Jul 15, 2009 format a drive for mac os x and windows. To help you do the same, we have come up with this detailed guide on how to format ssd on windows 10 and mac like a pro. Choosing the right format for your external hard drive b. This will prompt a new window asking you to select a partition style for your disk.
External data storage devices such as usb flash drives, external hard disk drives hdds, and solid state drives ssds provide one of the easiest ways to transfer files between separate computers without accessing the. Easily format external hard drive on windows or mac. Please see below on how to reformat your external hard drive on mac and windows. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods revealed. As complicated as that might sound, its not really difficult to format a hard drive in any version of windows. Partition a hard drive for macos time machine and windows 10 backups. Jan 17, 2019 starting clean how to format new hard drive on windows 10 formatting is an essential task before starting to use a new drive, and in this guide, well show you how to do it on windows 10. Well show you everything you need to know about the. How to format your hard drive seagate support canada. Thats all because its been initialized with windows nt file system ntfs, which is primarily for pcs. If youre going to be using the drive with a version of windows prior to windows vista, youre going to want to go with mbr. How to format external hard drive on windows or mac. 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. You can format an external hard drive or thumb drive to work seamlessly with both mac and windows by using the exfat file system.
There are a number of tools that can help you in this regard. Jan 23, 2020 typically, an external hard drive that works on a windows pc uses an ntfs file system. Save any files you need to another volume before formatting. You can format the external hard drive or usb drive to make it compatible with both mac and windows machines. However, this format doesnt support larger files, which can be problematic for transferring 4k videos and so on between macs and windows 10. For example, in the screenshot below, the mac formatted drive is disk 2. With exfat, you can store files of any size, and use it with any computer made in the last 20 years.
Both mac os x and windows allow users to format their hard drives using builtin utilities. Now connect the external hard drive to windows 8 computer and format it in fat32 file system. Whether you are trying to backup mac to an external hard drive, wipe out any personal information and sell the computer, or even use a new operating system, you need to format the hard drive on your mac or pc. The instructions below are for windows 10, but other versions of windows from windows 7 and up can also format an external drive as exfat for use with mac as well.
To format external drive to file system compatible with mac and pc, connect the drive to your computer and follow the detailed steps given below take formatting hard drive to exfat in windows 7 for example. Aug 16, 2019 in this guide, we show you virtually every method to format a usb flash drive and quickly erase its contents or fix data corruption and other issues using windows 10s builtin tools. Click go on the top tool bar, and select utilities. Buying an external hard drive is one of the best options for adding the storage space to the mac computer system. How to format a hard dr ive on mac to work on mac and pc. When youve plugged in your toshiba drive for the first time your mac may well ask you to format the drive.
How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac laptop mag. But before you can do anything, you need to make it clear that the hard. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. Aug 30, 2019 how to format an external hard drive on windows. How to format external hard drives on a mac sweetwater. You can select to use a fat, fat32, exfat, ntfs, or refs file system when formatting.
How to format external hard drives for mac and windows. Your exfatformatted drive or partition can now be used for both windows and mac. Insert the flash drive or hard drive you want to format for windows compatibility. Starting clean how to format new hard drive on windows 10 formatting is an essential task before starting to use a new drive, and in this guide, well show you how to do it on windows 10. Whether youre selling your computer, trying a new operating system, or setting up an external drive for backups, sometimes you need to completely erase and format a h ard drive. Video editors will often find that they need to share files between a pc and a mac. Thus in order to make the hard drive windows formatted, you have to convert the file system to ntfs or fat32. The exfat format supports virtually any size hard drive and file, unlike the outdated fat32 format. Choosing the right format for your external hard drive.
Now you would be able to use the external hard disk on both the computers. Dec 29, 2015 the instructions below are for windows 10, but other versions of windows from windows 7 and up can also format an external drive as exfat for use with mac as well. So if you are formatting a drive that has already been used, be sure to copy any files you will ever want to see again onto a computer or backup drive. Mar 15, 2018 rather than use a macformatted drive, you should get the important files off of it and use exfatformatted drives for moving data between macs and pcs. How you format a mac hard drive is entirely dependent on what kind of drive you plan on formatting.
How to partition and format your hard drive in windows pcworld. Step 2 follow the steps above to format the drive, and then you can use it with time machine on your mac system. Plug your hd into the mac and open disk utility, which can be accessed by searching for it in spotlight. Connect the external hard drive to your mac and copy the important data to the mac pc. While its convenient to purchase the hard drive that will work with your computer right out of the box, most external hard drives can also be reformatted so youre not limited to your initial choice.
Step 1 open finder, applications, then go to utilities and disk utility. External hard drives use either spinning disks or solid memory to save your files. Choose the exfat file system in the list and click start. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Next, open a command prompt window as administrator.
But somehow, macos doesnt allow you to write data to the drive. How to use toshiba external hard drive on mac solved. Mar 19, 2020 to format a hard drive means to erase any information on the drive and to set up a file system so your operating system can read data from, and write data to, the drive. How to format an external hard drive for mac and pc. Feb 08, 2012 to partition and format your drive, you can use windows builtin tool called disk management. So, if you want to use an external hard drive on both windows and mac, you need to format it to a filesystem that is compatible with windows pc and mac. This tool allows you to manage the partitions on drives connected to your computer internal ones or external ones. People might need to format a hard drive or an external hard drive in windows 10 for various reasons. Apple mac machines support a different file system. Step 1 open finder, applications, then go to utilities and disk utility step 2 follow the steps above to format the drive, and then you can use it with time machine on your mac system. However, fat32 can only support files up to 4 gb in size.
New apple devices will be formatted with apfs while old mac drives can use the hfs file system. Or you can use driver software to read and write to the drive. How to format external hard drive to use on mac and pc. The faster ssd drives on a mac may well use an apfs file system. The windows system uses a hard drive with a different file system than the mac systems. Mac can read all the file system formats including windows msdos, fat, fat32. The best news is that most devices included mac computers can read and write from fat32 devices. Format hard drive on windows 7 or earlier versions step 1 restart your computer and press f8 or del key to enter the bios settings. Just transfer all useful files out from the external hard drive to other devices on mac. How to convert a macformatted drive to a windows drive.
How to format drive with compatible file system for mac. Open the disk management tool by rightclicking this pc manage disk management. Convert formatted drive from mac to windows info remo. Both mac os x and windows also support the fat32 file system, but we dont recommend it for hard drives. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and. Using it, you can erase a hard drive, create new partitions, and even repair your disk as well.
Apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it automatically chooses a compatible format for you. Hard drive format for mac and pc both mac os x and windows allow users to format their hard drives using builtin utilities. Format your western digital my passport external hard drive to fat32 or exfat format so to transfer the data between a mac and windows system conveniently. How to format an external hard drive on windows and mac youtube. Formatting a disk or volume erases all the files on it. Typically, an external hard drive that works on a windows pc uses an ntfs file system.
Understanding hard drive partitioning with disk management. For instance, users want to write data to and read data from, to do a clean installation of the windows system, to get rid of a virus or malware, to erase the data before giving the drive to someone else or throwing it away, or some other reasons. Connect your external hard drive to your windows 10 pc. Format external hard drive with windows builtin tool. External hard drive compatible with mac and pc without. Therefore, when you format ssd on windows or mac, make sure that you follow the right protocols. Mac os journaled is the formatting option for mac and ntfs or msdoc is the formatting option for pc. Of course, if you have a backup already, ignore this step.
How to format a disk or drive in windows 10 format is the process of preparing a data storage device such as a hard disk drive, solidstate drive, or usb flash drive for initial use to accept windows files. Some people are asking for a way to format a hard drive for mac. Mar 22, 2012 the best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. But compared with formatting, an ntfs for mac driver like iboysoft ntfs for mac is a better and feasible solution. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods. Please keep in mind that reformatting will result in the loss of all the data on the hard drive so make sure you back up your data elsewhere before starting. To sum up, it is easy to format an external hard drive for both mac and windows pc. Partition a hard drive for macos time machine and windows. You can say no and just copy files off the drive onto your mac. If you buy a new external hard drive, you may notice that working between mac and pc is an often difficult but it doesnt need to be. External data storage devices such as usb flash drives, external hard disk drives hdds, and solid state drives ssds provide one of the easiest ways to transfer files between separate computers without accessing the internet. Note that using a drive frequently between windows and mac could increase the chances of file corruption, so make.
The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac cnet. Plug in the external hard drive into mac and open the finder 2. Create a dual format drive for mac and windows systemsboy october 8, 2009 its just come to my attention that its now fairly trivial to split a drive into two differently formatted partitions, one of which could be used for the mac while the other could be used for windows. So, if all your files on the external hard drive are smaller than 4 gb, and the drive itself. Whether youre selling your computer, trying a new operating system, or setting up an external drive for backups, sometimes you need to completely erase and format a hard drive. Even though most people associate formatting with system installation, there are many other reasons why you might want to format your hard drive. In the main interface, right click the partition on that need. On mac computers, use the finder app to browse and manage files on your computer and external hard drives. How to format a flash drive for mac and pc compatibility. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with windows and mac. May 29, 2018 to format external drive to file system compatible with mac and pc, connect the drive to your computer and follow the detailed steps given below take formatting hard drive to exfat in windows 7 for example. How to format a hard drive windows 10, 8, 7, vista, xp.
Dec 22, 2019 how to format external hard drive mac. This file system is specifically for mac systems and windows cant read this file system. The operating system has an inbuilt tool, which is known as disk utility. To format external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. How to format new hard drive on windows 10 windows central. How to format a flash drive to work on os x and windows. Therefore, it is necessary to present a tutorial guide here to format or partition a hard drive within mac os. You can select the exfat format when using the disk utility to format the drive. For instructions on how to format your hard drive on a mac, please reference the following links. How to format internal andor external drive to work properly on mac and windows computers. The easiest way to do that is hit cmd and the spacebar at the same time and type in disk utility to find the program. This thing is still unknown for many users but doesnt worry its not complex.
If you only use a mac computer, you can format your thumb drive so it can work on windows systems. Mar 31, 2020 if you buy a new external hard drive, you may notice that working between mac and pc is an often difficult but it doesnt need to be. How to format an external hard drive on windows and mac. You can repartition and format your hard drives in windows using the disk management tool. In order to regain the full storage of external hard drive or wipe all sensitive data before sellingdonatingthrowing giveaway old external hard drive, we should format the external hard drive to clean up all data. How to format internal and or external drive to work properly on mac and windows computers. How to share an external hard drive between mac and windows. For instance, is the hard drive internal or external. If this is the case for you, rightclick the drive you want to format and click initialize disk. Apr 17, 2020 to format external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. As a video editor or digital imaging technician, you will often need to share files with others. The maximum individual file size for exfat is 16 eb.
In the disk management, youll see your external hard drive. How to format your hard drive seagate support australia. A solid state drive is known for its highend features and should be protected. How to format a hard drive on mac to work on mac and pc. How to format new or second hard drive on windows 10mac. Erase the mac partitions, including the efi system partition. There are specific thirdparty systems, like digital camcorders, and sony playstation 3, which need the drives to be formatted in either fat32 or exfat format to perform read from and. If you are techy and use windows and mac computers frequently, then you might need to transfer data between mac and pc. Use these steps to format external hard drives for both operating systems. How to convert mac hard drive to windows without losing. Eventually you will find out that you may not be working. How to format a drive for mac and pc compatibility posted by ant on march 11th, 2012 43 comments if you have an external hard drive or usb flash drive that youd like to use on both macs and windows pcs, choosing the right file system to format the drive can be confusing. Windows formatted hard drives have either ntfs file system of an fat32 file system. This works with any hard drive, flash drive, ssd, usb drive, or just about any other.
Go to the applications folder on your mac s hard drive, then go to the utilities folder, and launch disk utility. How to format drive with compatible file system for mac and. How to format an external drive to work seamlessly. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. While you have bought this drive, you will find the drive already formatted for your mac or windows system. You have to set it up correctly before getting starting. Be absolutely sure you have your files off the drive and that youve selected the correct drive you want to format. Although it is possible to format a drive as exfat from disk utility on the mac, that drive will not work with windows pcs, and thats not what. Mac os journaled is the formatting option for mac and ntfs or msdoc is the formatting. Usb drives and external hard drives use the windows fat32 to format for compatibility.
Use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. To format the drive to work with both platforms you will need use a windows computer to format the disk as exfat. Aug 22, 2019 just like windows, macos also gives us a seamless option to format hard drive for mac and pc. At the time of the original posting in 2011, there were some problems getting a mac formatted exfat drive working with windows, it had trouble recognizing those drives. To learn how to format in mac your hard drive, follow these steps. However, when we connect a ntfs formatted disk to mac, mac os x doesnt allow us to write files to the drive neither edit files, though it can read. That said, if you are using smaller file sizes fat32 can suffice. How to format an external drive to work seamlessly with macs. Jun 30, 2018 you will learn how to format the external hard disk which has deafult ntfs format, to make it compatible with mac os.
Sep 26, 2018 windows pc and mac use different filesystems. Format hard drive in windows 10 with easeus management software easeus partition software is a popular disk partition management tool that is available for all hard disk related jobs such as format disk partition, extend system partition, settle low disk space problem, convert mbr to gpt without data loss and vice versa. Then, select your hard drive from the left sidebar. But in order for the computer and drive to talk to one another, the drive has to be formatted.
Windows will format the drive as exfat and youll be able to use the drive on both windows and mac. Feb 08, 2020 so, you just bought an external hard drive or a portable ssd and wanted to use it on your mac. Format external hard disk drive for mac os and windows. You can select the exfat format when using the disk. Format a disk for windows computers in disk utility on mac apple. Plug in the external hard drive into the system and open windows explorer by clicking on the computer section in the side bar, you will see your. Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. To format the drive in windows, rightclick it in the file explorer window and select format. Both fat32 and exfat can be used on windows pc and mac. How to format a new or second hard drive on mac mac is obviously a very much different operating system from windows, let alone their features and steps to format a hard drive. First, note the number of the disk in the disk management window. Remember, this will erase all the files on the drive. A hard drive can be used on any type of computer pc or mac. If you move a hard drive between the two operating systems, heres what you need to know.
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