Java Desktop System Release 2 User Guide

To Format a Floppy Diskette on Linux

To format media is to prepare the media for use with a particular file system. You can use the file manager to format floppy diskettes.


Caution – Caution –

When you format media, you overwrite any existing information on the media.


To format a floppy diskette, perform the following steps:

  1. Insert the diskette in the diskette drive. Mount the diskette. For information on how to mount media, see To Mount Media on Linux.

  2. Right-click on the object that represents the diskette on the desktop background, then choose Format.

  3. Select your format options in the Floppy formatter dialog. The following table describes the elements on the dialog:

    Dialog Element 

    Description 

    Floppy device

    Displays the name of the floppy device. 

    Floppy density

    Select the density of the diskette. The density is the amount of data that the diskette can store. 

    File system type

    Select the type of file system in which you want to format the diskette. Select one of the following options: 

    • Linux Native (ext 2): Select this option to format a diskette for use on Linux systems. Most non-Linux systems cannot read diskettes with this file system type.

    • DOS (FAT): Select this option to format a diskette for use on Windows systems. Most UNIX-based systems can read diskettes with this file system type.

    Volume name

    Type a name for the diskette in this text box. 

    Quick

    Select this option to create only the file system on the diskette. A quick format does not check for bad blocks.  

    Select this option if the diskette has been formatted before. 

    Standard

    Select this option to create the file system on the diskette and format the diskette. A standard format does not check for bad blocks.  

    Select this option if the diskette has not been formatted before. 

    Thorough

    Select this option to create the file system on the diskette, check for bad blocks, and format the diskette. 

    Select this option if you want to verify that the diskette has not been damaged. 

  4. Click Format to format the diskette.