During the installation phase, you will be presented with a menu asking, "Where do you want to install Windows?" (or the equivalent on macOS or Linux). This screen displays a list of all connected drives and their respective partitions, often labeled as Drive 0 Partition 1 , Drive 1 Partition 1 , and so on.
A clean install does not automatically wipe all drives; it primarily targets the specific drive or partition you select during the installation process. While it erases everything on that chosen partition—including the operating system, applications, and personal files—data on other physical drives or separate partitions typically remains untouched. Clean Install vs. Reset
Disconnect all external hard drives, USB flash drives, and memory cards before booting into the installation media. 3. Label Your Drives Beforehand does clean install wipe all drives exclusive
Select the partitions belonging to your old system drive (typically Drive 0).
Your other drives (Games, Photos, Backups) will appear in this same list. As long as you do not delete or format the partitions associated with those drives, their data remains 100% intact. The Risks: Where Things Can Go Wrong During the installation phase, you will be presented
If you select Drive 0 and click "Format" or "Delete" on the partitions, only Drive 0 is affected. Your secondary drives (Drive 1, Drive 2) sit there, untouched and invisible to the formatting process unless you manually select them and hit delete.
The short answer is: By default, it only targets the specific partition or drive where you choose to install the operating system. 3. Automatic Drive Reordering
Never modify operating system files without a backup. Copy your critical files to an external hard drive or a secure cloud storage service before proceeding.
A clean install does not wipe all drives by default. Whether you are using Windows, macOS, or Linux, the installation process only affects the specific drive or partition you select. Your other drives remain completely untouched as long as you pay attention during the installation.
If you click on a secondary drive partition and select "Delete" or "Format," that data is gone instantly. Step-by-Step Guide to Safely Running a Clean Install
The installation wizard allows users to delete partitions to create unallocated space. Clicking "Delete" on a partition belonging to a secondary backup drive will instantly destroy the file system structure on that drive. 3. Automatic Drive Reordering