and use it.  A boot diskette has fdisk on it.
   I would think that the Windows CD has the ability to repartition even though the fdisk file is not there.

Aha! Perhaps the WinRescueXP boot disk or DOS boot disk may do the trick? (If not where can I get hold of an fdisk?)

Micro$oft has the "New and Improved" FDisk for large HDD's:

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=263044

Thanks for that M$ link but unfortunately it applies only to pre-WindowsXP systems.

   Fdisk comes with MSDOS.  If you get a boot disk with MSDOS on it, it should have fdisk.  I think that the WinRescue boot diskette has fdisk on it.
   I would think that they all are pre-Windows XP since Windows XP does not use MSDOS.  You do want to make sure that it is in a newer (by newer I mean around the time of WinME) version that does FAT32.

Your install cd should give you the option to delete the partition that XP is currently installed on.

Once that is done you will then be asked to create a new partition on the raw disk.

Then format with NTFS.

If the drive still won't format then there are two possibilities.

1. You have boot sector virus enabled in BIOS, this should be set to Disable.

2. Your hard disk has surface errors and you should run the manufacturers diagnostics on the drive to ascertain if the disk is useable.

NEVER EVER format an XP partition with FAT32

   An XP partition can be formatted in FAT32.  It does not cause any problems with WinXP.
   There are advantages and disadvantages to formatting in NTFS.
   There is no reason to say "NEVER EVER format an XP partition with FAT32".

XP is based on NT systems, the format used by NT is NTFS.

There are NO disadvantages to using the file system designed for NT systems (XP)

The ONLY reason that XP allows for FAT32 is due to the fact that upgrading to XP from one of the earlier systems (95, 98, ME) is that the Upgrade XP install does not offer the option to format with NTFS.

NTFS is far more efficient file system and allows NT operating systems to be not limited to the file restrictions of FAT32.

   I guess you know far more than I do.  The big disadvantage that I do not like about NTFS is that it cannot be accessed from DOS which gives you far fewer restore options.  I run my main computer with WinXP on a FAT32 partition specifically for that reason.  I have had no problems with FAT32.  It runs just as good as my test computer that has NTFS.  But then what do I know.
   Actually many XP computers come with a FAT32 partition for restore purposes.  Of course, they are probably wrong too because they should "NEVER EVER format an XP partition with FAT32".  They also probably did not know that there are no disadvantages to NTFS or they would have formatted all of the drives in NTFS.

You will find that those computers use a proprietary restore utility that cannot restore NTFS partitions.

Whenever I have one of these machines to repair I use NTFS and use Acronis which can restore NTFS partitions.

Unfortunately you are referring to the likes of HP, Compaq, Acer, Dell etc.

These manufacturers make extremely poor PCs, sacrificing quality for the sake of maximum profit.

There are many bootable cds available on the net, eg Minipe, which will give you all the access you could possibly need for any restore functions.

As said before XP was built on the NT family of operating systems. The default file system for XP is in fact NTFS.