h3. Overview This low level application is used to prepare a disc for use with FileCore, RISC OS' native filing system. For floppy discs, see [[*Format]]. h3. Installation Instructions !HForm is usually installed in '$.Utilities.Caution' in the standard HardDisc4 build. h3. Using !HForm Pressing 'Escape' at any question to abort the process. # Plug the device in. # Run !HForm from '$.Utilities.Caution', it can be run either from the command prompt or by double clicking on its icon. # HForm will prompt you for the device type.<br />Press *S* for a SCSI (or USB-connected) device (disc, thumb drive, card reader).<br />Press *M* for a memory card in an onboard SD card slot<br />Press *A* (ADFS) for an onboard IDE or SATA disc drive. # Now you get a list of all available drives of that type. Look for your drive/card, enter its number and press Return. # Now HForm will ask you for the disc shape (or formatting parameters) - normally these can just be confirmed since HForm calculates them automatically. # HForm will now ask for a defect list. This is used to skip bad sectors, simply press 'A' followed by Return assuming no bad sectors exist on the media. # You will be prompted if you want to (I)nitialise or (F)ormat the disc. Most disc controllers don't allow low level formatting, so 'I' followed by Return is most common. # HForm will ask you if you want to do a 'soak test' of that drive. A (S)hort soak test is advisable: this performs one scan of the disc surface. # You will now have to decide if the disc should be bootable. There is only one bootable disc in a system (the one with !Boot on it) so normally press 'N' and return. A disc can be made bootable at a later date by using [[*Opt 4]]. # Now you are asked if you want to use long file names. Say (Y)es and press return. # You're at the final question! Confirm by pressing 'Y' and Return that you want to format that drive. # For drives larger than 512MB, once formatting is complete, accept the allocation size that HForm proposes. h3. Issues * The first prompt asks if the device is connected by SCSI or SDFS, and offers *S* and *M* as possible responses. It is not immediately obvious that *S* means SCSI, and *M* means "memory card" (i.e. SDFS). If you are experiencing other problems with this software, first check to see if a ticket has been raised on the "Bugs":/tracker/tickets/ page. You may also want to visit the "Bugs":/forum/forums/4 forum. If you have a general query related to the software, you can enquire on the "Community Support":/forum/forums/11 forum. h3. History of the component To view the release history for versions available on the ROOL web site, visit the "GitLab Commits page":CommitURL (releases are "tagged" with the version number). h3. Obtaining the software This software is usually supplied as part of the standard "HardDisc4":/content/downloads/common build. The latest version of the software can be obtained from the "Packages":Packages server. To obtain the source code, visit the "GitLab source":SourceURL page. --- [CommitURL]https://gitlab.riscosopen.org/RiscOS/Sources/Utilities/HForm/commits/master [SourceURL]https://gitlab.riscosopen.org/RiscOS/Sources/Utilities/HForm [Packages]https://packages.riscosopen.org/rool/DiscDetails.html#HForm