Macs are currently sold with three types of storage devices. Dec, 2019 you can format the external hard drive or usb drive to make it compatible with both mac and windows machines. May 01, 2020 how to erase a disk for mac use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. In the main interface, right click the partition on that need. Everything you need to know about your macs hard drive. Both mac os x and windows allow users to format their hard drives using builtin utilities.
In short, file and folder names in this file system are casesensitive and will require a password and encryption. Choose one of the following mac os extended file system formats for compatibility with mac computers using macos 10. For some mac models, the partition option would be greyed out in disk utility. 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. But before you start cruisin the internet for a 1tb monster, though, here are two suggestions. For pc and mac compatibility, select exfat format and master boot. Os x, windows, and linux all use different hard drive formatting for normal system operations. Some older flash drives may only have the options fat 16 or fat 32. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with windows and mac. A hard drive format refers to how the operating system stores the data on the drive.
Mar 22, 2012 the best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. File system formats available in disk utility on mac apple support. This is a default file system for linux os including raspberry pi. You can format the external hard drive or usb drive to make it compatible with both mac and windows machines. In many cases, we learn that the native format of external drives that work. But in order for the computer and drive to talk to one another, the drive has to be formatted.
Open the disk utility app and highlight your external hard drive. Aug 25, 2016 today im going to show you how to format any hard drive so you can use it to back up your mac as well as answer a lot of questions my clients have asked me when going through this process. Follow these easy steps to format a hard drive in windows 10, windows 8, windows 7, windows vista, or windows xp. The reasons for wanting to format your mac storage drive may vary depending on immediate need. Drive speed is measured in revolutions per minute rpm, based on how fast the drive can spin. A hard drive can be used on any type of computer pc or mac. Once you open the disk utility app, you can see all the drives on your mac are listed on the lefthand sidebar. A window will pop up where you can choose the format ntfs, fat32, or exfat. Why need to format external hard drive for mac and pc. They are great for backing up data, creating extra storage space on your computer and transferring large amounts of data between two or more computers. Highlight your drive and click partition in disk utility.
It came in record time next day instead of the 5 days indicated on the phone, which yea. To put it simply, if you want to share external hard drive between mac and pc, you need to format an external hard drive for mac and pc. Fortunately disk utility, built right into macos, can help. Now in this interface, you will see a format option.
If you format your external hard drive to hfs, you can use it on mac and linux by removing journaling. This post highlights the different types of hard drives for mac that you can use, and how to choose the best backup hardware for your needs. This western digital my book hard drive offers builtin 256bit hardware encryption and optional password protection for peace of mind. Choose the mac os x installer startup volume from the boot menu. Im usually change hard drives to a bigger capacity ones and sold the old ones to others. File system formats available in disk utility on mac. Formatting can be done with the mac os x disk utility, found in the applicationsutilities folder. Change the partition layout from current to 1 partition. Jun 02, 2017 in this video we look at the process of formatting a hard drive, flash drive, or ssd on an apple computer. So, we suggest that its better to use a pc to partition an external hard drive for macos and windows. The installation was a snap, literally, just as advertised. Here then are the best external hard drives for mac of 2020 in order of ranking. Types of external hard drives for mac easily expand your storage capacity with a handy external drive for mac that allows you to quickly create a file backup solution or offload batches of files for simple transfer to another computer.
Click go on the top tool bar, and select utilities. How to format a hard drive for mac the below steps can be used to format mac internal hard drives, external hard drives or usb flash drives. Here are the steps to partition an external hard drive for mac and windows pc, which is a little tricky. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac laptop mag. The good news is the disk utility built into the os x comes in handy, like a visual assistant making the process easier. After youre done, dont forget to remove the external hard. How to format external hard drive to use on mac and 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. Select disk utility and choose the hard drive you wish to format, click the erase tab, and then pull down the format menu and select mac os extended journaled as the type, name the drive if you wish. How to format an external drive for mac compatibility. How to choose the right hard disk for your mac the mac. This thing is still unknown for many users but doesnt worry its not complex. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. When you see the volume format types listed, choose msdos fat.
For mac owners, one of the most annoyinginconvenient aspects of owning a mac is the external drive compatibility. Make sure the allocation unit size is set to default and type in a volume label. Heres how to format a drive using a mac including how to format a drive for windows and mac so the contents can be read on both platforms, and what format to use for time machine. For most reasons to erase, including when reformatting a disk or selling, giving away, or trading in your mac, you should erase your entire disk. Thunderbolt 3 and usb typec are the latest innovations in the external storage market, but before we get to them, we need to address a basic building block of hard drives that. In this video we look at the process of formatting a hard drive, flash drive, or ssd on an apple computer. Hello, i recently bought a new internal hard disk to my macbook. Cleanmydrive is absolutely free to use, so download it on the mac app store and enjoy. Best for mechanical drives, or drives used with older macos versions mac os extended was the default file system used by every mac from 1998 until 2017, when apfs replaced it.
Its 5 gbps data transfer rate enables fast copying of files, and its automatic backup software can be set to fit any schedule. Opening disk management can be done a number of ways depending on your version of windows, but the easiest method is to type diskmgmt. The hard drive reads and writes data by changing the magnetic polarities on the drive. The best models are ready formatted for use on mac.
File system formats available in disk utility on mac apple. Mac os extended was the default file system used by every mac from 1998 until 2017, when apfs replaced it. When i turn on the macbook with a new hard disk is showing a sign of a folder and a question mark, when i turn on the macbook with the old hard disk. Any external hard drive will work with pcs or macs, as long as the connectors are there firewire, usb, etc. This is a simple procedure and is achieved the same way for all drive types and through. Choosing the right format for your external hard drive b.
Wondering what the best format for your new external hard drive is. Open disk management, the hard drive manager included with all versions of windows. Now open disk utility and format your new drive with a guid partition map and a mac os extended journaled partition. Each have the same purpose, but they function in completely different ways.
There are three common filesystems that are used today. 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. All the drives will be at hand in the menu bar, so you can get to see types of drives you have and manage them easily. How does external hard drives work on windowsmac os. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. Just select the one you want to format and click on the erase tab. How to format a hard drive for mac that would be sold to another person. Of the three mac memory types, traditional hard disks run on the oldest memory technologies. If you will be using multiple external hard drives on a project, youll want to make sure to keep them organized. Even though mac computers are capable of reading hard drives that are formatted for windows, if you intend on using your external hdd as a bootable disk or want to use it to backup files with your macs time machine, you must format it to be entirely mac compatible. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with.
Is there a way to completely format or erase the data from hard drive so it cannot be recovered by another user. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. To format a new drive to a different file system, select it and click erase. Some people may want to format a storage because they want to clean hard drive mac and others might want to install fresh os x. Lacie d2 professional 4tb external hard drive desktop hdd thunderbolt 3 usbc usb 3. External usb hard drives are lightweight, portable and inexpensive.
Best format for an external hard disk apple community. Rightclick on the external hard drive in the volume tab. So with your mac and the original drive installed we need to connect via a sata to usb adapter your new drive so both are connected to the system. Feb 08, 2020 how to partition an external hard drive on mac. The easiest way to do that is hit cmd and the spacebar at the same time and type in disk utility. This is a great thing to do when you first purchase a drive or when you are looking to. How to format external hard drives on a mac sweetwater. Best for mechanical drives, or drives used with older macos versions. There are a couple of things you should keep in mind, however. The standard way to back up a mac is to use a hard disk connected via usb or thunderbolt. Mar 03, 2020 go to this pc, under devices and drives, highlight the disk that represents your usb flash drive, rightclick and select properties. There are all kinds of reasons why you might want to format a drive.
Its very easy to format a usb drive on a mac using disk utility. Select the external hard drive on the lefthand side. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. Even though most people associate formatting with system installation, there are many other reasons why you might want to format your hard drive. 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. Wd my passport for mac best overall the western digital 2tb my passport for mac is the perfect 2tb portable external hard drive for mac users. Which mac file system is best for an external drive. Discover the world of hard drives and storage options for mac. Seagate branded external drives come preformatted, some for pcs, some for macs, and some of them have special utilities allowing them to work between both without. Its ready formatted for use on mac, time machine ready and small enough to fit in your coat pocket. The best external hard drives for mac in 2020 pcmag. And you can buy external or internal drives of three types.
Usb drives can be formatted on your mac using the disk utility application. I followed the instructions in the site macbook pro unibody mid 2012 hard drive replacement and managed to replace the hard disk correctly but the macbook does not recognize it. Jan 15, 2019 all the drives will be at hand in the menu bar, so you can get to see types of drives you have and manage them easily. However, you can easily format any external hard drive on your mac to work with both mac and pc or mac only. How to format an external hard drive for mac and pc. Consider how youll be saving and transferring files, such as photos, videos, files from tablets, files from pc laptops, or photos from toprated cell phones. Under file system, choose the file system you want to use.
Select your drive from the list and rightclick on it. How to format a hard drive windows 10, 8, 7, vista, xp. There are all kinds of external hard drives, from a number of brands. It doesnt matter how the drive is formatted out of the box, since you can reformat any way you like. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac cnet. How to format hard drives on windows, mac and linux. New macbook pro gets faster processors, more storage. In disk utility on your mac, format disks or volumes using apple file system. Need to replace a hard drive in a macbook ask different. Today im going to show you how to format any hard drive so you can use it to back up your mac as well as answer a lot of questions my clients. On the flip side, they offer the most significant memory sizes, and are cheaper than the other two memory options.
I recently purchased a mac pro and, since the store did not yet have additional internal hard drives in stock, i purchased a 2t drive for bay 2 directly from apple. How to format a startup drive for a mac if you want to format a drive that will be used as your macs startup disk, the procedure is a little different from formatting it for use as a secondary. Uses the mac format journaled hfs plus to protect the integrity of the hierarchical file system. The best format for your external hard drive the hellotech blog. Ever run out of storage space and start wondering if it would be possible to take a crowbar to your new unibody macbook pro to pry it open and put another hard. Sep 03, 2011 i need to reformated my wd 1tb external hard drive and was wondering what is the best file format to use ms dos fat32, mac os extended journalled etc all i store on it are all my videos, tv shows, and backups of all my work, documents etc, but i dont use it with time machine. Different types of hard drive file system format types. If you are techy and use windows and mac computers frequently, then you might need to transfer data between mac and pc. Asking whether you can upgrade your macbook hard drive is a trick question.
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. Most external hard drives and usb drives are compatible for use on mac computers as long as you format the devices for use with mac os x. How to format external hard drives for mac and windows. I need to reformated my wd 1tb external hard drive and was wondering what is the best file format to use ms dos fat32, mac os extended journalled etc all i store on it are all my videos, tv shows, and backups of all my work, documents etc, but i dont use it with time machine. Compare apple hard drives and models for office or home and shop online. Just follow these steps to format and erase your hard drives on mac. Compare portable, usb and external hard drive models for office and home and shop online. Fat had been the standard format for floppy disks and hard drives all through the dos years, and versions of windows up to and including windows. They are also the most mechanized, with several moving parts. Store files securely with this 4tb western digital my book hard drive.
In the new properties window, check general file system and youll see what type of file system your flash drive is currently with. How to reformat my hard drive using my macbook air quora. If you want to create multiple partitions on your external hard drive in fact, you should for better file organization, heres a stepbystep guide. How to format new internal sata hard drive apple community. Heres how to format a drive using a mac including how to format a drive for windows. However, to use it on windows you can hfs explorer read only. This mac propriety file system and is used in ios and mac. You can format an external hard drive so that it works on both mac and pc or mac only. For example, folders named homework and homework are two different. Discover the world of external hard drives for mac. To find your best external hard drive for mac, youll want to decide how quickly you want to save and retrieve data. Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. How to format drive with compatible file system for mac.
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