Can't Reformat my external Hard drive!

[EricPCNoob]

I have an external Hard drive that I want to reformat so that I can backup my files on it, with A fresh start. So, I go into computer , right click it, and hit format, and It sends a text box saying "You dont have the rights to do that"

What?

I am the only user on the computer. What should I do to reformat the drive?

Thank you!

 

[nightmove]

Have you tried to disconnect the hard drive or plunge it to another computer?

 

[Ulrica-740]

Step 1
Start your computer and plug in the hard drive to it.

Step 2
Click on "My Computer." Click on "Manage" in the "Explorer" window of "My Computer."

Step 3
Open the "Device Manager" and locate your hard drive installed under the "Disk Drives" tab. Right click on "Removable Disk Drive" and click on "Properties" from the menu.

Step 4
Click on the "Policies" tab and choose "Optimize for Performance" from the options. Click "OK" and continue.

Step 5
Click on "My Computer" and choose the format on the hard drive.

Step 6
Choose "NTFS" or "FAT32" depending on the type you want from the drop down menu box.

Step 7
Click "OK" to complete the format.

 

[Ulrica-740]

You can read the detailed information there:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20091123104937AA0NLHj

 

[EricPCNoob]

Best answer selected by EricPCNoob.