# How long after swapping hard drives do you feel safe to reformat the old drive? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 9, 2012, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256 "2012-04-09T14:08:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/1 "2012-04-09T14:08:43Z")
About two weeks ago I cloned my boot drive to one with a larger capacity. The original configuration was an SSD boot and platter data drive (the new boot is SSD as well). Given the speed differences, I’d like to switch data to the old SSD, but will need to clear out most of its space. I can’t bring myself to format it. It’s probably an irrational block (both original and new drives have been backed up to external media and the new drive has been running without a hiccup), but I just can’t bring myself to let go of the nice, warm security blanket. They’re both Crucial drives, so it’s not like I expect the new one to fail, but … but I just can’t. Anyone else go through this? Is this latent pack-rattiness? Two weeks of use enough or do you wait a few months? ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/2 "2012-04-09T14:42:40Z")
I would have said one week. Your trepidation is based in fact, though. Many products exhibit a “bathtub curve” failure rate. That is, a possibly high “infant mortality” phase, then a long, low failure rate for their design life, then increasing failure rate as their components begin to fatigue. A week probably gets you past the infant mortality phase of a hard drive. And an SSD would probably get to the save zone even faster. ---
**Author:** ![Al\_Bundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@Al\_Bundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al_Bundy)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/3 "2012-04-09T14:49:50Z")
You are never save unless you have the drive backed up with a clone somewhere. If you do, feel free to format this extra drive now. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/4 "2012-04-09T15:05:29Z")
3 months. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2012, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/5 "2012-04-11T15:57:45Z")
I just put the old drive on a shelf, usually it’s too small to bother with anyway. When I really am ready to get rid of the drive I shoot it. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-after-swapping-hard-drives-do-you-feel-safe-to-reformat-the-old-drive/618256/6 "2012-04-11T16:35:49Z")
I normally do the same–upgraded storage usually so dwarfs the original that the original becomes superfluous. But that’s with normal (platter) drives. I now have an “extra” 128GB SSD that (when I’m comfortable), I’d get great use out of as a data drive.