What is computer format?

To format a drive (hard disk, floppy disk, flash drive, etc.) means to prepare the chosen partition on the drive to be used
by an operating system by deleting all of the data1 and setting up a file system.
A partition can be thought of as a division or "part" of a real hard disk drive.
A partition is really only a logical separation from the whole drive, but it appears as though the division creates multiple
physical drives.
Some terms you'll see associated with a partition include primary, active, extended, and logical partitions. More on this
below.
Partitions are also sometimes called disk partitions and when someone uses the word drive, they usually mean a partition
with a drive letter assigned.
Computers use particular kinds of file systems (sometimes abbreviated FS) to store and organize data on media, such as
a hard drive, the CDs, DVDs, and BDs in an optical drive or on a flash drive.
A file system can be thought of as an index or database containing the physical location of every piece of data on the hard
drive or another storage device. The data is usually organized in folders called directories, which can contain other folders
and files.
Any place that a computer or other electronic device stores data is employing the use of some type of file system. This
includes your Windows computer, your Mac, your smartphone, your bank's ATM... even the computer in your car!
Windows File Systems
The Microsoft Windows operating systems have always supported, and still do support, various versions of the FAT (File
Allocation Table) file system.
In addition to FAT, all Microsoft Windows operating systems since Windows NT support a newer file system
called NTFS (New Technology File System).
All modern versions of Windows also support exFAT, a file system designed for flash drives.
A file system is a setup on a drive during a format. See How To Format a Hard Drivefor more information.
The most popular file system to support Windows is NTFS but FAT32 is also sometimes used.
NTFS, an acronym that stands for New Technology File System, is a file system first introduced by Microsoft in 1993 with
the release of Windows NT 3.1.
NTFS is the primary file system used in Microsoft's Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP,
Windows 2000, and Windows NT operating systems.
The Windows Server line of operating systems also primarily use NTFS.
File Allocation Table (FAT) is a file system that was created by Microsoft in 1977.
FAT is still in use today as the preferred file system for floppy drive media and portable, high capacity storage devices
like flash drives and other solid-state memory devices like SD cards.
FAT was the primary file system used in all of Microsoft's consumer operating systems from MS-DOS through Windows
ME. Even though FAT is still a supported option on Microsoft's newer operating systems, NTFS is the primary file system
used these days.
The File Allocation Table file system has seen advancements over time primarily due to the need to support larger hard
disk drives and larger file sizes.
In Windows, formatting a partition is usually done from the Disk Management tool. You can also format a drive using
the format command in a command line interface like Command Prompt, or with a free disk partition software tool.
Disk Management is an extension of the Microsoft Management Console that allows full management of the disk-
based hardware recognized by Windows.
Disk Management is used to manage the drives installed in a computer - like hard disk drives (internal
and external), optical disk drives, and flash drives. It can be used to partition drives, format drives, assign drive
letters, and much more.
The format command is a Command Prompt command used to format a specified partition on a hard drive (internal
or external), flash drive, or floppy disk to a specified file system.
Note: It might help to know that a partition usually encompasses an entire physical hard drive. That's why we often say
"format a drive" when in reality, you're formatting a partition on the drive... it just so happens that the partition may be the
whole size of the drive.