Format Thumbdrive

[The_MaD_HaCkER]

Just found you guys and this sight looks GREAT!

I have been looking around and as I hit a problem decided to join and chime in. I have a 16 gig thumbdrive (usb) and I think that I have a windblows virus, I boot into linux from a different thumbdrive (was able to install linux using a Knoppix install on a 2 gig thumbdrive, very neet) but I need to know how to format a harddrive/thumbdrive. I can't get it to format using windblows, so I thought that I would do a lateral to linux and make this thumb a linux thumb too. When running linux and I plug in the thumb it shows up on the desktop, so I know that I can hit the right drive and I understand that you want to be very carefull about using a format command but I would like to be able to use the thing.

Thanks in advance
The MaD HaCkER

[rcgreen]

It depends on the file system you want to use.
Read the manpage for mkfs.
Also mkdosfs

These thumbdrives usually come with FAT32,
but I suppose you can change it if you want.
BTW, you should be able to format
it under Windows, or any other OS.

[reed9]

Most thumbdrives are pre-formatted as FAT32. I believe knoppix uses qtparted as a graphical partition tool, which is very easy to use. Manage Partitions for Free with QTParted - Solutions by PC Magazine

[The_MaD_HaCkER]

It depends on the file system you want to use.
Read the manpage for mkfs.
Also mkdosfs

These thumbdrives usually come with FAT32,
but I suppose you can change it if you want.
BTW, you should be able to format
it under Windows, or any other OS.

But you forget the virus, I think that it does not wish to go gently into that good night that's why I am attemping to do this end run.