Question format a hard drive

[ChiefGreywolf]

Hi, this case its kinda long to explain, I will be thankfull for any help anyone can provide.
So I recently bought a new PC because my old PC wasn't working as intended nymore (It was running really slow and its really old anyways). I got all the parts I needed for the NEW PC (MB, CPU, RAM, Graphics card, PSU and a SSD where I want to install windows on). I couldnt aford a new HHD so I wanted to recycle the HHD from my OLD PC, the thing is that it has Windows on it and it wont let me wipe the data on it. Can I take the drive out of the PC and try to format it on a a different computer or what can or should I do? thnx for the help, and excuse me for my english.

 

[Urzu1000]

Install Windows to your SSD like you planned and then format the HDD while you're loaded into the Windows that's installed on your SSD.

Windows will never be able to reformat its own partition on a hard drive while running from that hard drive - because it would destroy it's ability to format part way through and leave the job half finished. That issue does not exist if you load into your SSD.

 

[popatim]

Install Windows to the SSD when the SSD (and optical drive if you have one) are the only drives connected aside from a USB Flash Drive.

Once you get windows up you can connect the HDD and use Disk Management to remove all the existing partitions and then create a single large one.

 

[jsmithepa]

If you have a new MS license, do what ^they say.

Otherwise before u obliterate old HD, obtain the old lic# in the attempt to move it over should you want to re-use old lic#, but no guarantee this will work.