Just Reformatted ... And a Problem Arises

So, as the title states I have just reformatted my Clevo laptop and while I was looking for a clean reinstall, where I've wiped EVERYTHING..it seems that was not the case:



There should be little space being used but as you can see from the SS..a lot is going on here..

I cannot see where all the space is being used though..there is nothing on the computer..So where did I go wrong?

My only lead at the moment is that in the :/localC folder, there is a lot of text files that would not normally be there. Most are titled "eula.#'s" and "install.res.#'s"

Sorry for the broadness, I am at a loss...

 

Is there a Windows.Old folder in C: drive?

 

You know, I've been out of the windows loop for a while. I'm sure this is the issue.

However, I was under the belief that I had some malicious scripts embedded somewhere in my system and I couldn't find any trace, although the effects were apparent. Is there a way to reformat without creating a windows.old folder? I am just hoping it wont get transferred over to the new format.


Thanks

 

You didnt Format the disk when it asked you 'where you wanted to install windows'

So it saw the previous Windows installation and stashed that into the Windows.old folder.

 

When it prompted where I install windows I only had the option of c: and e: (reserved), I would have to choose the e:/ drive if I wanted a true reformat you're saying?

Thanks for walking me through this

 

On that Installation selection screen theres a button below called Advanced. It will allow you to format and re-size drives from there. Format the C: drive first and then continue with the install.

Btw you dont need to do a clean install to fix this, you can just go to Windows Disk Cleanup and delete "previous windows installations"

 

Beautiful! Can't believe I missed the option the first time around. Though I'll take your advice and perform a clean up.

Thanks again

 

so it seems you did neither.

 

WinXP used to ask you if you wanna format the disk before installing. Now Vista/W7 automatically archive previous installations to prevent accidental data loss.