NAME
format - format a PC floppy diskette
SYNOPSIS
format [-v] device [media-size [drive-size]]
DESCRIPTION
Format allows a user with read-write permission to device to
format a floppy. Either one of the special floppy devices
must be used, see fd(4), or an automatic device may be used
with the size of the floppy specified on the command line.
Two sizes must be given when formatting a low density
diskette in a high density drive. For example:
format /dev/at1
format /dev/fd1 1200
format /dev/fd1 360 1200
The first two commands format a 1.2M diskette, the last for-
mats a 360k diskette in a 1.2M drive. A 1.44M drive knows
when it's dealing with a low density floppy, so all these
commands format a 720k diskette:
format /dev/fd0 720
format /dev/fd0 720 1440
format /dev/ps0
No sizes may be specified when using a special floppy dev-
ice, a size must be specified when using an automatic dev-
ice.
OPTIONS
-v Verify the process by reading each track after format-
ting it. Formatting is normally blind, the controller
has no idea whether it succeeds or not. Use -v on a
new box of cheap diskettes, or on a diskette that may
have gone bad. Verifying will increase formatting time
by 50%.
SEE ALSO
mkfs(1), fd(4).
DIAGNOSTICS
Numbers will be printed on standard output to show that it
is busy. The locations of bad sectors are printed on stan-
dard error when verifying. The exit code is zero unless
there are too many bad spots.
AUTHOR
Kees J. Bot (kjb@cs.vu.nl)