Hard drive not recognized after format attempt

[rangerb]

I was given a used computer, so I decided to format the HD and start new. I used the XP disk included to attempt the format. All of my data was erased then it siad that it could not format. After rebooting, my computer now does not even recognize the HD at all. Help!

 

[briph]

Hello Rangerb,
Well I think you should use make full hard disk format with special soft like drive cleanser to remove everything from your HDD.
Or another way is put your HDD to another PC and try to format.
By the way, does BIOS detect the HDD?