Jan 15, 2019 the main reason for formatting a usb drive as fat32 on a mac is that you want to be able to use the drive on a windows pc, as well as a mac perhaps to transfer files between the two machines. If you are techy and use windows and mac computers frequently, then you might need to transfer data between mac and pc. How to format an external hard drive or usb flash drive. Steps for hard drive or usb flash drive formatting. If succeeded, you can use the usb drive with fat32 file system to store data again. Refer to detailed steps of using both tools for fat32 format. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 on mac easily.
Next, drag the usb data to a safe location for backuprecovery measures before. Formatting our 64gb usb drive took almost over an hour, and weve heard some people complain that it can take many hours. The main reason for formatting a usb drive as fat32 on a mac is that you want to be able to use the drive on a windows pc, as well as a mac perhaps to transfer files between the two machines. Time machine, however, gives you the possibility to create an automatic backup of the data on your hard drive before formatting it.
Easeus partition master free is more than just a disk formatting tool. Which external hard disk format fat32 or apple community. How to share an external drive between a mac and a pc. Also when we buy a new usb or hard drive, it often comes with windows compatible not the mac so formatting it even needed in this case. If we are planning to sell, donate or dispose our usb flash drive or external hard drive to another person, we should format them to clean up all data, even this is also an. For a hard drive to be able to be read and written to in both a pc and mac computer, it must be formatted to exfat or fat32 file format. Format an exfat external hard drive to fat32 with easeus. Format external driveusb exfat in windows 10 in simple steps. Use the exfat file system and never format your external drive again. External hard drive is popular storage device and it can be used to store all kinds of digital information such as images, documents, apps, emails, etc.
Should you choose fat32 or ntfs while formatting the usb flash drive. Lacie lac9000298 rugged mini 2tb external hard drive portable hdd usb 3. Format usb flash drive external hard drive and permanently wipe data on macos catalina. If you have a newer version of macbook or macbook pro then you would need to use a usb c to usb a adapters since the recent one only has usb c ports. Formatting in context of usb or hard drives means deleting everything from that drive and rebuilding the file system so that we can use it with an operating system.
Dont know how to format portable hard drive for mac and pc. Formatting a disk using windows maxes out the partition at 32gb, but not if the formatting is done using mac os x. Format to fat32 for usb or external hard drive in windows 10. It lets you create, delete, and clone partitions in addition to formatting hard drives to chosen formats. This thing is still unknown for many users but doesnt worry its not complex. You can format the external hard drive or usb drive to make it compatible with both mac and windows machines. Format mac hard drive with time machine formatting an external hard drive with time machine is as easy as formatting it with disk utility. Here, we are going to learn the procedure to format a usb drive and an external hard drive on mac. So, if you have got your hands on a drive which is formatted as fat32 of any other format instead of mac os extended or apfs, then you should go through this article. In the format partition section, select the file system.
This also allows you to restore time machine backups on windows. In this guide, well show you how to format an external hard drive so you can not only get rid of the. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 on mac easily recoverit. How to format usb drives on windows 10 make tech easier. Dec, 2019 you can format the external hard drive or usb drive to make it compatible with both mac and windows machines.
For whatever reason, the option to format usb drives larger than 32gb with the fat32 file system isnt present in the regular windows format tool. Directions for creating a usb drive tesla motors club. You can format a fat32 usb drive on a mac using disk utility. Apr 16, 2020 no matter whats your reason to format your hard drive to fat32, youve landed in the right place. Windows cant normally read mac formatted drives, and will offer to erase them instead.
If you want to use your usb drives or hard drive on both the mac and windows pc, then formatting the drives to fat32 is the best option to go for. In most cases, it should only take a few minutes but it also depends on how large your external hard drive is. How to convert a macformatted drive to a windows drive. The fat32format utility has been around for a long time and it lets you quickly format any of your external hard drives to fat32. How to format a flash drive with a mac to fat32 techwalla. Free download disk formatting software for mac to easily format mac hard drive, format external hard drive, usb, memory card under mac os. This works well with the car but the drive cannot be read by a mac. This drive is 1t formatted in fat32 and contains some data.
Format drive to exfat in windows 10 so it is readandwrite in mac os as well. How to format usb drives larger than 32gb with fat32 on windows. I copied over all my important data from mac and ubuntu laptop in my seagate 1tb hard disk and hp 32 gb pen drive, both formatted as fat32 so that mac, ubuntu and windows can access. And we usually perform formatting in our usb or external hard. Learn how to convert fat32 to ntfs without losing data on internal hdd, external hard drive or usb drive using cmd and professional tool in windows 7810. How to recover lost data after formatting a usb drive to fat32 on mac. Backup your files before performing these steps this lee sapara with a 30 second short video on formatting a usb drive to. Format usb drive, external hard drive on macos catalina. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Formatting a hard drive can change the file system to make it compatible with your computers. For apple mac users, the easier way to format usb flash drive to fat32 is using the disk utility. As earlier stated, you need to first back up your usb drive before formatting the drive as you may not be able to recover the contents again. If youre using a windows computer to format external hard drive for ps4 or any other storage device for that matter such as a usb flash drive, sd card, or even an internal drive, youll get three options. Use the exfat file system and never format your external.
To sum up, it is easy to format an external hard drive for both mac and windows pc. Here is everything you should know about windows 10 format disk fat32. Smaller external hard drives, ssds, and usb flash keys format quickly, while a larger hard drive may take a while longer. Here we will explain reasons and give answers to whether you should format usb drive to fat32 or ntfs with the best usb format tool.
The best way to do it is with a drive formatted as fat32. The videos below demonstrate the complete process of formatting an external hard drive for full mac os x compatibility, this uses the. I know mac operating system doesnt fully support ntfs formatted drive. That seems to be contradictory behavior to the information on this page.
But as of right now the time capsule only recognises the drive if i format it as mac os extended. To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow these steps. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x. Click on the erase button to format usb flash drive or external hard drive. Do you know what is the best file system for a usb drive. Sep 05, 2011 very easy way to format an external hard drive into fat32 with a mac using the disk utility. Usb drive, hard disk, and other external devices on mac. Usb external drive formatted in fat32 is not displayed in. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x admfactory. To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow.
The drive will now be formatted for use by windows systems. Now, you can follow the steps to be highlighted below to get it successfully formatted. Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. If you know youre going to use a drive on both mac and windows, you. How to format a hard drive with ease in windows 1087. How you format a mac hard drive is entirely dependent on what kind of drive you plan on formatting. Here provides you two methods to formatting external hard drive for mac and pc. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in.
Silicon power 1tb ultra slim armor a75 shockproofantiscratch usb 3. But compared with formatting, an ntfs for mac driver like iboysoft ntfs for mac is a better and feasible solution. Feb 21, 2012 looking to share an external hard drive between a mac and pc. The first step is to connect the hard drive or usb key to the mac. Aug 26, 2019 best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in windows 710. Format to fat32 for usb or external hard drive in windows. So, lets start to learn how to format the drive to fat32 format and what to do if you lost your important files after the drive formatting.
Now your external drive has been formatted to be fully compatible with apple macos, and you can edit, read, and write files to it as you want. Oct 29, 2019 even if you try to format fat32 drive on mac, you might end up causing more issues. Cant format external drive as fat32 apple community. After removing the usb write protection, you can apply any one of the aboveprovided solutions in part 1 to format your usb drive to fat32. If youre using a mac, you dont need special software to format a usb drive in the fat32 format. Dec 25, 2016 if you want to transfer files from a mac to windows pc and vice versa using an external portable hard drive then you have to have the external drive formatted in a file system both oss can read. Jul 24, 2017 you can format usb drives larger than 32gb with fat32 by using the format command in powershell or command promptthe command uses the same syntax in both tools.
How to format seagate drive for mac and pc quickly and securely. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. Compare with the other commonly used ntfs file system on a flash drive, fat32 has a compatibility advantage across many operating systems. Hard drives, which are the primary storage devices on our computer, need to be formatted before we can use them.
Most usb flash drives on sale are designed to work with windows operating systems that run on fat32. How to format external hard drive to use on mac and pc. If your external hard drive is readonly on mac because it was formatted with microsoft ntfs file system, you can free download iboysoft ntfs for mac and feel free to copywriteeditdelete and transfer files on this drive without formatting it. I have a 4tb gpt external usb hard drive that i need to format as fat32. Use fat32format to format your external hard drives.
This will make it readable by both macs and microsoft windows computers. So you figured, fine, ill just get an external hard drive. Aug 29, 2016 you have options when it comes to formatting a usb drive for use in a pc. From what i understand, windows doesnt always like the way macs do the formatting on some larger drives, though, so give it a try and if your windows machines dont like it, just format the drive with windows.
This article shows you how to format an external hard drive via different methods, and you can follow these methods to format external hard drive for pc, mac or linux. What can you do when mistakenly formatting a hard drive. This wikihow teaches you how to change an external usb hard drives format on windows and mac computers. Use the wizard to create a partition with the ntfs or fat32 file system. Once the formatting process is finished, you can store the files in this newly formatted usb flash drive or external hard drive. How to format external hard drive to fat32 in windows. Online shopping from a great selection at electronics store. As the internal storage is not much, i am thinking if buying an external hard disk. Please remember that all data will be deleted from the drive, so make sure you have made a backup. Buying and using an external hd is one thing, getting the most out of it is quite another. Ill store my media files on it while keeping the internal hard drive clear for apps and the os.
Best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in windows 710. Fat32 has several limitations, including a 4 gb perfile limit. Mac devices on the other hand run on either mac os extended or apfs. Now you are sure not to be formatting a wrong disk this way. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. When youre re formatting a hard drive, windows will ask you what format to use. How to format external hard drive, usb flash drive on mac. If you are formatting a larger hard drive, the process will take much longer as compared to a smaller hard drive or usb derive. If your drive is an apfs format or a mac os format you can format your drive easily but if it is a fat32 format this may be a problem. No worry, actually it is not impossible to realize it no matter you use an external or internal drive of your windows system. I really would like to have a usb drive that plays well with the chromebook, car and macintosh. The first format, fat32, is fully compatible with mac os x, though with.
How to format external hard drive for pc, mac and linux. Recover deleted, lost or formatted files in windows pc and usb drives. Fat32 is a solid file system for external drives, so long as you dont plan to use files over 4gb in size. Dec 29, 2015 follow these instructions if you plan to share an external hard drive between pc and mac computers. Now, lets take a look at some ways you can format your usb drive on windows 10. If you want to create multiple partitions on your external hard drive in fact, you should for better file organization, heres a stepbystep guide. Mar 22, 2012 the best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. Format your external drive with exfat for both mac and.
This page tells how to format a usb or external hard drive into fat32 and resolve the issue of being unable to format usb to fat32. There will be no space wasted by protected mac partitions. My other external drive works perfectly on the same usb port but this other drive is formatted in ntfs. Format your portable hard drive to fat32 and exfat can achieve the purpose of use it in both windows computer and mac computer. How to format usb drive or external hard drive on mac. This tutorial explains how to format external hard drive usb flash drive exfat in windows 10. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. How to format an external hard drive for mac and pc. Nov 21, 2017 and we usually perform formatting in our usb or external hard drive when we want to get rid of viruses, or we want to clean the disk as it was when we purchased it.
This is the easiest way and simply requires you to plug in your usb drive, open the windows file explorer and right click your drive to view a number of actions that you can perform. Only after formatting it, they would realize that they had lost important data. Apr 14, 2020 once a fat32 or exfat partition is created on your external hard drive, you can share it on both mac and windows pc. You can use apples builtin disk utility before you format the drive, make sure theres nothing valuable on it thats not also backed up elsewhere, since all data will be lost. How to format usb drives larger than 32gb with fat32 on. Rightclick on command prompt and select run as administrator. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with windows and mac. Windows 10 not recognizing my fat32 usb hard disk and pen.
For instance, is the hard drive internal or external. Please guide which format of external hard disk fat32 or ntfs is compatible with my mac. Feb 08, 2020 now your external drive has been formatted to be fully compatible with apple macos, and you can edit, read, and write files to it as you want. Rightclick in the unallocated space on the initialized disk and select new simple volume. Further read and know more complete details on formatting external hard drive for mac. How to format seagate drive for mac and pc quickly and.
From what i understand, windows doesnt always like the way mac s do the formatting on some larger drives, though, so give it a try and if your windows machines dont like it, just format the drive with windows. We here will show you the full guides on how to format fat32 and ntfs drives on mac as an example. Even if you try to format fat32 drive on mac, you might end up causing more issues. Though this format has some limitations, it enjoys nearly universal support. How to format an external hard drive with pictures wikihow. You can, however, backup an apfs formatted disk to a mac os extended time machine drive. The downside to doing this is that it can take a long time. Follow these instructions if you plan to share an external hard drive between pc and mac computers.
Windows 10 not recognizing my fat32 usb hard disk and pen drives i have got a new thinkpad which runs windows 10, before this i used to have mac and linux laptops. Rightclick on windows icon, select search and type. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods. I want to know which file system i should apply for the seagate external hard drive so that it can be compatible both with mac and pc. Nov 21, 2019 windows 10 will begin formatting the usb flash drive or external hard drive into fat32. Check out the details for how to format usb flash drive on mac easily. Many computer users who use a removable flash drive have the demand for formatting it to the fat32 file system. How to format an external hard drive the easy way in 2020. A drive can be formatted with exfat using either a windows or a mac computer. Connect the usb fash drive to the mac os x computer. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and.
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