# Loveletter virus and Reformatting
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loveletter-virus-and-reformatting/78481
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 28, 2001, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loveletter-virus-and-reformatting/78481 "2001-08-28T05:36:41Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@kgriffey79](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kgriffey79)
#### Post date: [August 28, 2001, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loveletter-virus-and-reformatting/78481/1 "2001-08-28T05:36:41Z")
K, I got that virus right? There are A LOT of infected files, over 7,000 (that is a lot right)? It wants me to delete those files before I run the diagnostic to rid the me of the virus. Well, aren’t a lot of those files in programs that will now need to be reinstalled? Should not I just reformat my hard drive? I have only done this on a mac before. How do I do it on a PC? This may sound extremely naive, I could probably figure it out and do it, but I am sure I would do ONE little thing wrong. Do I need to make a startup disk? How do I do that? Don’t I just use the 3.5 disk they gave me? Plz help
thanks,
Matt Shepard
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### Author:  [@light\_strand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/light_strand)
#### Post date: [August 28, 2001, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/loveletter-virus-and-reformatting/78481/2 "2001-08-28T23:49:49Z")
Try here: [http://vil.mcafee.com/dispVirus.asp?virus\_k=98621&](http://vil.mcafee.com/dispVirus.asp?virus_k=98621&)