Fat32, ntfs, and exfat are the three file systems created by microsoft which used to store data on storage devices. Use the exfat file system and never format your external. We compare performance between fat32, ntfs, and the newer exfat file systems on two popular ssd architectures. Also if hs your internal drive happens to be formatted hfs journaled it will not recognize or read correctly any external drive formatted in apfs.
You can disable core storage to solve this problem. This software is completely free, but dont expect anything too fancy. On macos high sierra, its used on all mechanical and hybrid drives, and older versions of macos used it by default for all drives. Mac os native format is a bit too specific, as it does seem that there are more windows computers out there in the wild than macs. I have previously formatted it to fat32 in windows. Disk utility in macos high sierra or later can erase most disks and volumes for mac using either the newer apfs apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it automatically chooses a compatible format for you. Las garna var guide for hur du formaterar en extern harddisk eller ett usbminne for att fungera bade i windows och mac os x med just exfat. The tech world faces a problem mac hard disk not working on windowspc and windowspc hard disk not working on mac. This format was optimized to minimize the amount of drive storage space used for a single file the previous version used sectors loosely, leading to rapidly lost drive space. Different file systems for those who dont know what these are, they are the different file systems for storage devices like hdd, sd card, flash sticks ntfs new technology file system. Hfs plus mac os extended hfsx mac os extended casesensitive write access. It is an upgrade from the original mac os standard format known as hfs hfs standard, or hierarchical.
Ntfs is very stable, much more than the predecessor fat32. I dont know ntfss layout microsoft hasnt released the specs to it. Ntfs, exfat, fat32, ext4 file systems explained utilize. Hfs aterstallning pa mac os x ar enkelt om du hade haft disk drills recovery vault eller guaranteed recovery funktioner som. Ntfs, exfat, fat32, ext4 file systems explained utilize windows. When a volume is mounted in write mode, you can do everything with files and folders it contains. You wont have a lot of features at your disposal and you cant use it to write on macformatted drives. By jesus vigo jesus vigo is a network administrator by day and owner of mac jesus, llc, specializing in mac and windows integration and providing solutions. If you wish to make the most of your apple device, then you need to convert hfs to apfs. Though you may want to go with apfs instead as thats the newer file system from apple with a few extras like integrity checks and healing abilities built in. Not a big situation or anything but am realizing i might have passed on some bad info. Fat32 has some serious limitationsindividual files can only be up to 4gb in. Fat32 vs windows ntfs vs mac hfs vs exfat for all my external.
Theres one significant limitation to this though a fat32 formatted drive cannot take a file larger than 4gb. Mac os extended was the default file system used by every mac from 1998 until 2017, when apfs replaced it. Which format to use exfat vs fat32 vs hfs apple community. In addition to the protective side of things discussed above, is the fact that a hfs filesystem has all the mac os x hooks built in. Oct 16, 2019 but hey, if you got your mac and pc within the past two decades, then its safe to say that fat32 vs exfat has a clear winner.
There will be in having a ntfs disk and share it between both os w10 and mac os x. This is not healthy specially if you have only 1gb free, youll have to repeat this procedure 160 times, but you asked if it was possible. Microsoft exfatntfs for usb by paragon software is a convenient method for transferring files between android devices and removable storage media via usb onthego. Fat32 surmounted the limited volume size offered by the fat16 file system. Anytime i copy to a fat32 drive on a mac it takes 10 times longer. Best for mechanical drives, or drives used with older macos versions.
The best format for your external hard drive the hellotech blog. I night have hinted at some wrong information in a previous post. Apfs vs ntfs vs macos extended vs hfs mac optimization. One of the oldest file systems today, fat32 works with all versions of mac and windows operating systems. Neither windows or mac os has a native ext2 ext3 or ext4 support. This is the required format for a bootable mac hard drive. Different file systems and which one works best where. I know that everyone seems to recommend fat32 as the preferred format for rekordbox and cdjs. File system formats available in disk utility on mac. For apple mac users, the easier way to format usb flash drive to fat32 is using the disk utility. In this post, we will make you familiar with a smart and seamless way to convert hfs to apfs. Its worth noting that starting with mac os high sierra 10. Just got a new external hard drive lacie 250gb, and have learned that the two file system formats seem to be completely incompatible. When youre reformatting a hard drive, windows will ask you what format to use.
Which mac file system is best for an external drive. Wondering what the best format for your new external hard drive is. Jan 08, 2018 mac os extended was introduced in 1998 for mac os 8. Interoperability of fat32, exfat, hfs apple community. But if you didnt foresee that, you may have formatted your drive with apples hfs plus, which windows cant read by default. It offers a maximum file size of two gigabytes and a maximum volume size of two terabytes. As fat32 is a windows filesystem anyway, the only reason to use it with a mac would be on an external drive, which needs to be accessible by both platforms. It will not touch any windows drives such as fat32 or ntfs so that rules that out. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Mar 22, 2010 exfat vs fat 32 vs ntfs vs hfs vs ext2 22032010 at 6. File system formats available in disk utility on mac apple. Microsoft ntfs is one of the primary windows file systems.
Feb 03, 2020 disk utility in macos high sierra or later can erase most disks and volumes for mac using either the newer apfs apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it automatically chooses a compatible format for you. Disk accesses are a lot faster, and fat32 doesnt have journaling. Solved external hdd compatibility on macwindows exfat. Should i have my external hard drives in each format. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x. It is an upgrade from the original mac os standard format known as hfs hfs standard, or hierarchical file system, supported by mac os 8. Hfs or the hierarchical file system was introduced by apple in 1985 for use in mac os. So if exfat is the new fat32 why is it only intended to work with ssd then. To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow these steps. Use the exfat file system and never format your external drive again.
To this day, it remains the default file system for mechanical and hybrid hard drives, both while installing macos and while formatting external drives. Disk utility on mac supports several file system formats. It replaced the hierarchical file system hfs as the primary file system of apple computers with the 1998 release of mac os 8. Im using macdrive on this pc laptop i got, but now id like to go in the reverse direction and transfer files directly from an ntfs formatted drive to my. Its also possible to read and write apfs drives in windows. Fat32 vs windows ntfs vs mac hfs vs exfat for all my. Fat32 and ntfs are the most common formats, but whats the difference. Aterstalla ntfs, fat, fat32, ext3ext4, hfs pa mac os disk drill. Tuxera ntfs is the sw i use to write in ntfs disks. It mounts as two volumes on macs but windows only sees the fat32 portion. As every os has its particular and defined file system choice you cannot modify that.
In addition to the protective side of things discussed above, is the fact that a hfs filesystem has all the mac os x hooks built in for automated indexing, backup, version control and so on that would not be possible on a fat32 enabled filesystem. The 32bit file allocation table was released in august 1995, with the launch of the windows 95 operating system. After connecting external storage media directly to the android device user can work with photos, videos, presentations. So on a windows pc, you can read and write to a fat formatted drive. Here are your macos file system options and how to pick the best one for you. Dec 08, 2015 different file systems and which one works best where. Fat32 allows you to store files of size up to 4gb and the maximum disk size can go up to 16tb. Connect the usb fash drive to the mac os x computer. Max volume size of 8eb exabytes max file size of 8eb. The difference between ft32, ntfs, and exfat is the storage size that the file. Ill be transfering between pc and mac, and dont want just one big fat32 drive too many limitations. If you need to write files that will be larger than 4 gb, then fat32 is out. Fat32 remains a popular filesystem due to its high level of compatibility across operating systems and is still widely used to format usb flash drives, memory cards and some other external storage devices.
The macos high sierra, however, only utilizes this file system for hybrid and mechanical drivesy. Ask a mac owner or those who run linux or a variation thereof. Fat32 works for both oses, but has a 4gb size limit per. However, you need thirdparty apps to do that, and, at the moment, none of them are free. For those who dont know what these are, they are the different file systems for storage devices like hdd, sd card, flash sticks. Jun 20, 2018 the tech world faces a problem mac hard disk not working on windowspc and windowspc hard disk not working on mac. This also allows you to restore time machine backups on windows.
If you work on a mac computer and need to read or write files from hdd, ssd or a flash drive formatted under windows, you need microsoft ntfs for mac by paragon software. Afps and mac os extended only work on macs and cant be used for other operating systems. I had a bunch of media on a fat32 firewireusb disk, and i wanted to boot the mini from. This format gives you the ability to very easily move a drive between the two compute platforms. Dec 21, 2018 fat32, ntfs, and exfat are the three file systems created by microsoft which used to store data on storage devices. Next i tried to use the gparted live cd to format it into regular hfs after reading aces post. These drives then require reformatting on the mac to exfat or fat32, etc. Mar 15, 2018 windows cant normally read macformatted drives, and will offer to erase them instead. When i migrated to a mac, i wanted to do the same thing. The best format for external hard drives if you want to format your external hard drive to work with mac and windows computers, you should use exfat.
985 1515 282 103 976 881 436 495 1576 132 476 866 686 374 1122 784 1571 1165 920 99 814 1012 199 978 1362 1336 1530 804 1578 1596 133 656 592 1105 1394 1092 1283 768 875 833 701 1263 1346 651