First of all, it would help if you posted ALL of your system specs; ie exact mb, exact ram, exact cpu, etc, etc. If this is a big box system, then post the exact make and model#
Next I would do the following;
1 Wipe [not format] the drive with many of the wiping programs available. Note have ONLY the drive you intend to wipe/install windows connected to the computer. It is not all that difficult to wipe the incorrect drive and lose backup data.
2 Once you have finished with the wipe, test the hd with the drive maker's diagnostic. You download this from whomever made the drive ie WD, Seagate, etc. Since you do not have an os installed, you will need the boot version of the diagnostic.
3 Once you have wiped the drive AND it has passed all tests [both long and short tests] you can now attempt to install windows on the drive.
I use linux to secure erase or wipe a drive however dban will work for you and it is pretty easy to use.
http://www.dban.org/download
Next I would do the following;
1 Wipe [not format] the drive with many of the wiping programs available. Note have ONLY the drive you intend to wipe/install windows connected to the computer. It is not all that difficult to wipe the incorrect drive and lose backup data.
2 Once you have finished with the wipe, test the hd with the drive maker's diagnostic. You download this from whomever made the drive ie WD, Seagate, etc. Since you do not have an os installed, you will need the boot version of the diagnostic.
3 Once you have wiped the drive AND it has passed all tests [both long and short tests] you can now attempt to install windows on the drive.
I use linux to secure erase or wipe a drive however dban will work for you and it is pretty easy to use.
http://www.dban.org/download