fdformat
User Commands fdformat(1)NAME
fdformat - format floppy diskette or PCMCIA memory cardSYNOPSIS
fdformat [ -dDeEfHlLmMUqvx ] [ -b label ] [ -B filename ] [ -t dostype ] [ devname ]DESCRIPTION
fdformat has been superseded by rmmount(1M) which provides most but not all of fdformat's functionality. The fdformat utility is used to format diskettes and PCMCIA memory cards. All new, blank diskettes or PCMCIA memory cards must be formatted before they can be used. fdformat formats and verifies the media, and indicates whether any bad sectors were encountered. All existing data on the diskette or PCMCIA memory card, if any, is destroyed by formatting. If no device name is given, fdformat uses the diskette as a default. By default, fdformat uses the configured capacity of the drive to format the diskette. A 3.5 inch high-density drive uses diskettes with a formatted capacity of 1.44 megabytes. A 5.25 inch high-density drive uses diskettes with a format- ted capacity of 1.2 megabytes. In either case, a density option does not have to be specified to fdformat . However, a density option must be specified when using a diskette with a lower capacity than the drive's default. Use the -H option to format high-density diskettes (1.44-megabyte capa- city) in an extra-high-density (ED) drive. Use the -D option, the -l option, or the -L option to format double- density (or low-density) diskettes (720KB capacity) in an HD or ED drive. To format medium-density diskettes (1.2- megabyte capacity), use the -M option with -t nec (this is the same as using the -m option with -t nec). Extended density uses double-sided, extended-density (or extra-high-density) (DS/ED) diskettes. Medium and high den- sities use the same media: double-sided, high-density (DS/HD) diskettes. Double (low) density uses double-sided, double-density (DS/DD) diskettes. Substituting diskettes of one density for diskettes of either a higher or lower den- sity generally does not work. Data integrity cannot be assured whenever a diskette is formatted to a capacity not matching its density. A PCMCIA memory card with densities from 512 KBytes to 64 MBytes may be formatted. fdformat writes new identification and data fields for each sector on all tracks unless the -x option is specified. For SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 1 User Commands fdformat(1) diskettes, each sector is verified if the -v option is specified. After formatting and verifying, fdformat writes an operating-system label on block 0. Use the -t dos option (same as the -d option) to put an MS-DOS file system on the diskette or PCMCIA memory card after the format is done. Use the -t nec option with the -M option (same as the -m option) to put an NEC-DOS file system on a diskette. Otherwise, fdformat writes a SunOS label in block 0.OPTIONS
The following options are supported: -b label Labels the media with volume label. A SunOS volume label is restricted to 8 characters. A DOS volume label is restricted to 11 upper-case characters. -B filename Installs special boot loader in filename on an MS- DOS diskette. This option is only meaningful when the -d option (or -t dos) is also specified. -D Formats a 720KB (3.5 inch) or 360KB (5.25 inch) double-density diskette (same as the -l or -L options). This is the default for double-density type drives. It is needed if the drive is a high- or extended-density type. -e Ejects the diskette when done. This feature is not available on all systems. -E Formats a 2.88-megabyte (3.5 inch) extended-density diskette. This is the default for extended-density type drives. -f Force. Do not ask for confirmation before starting format. -H Formats a 1.44-megabyte (3.5 inch) or 1.2-megabyte (5.25 inch) high-density diskette. This is the default for high-density type drives; it is needed if the drive is the extended-density type. -M Writes a 1.2-megabyte (3.5 inch) medium-density for- mat on a high-density diskette (use only with the -t nec option). This is the same as using -m. This feature is not available on all systems. SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 2 User Commands fdformat(1) -q Quiet; do not print status messages. -t dos Installs an MS-DOS file system and boot sector for- matting. This is equivalent to the DOS format command or the -d option. -t nec Installs an NEC-DOS file system and boot sector on the disk after formatting. This should be used only with the -M option. This feature is not available on all systems. -U Performs umount on any file systems and then formats. See mount(1M). -v Verifies each block of the diskette after the format. -x Skips the format, and only writes a SunOS label or an MS-DOS file system.OPERANDS
The following operands are supported: devname Replaces devname with rdiskette0 (systems without Volume Management) or floppy0 (systems with Volume Management) to use the first drive or rdiskette1 (sys- tems without Volume Management) or floppy1 (systems with Volume Management) to use the second drive. If devname is omitted, the first drive, if one exists, is used. For PCMCIA memory cards, replace devname with the device name for the PCMCIA memory card which resides in /dev/rdsk/cNtNdNsN or /dev/dsk/cNtNdNsN. If devname is omitted, the default diskette drive, if one exists, is used. If devname is omitted, the default diskette drive, if one exists, will be used. N represents a decimal number and can be speci- fied as follows: c N Controller N tN Technology type N: 0x1 ROM 0x2 OTPROM 0x3 EPROM 0x4 EEPROM 0x5 FLASH 0x6 SRAM SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 3 User Commands fdformat(1) 0x7 DRAM dN Technology region in type N. sN Slice N. The following options are provided for compatibility with previous versions of fdformat. Their use is discouraged. -d Formats an MS-DOS floppy diskette or PCMCIA memory card (same as -t dos). This is equivalent to the MS- DOS FORMATcommand. -l Formats a 720KB (3.5 inch) or 360KB (5.25 inch) double-density diskette (same as -D or -L). This is the default for double-density type drives; it is needed if the drive is the high- or extended- density type. -L Formats a 720KB (3.5 inch) or 360KB (5.25 inch) double-density diskette (same as -l or -D). This is the default for double-density type drives. -m Writes a 1.2-megabyte (3.5 inch) medium- density for- mat on a high-density diskette (use only with the- t nec option). This is the same as using -M. This feature is not available on all systems.FILES
/vol/dev/diskette0 Directory providing block device access for the media in floppy drive 0. /vol/dev/diskette0 Directory providing character device access for the media in floppy drive 0. /vol/dev/aliases/floppy0 Symbolic link to the character device for the media in floppy drive 0. /dev/rdiskette Directory providing character device access for the media in the primary floppy drive, usually drive 0. /vol/dev/dsk/cNt NdNsN Directory providing block device access for the PCMCIA memory card. See OPERANDS for a description of N. SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 4 User Commands fdformat(1) /vol/dev/rdsk/cNt NdNsN Directory providing character device access for the PCMCIA memory card. See OPERANDS for a description of N. /vol/dev/aliases/pcmemS Symbolic link to the character device for the PCMCIA memory card in socket S where S represents a PCMCIA socket number. /dev/rdsk/cNt NdNsN Directory providing character device access for the PCMCIA memory card. See OPERANDS for a description of N. /dev/dsk/cNt NdNsN Directory providing block device access for the PCMCIA memory card. See OPERANDS for a description of N.ATTRIBUTES
See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attri- butes: ____________________________________________________________ | ATTRIBUTE TYPE | ATTRIBUTE VALUE | |_____________________________|_____________________________| | Availability | SUNWcsu | |_____________________________|_____________________________|SEE ALSO
cpio(1), eject(1), tar(1), volcancel(1), volcheck(1), vol- missing(1), volrmmount(1), mount(1M), newfs(1M), prtvtoc(1M), rmmount(1M), vold(1M), rmmount.conf(4), vold.conf(4), attributes(5), pcfs(7FS), volfs(7FS) IA Only fd(7D)NOTES
A diskette or PCMCIA memory card containing a ufs file sys- tem created on a SPARC based system (by using fdformat and newfs(1M)), is not identical to a diskette or PCMCIA memory card containing a ufs file system created on an IA based system. Do not interchange ufs diskettes or memory cards between these platforms; use cpio(1) or tar(1) to transfer files on diskettes or memory cards between them. A diskette or PCMCIA memory card formatted using the -t dos option (or -d) for MS-DOS does not have the necessary system files, and is therefore not bootable. Trying to boot from it on a PC produces the following message: SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 5 User Commands fdformat(1) Non-System disk or disk error. Replace and strike any key when ready BUGS Currently, bad sector mapping is not supported on floppy diskettes or PCMCIA memory cards. Therefore, a diskette or memory cards is unusable if fdformat finds an error (bad sector). SunOS 5.8 Last change: 16 Mar 2000 6