However, accidents happen. Here is a comprehensive guide on how a clean install works and how to ensure you only wipe the specific drive you want.
When you perform a clean install using bootable media (like a USB drive): Target Selection does clean install wipe all drives exclusive
This is where Windows or macOS lives. During a clean install, this partition is formatted. Everything on it—your documents, your desktop files, and your installed programs—will be deleted. However, accidents happen
The exclusive truth is that a clean install is surgically precise, not a nuclear bomb. It only destroys what you point it at. The horror stories of "The clean install wiped all three of my drives!" are almost always user error (clicking the wrong disk) or a malicious OEM script. During a clean install, this partition is formatted
It's crucial to understand that while your files on other drives will remain safe, many applications store critical data and configuration files on the system drive (C:). Even if you have installed a game or large software program to your D:\ drive, a clean install of Windows will wipe out all the registry entries and necessary data on the C:\ drive, which will likely break those applications. Therefore, you should plan to reinstall all your programs after a clean Windows installation.
Select the resulting "Unallocated Space" on your system drive and click to begin the installation. What Happens to Secondary Drives After the Installation?
Once you have deleted all partitions on that disk, it will appear as a single "Unallocated Space" entry. You then select this unallocated space and click "Next." The Windows installer will then automatically create the necessary partitions (like System Reserved and the primary OS partition), format them, and proceed with the installation. This entire process effectively wipes the entire selected disk and prepares it for a fresh start.