Preparing Advanced Format hard drives
for Microsoft Windows installations on HP
Business Notebook PCs and Desktop PCs
Technical white paper
Table of contents
Executive summary ............................................................................................................................... 2
What does the Advanced Format drive mean to you? .............................................................................. 2
Important tips................................................................................................................................... 4
Validating partition alignment ............................................................................................................... 5
Using DISKEXT ................................................................................................................................. 5
Using WMIC ................................................................................................................................... 6
Using DISKPART ............................................................................................................................... 6
Sample validation ............................................................................................................................ 7
Enhancing the performance of small writes ............................................................................................. 8
Frequently asked questions ................................................................................................................... 9
Appendix A: Technical background ..................................................................................................... 11
Partition alignment ......................................................................................................................... 11
Why alignment helps ...................................................................................................................... 12
For more information .......................................................................................................................... 13
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