Format external disk for mac

If you are not able to login to your mac, you need to use time machine backup disk. Now, you can follow these two solutions to format any hard drive, flash drive, usb drive, ssd or any other external storage drive so as to make them work on your mac now. How to fix external hard drive not mounting on mac computer. Macclean360 also offers disk management tool, disk manager. How to format an external drive for mac from ntfs to mac os extended. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods revealed. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods. Connect the usb fash drive to the mac os x computer. Mar 22, 2012 the best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. Format usb flash drive external hard drive with macclean360 on macos catalina. Select the external hard drive on the lefthand side.

Then, you need to choose the best file system for your external hard drive and follow these steps. I need to format an external hd to fat32 so that i can use if for both mac and pc. In this post, youll learn how to format an external drive to a mac compatible file system and recover files from a reformatted hard drive. Dec 29, 2015 follow these instructions if you plan to share an external hard drive between pc and mac computers. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac. Formatting an external hard drive would erase everything on it. When the driver is installed, you format your ntfs disks with disk utility where you select windows nt filesystem as the format. From all above, you can have a general idea of fat32 and exfat file system. Choosing the right format for your external hard drive b. Apple may provide or recommend responses as a possible solution based on the information provided. The tutorial and screenshots below are based on macos sierra. Heres how to format a drive if you are planning to use it with a mac. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Dec 22, 2019 how to format external hard drive mac.

Luckily, there are thirdparty tools to help you do so. It is time to learn how to format your external hard drive or other external drives to a common file system for mac and windows. Make sure your external hard disk is connected to your mac device correctly and the icon on the desktop appears. You can follow the same drill to format an external device on mac as well. Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. You can format an external drive in os x using disk utility and terminal. Developed by microsoft, this modern file system is optimized for situations where the ntfs file system is not a feasible solution, and the file size limit of the standard fat32 file system is unacceptable. Change the partition layout from current to 1 partition. Tips for fixing external hard drive not mounting issue. Format usb or external hard drive for mac using mac disk utility format usb or external hard drive for mac on windows pc using thirdparty usb format tool. These steps can be used for both internal and external drives.

You can, however, format a windows hard drive from a mac if you connect the windows hard drive to the mac and format it through disk. How to format a usb external disk for mac osx using disk. Oct 16, 2019 the best format for external hard drives. I need to copy some files from a pc mostly powerpoint presentations and mpeg videos so that i can use them on my mac.

This wikihow teaches you how to change an external usb hard drives format on windows and mac computers. In no time, the entire disk would be emptied and you can manage it the way you like. Find out how to format an external drive or usb disk making the drive work with both windows pc and mac can read and write. To erase this partition, well have to wipe the entire disk. While drives are sold as plugandplay, formatting prior to use will give you optimal performance and compatibility with your mac. Which mac file system is best for an external drive. Each partition appears on your computer as a separate disk.

Designed by microsoft to provide similar compatibility to fat32 without the pesky limitations, exfat is the format of choice for drives that youll. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with windows and mac. Why need to format external hard drive for mac and pc. When your disk become unmountable on mac, you should not go straight to reformat this external hard drive, especially when you have important files on it. The 4 disk formatting software for mac above can help you easily format hard drive, usb flash drive, memory card, and other storage media under mac os. If you run into the issue of not having enough space format it to be the ex fat as. Now that you know which format to use, check out our guide on how to format your hard drive on. Instructions for how to format your external drive so that it will be fully usable in macos. How to format wd external drive for mac apple community.

Aug 27, 20 using external drives to save space on your mac. Sep 26, 2018 how to make external hard drive compatible with mac and pc. You can format an external hard drive or thumb drive to work seamlessly with both mac and windows by using the exfat file system. Launch disk utility and then click to select the external hard drive listed on the left. 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. However, if you want to use the mac to format your external hard drive to exfat, youll face the problem that the external hard drive may not be compatible with the windows pc. Copying data on mac to external hard drive with this format will make copying much longer. Format usb drive, external hard drive on macos catalina. How to format external hard drives for mac and windows. How to format or partition an external hard drive on mac. And there you have it one read and writable disk ready for osx. But, the formatted data can be recovered by mac data recovery software. Buying and using an external hd is one thing, getting the most out of it is quite another. However, if you want to test apfs out before then, youll have to wipe a drive and reformat it with the apfs file system.

Use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive. If you want to create multiple partitions on your external hard drive in fact, you should for better file organization, heres a stepbystep guide. As the default file system in windows, it can only read by mac os, writing to it is not available. How to convert a macformatted drive to a windows drive. How to format an external hard drive for mac and windows. This is a simple procedure and is achieved the same way for all drive types and through. Go to open disk utility, which is located under applications in the finder menu. May 21, 2018 in this video tutorial, i show you how to easily format an external hard drive to work on both a mac and a pc. Alternatively, you can search in spotlight for disk utility and click on it. Format external hard drive or usb drive for mac easeus.

Jul 12, 2017 how to format a drive as apfs in macos sierra. Before you go further, there are some tips that deserve your attention. Open the disk utility app and highlight your external hard drive. Aug 30, 2016 this is an article for mac, it is erasing a hard drive from a mac command line, it is not a windows tutorial. How to format external disk for macbook a apple community.

How to make external hard drive compatible with mac and pc. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. While you have bought this drive, you will find the drive already formatted for your mac or windows system. You can, however, format a windows hard drive from a mac if you connect the windows hard drive to the mac and format it through disk utility, or the command line as describe. Disk utility is a utility application proprietary to macos that is used to both format and manage internal and external disks. To format a drive on a mac, youll need the builtin disk utility application. 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. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x.

Usb drives can be formatted on your mac using the disk utility application. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Today this video will show you how to format an external hard drive on windows and mac. Formatting a disk or volume erases all the files on it. Overall, this is a very useful tool, that will aid you greatly in the process of formatting your external drive. Formatting a drive will erase all data and partitions on the disk.

How to format an external hard drive with pictures wikihow. In disk utility on your mac, you can format an external disk for a windows computer. Dec 31, 2019 disk utility comes builtin with your mac, and is used to erase, format, or manage internal and external storage devices. Click go on the top tool bar, and select utilities. Format a usb drive as exfat for mac and windows compatibility. How to format an external hard drive for mac and pc. Buying an external hard drive is one of the best options for adding the storage space to the mac computer system. Hence, you must backup your important files before reformatting the drive if you want to save them.

How to format an external hard drive on windows and mac. 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. Feb 08, 2020 how to partition an external hard drive on mac. How to format a hard drive to work on mac and pc youtube. Since formatting an external hard drive will erase all of its files if you wish to save them you must back them up copy. If you have already written any data to the drive, back it up before proceeding to the next step. If you need to format external hard drive mac or windows, you may also consider the exfat files system. If you want to format your external hard drive to work with mac and windows computers, you should use exfat. How to format a drive with the apfs file system on macos sierra. This process erases everything on the disk, including its files and all its partitions. Next, open a command prompt window as administrator. Jan 02, 2016 formatting a drive on your mac is quite easy. If you have a usb flash drive inserted in your mac, you can see it under the external in the disk utility.

I havent tried this one, but it should also do the job. May 29, 2018 from all above, you can have a general idea of fat32 and exfat file system. How to format a hard drive on mac to work on mac and pc. To format external hard drive on mac, all you have to do is plugin your hard drive and launch disk utility. Aug 22, 2019 click on the erase button in the end and confirm your choice as mac would format the selected disk. Before using an external hard drive on a mac, you should format it using disk utility. Click the icon for your external hard drive in the sidebar on the left.

Reformatting the drive will erase all data on the drive, so you should copy any data you want off the drive prior to formatting. How to format drive with compatible file system for mac. Then you can choose one of the hard drive and format it by click on format button. The disk manager tool is able to list all hard drives and external devices on your mac. Download disk formatting software for mac doyourdata. To do this, open a terminal window and run the following command. To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow these steps. For apple mac users, the easier way to format usb flash drive to fat32 is using the disk utility. This insures that you will have a compatible hard drive with your computer. The best format for your external hard drive the hellotech blog. How to format external hard disk on mac devices correctly.

How to format a startup drive for a mac if you want to format a drive that will be used as your mac s startup disk, the procedure is a little different from formatting it for use as a secondary. In general, windows builtin tools disk management and diskpart can format drive to exfat easily. The disk utility application is located in the utilities subfolder. This tool can help you securely and quickly format usb flash drive, external hard drive under macos catalina. How to format an external hard drive the easy way in 2020. Disk utility comes builtin with your mac, and is used to erase, format, or manage internal and external storage devices. Still with the external disk selected in disk utility go to the erase tab, select mac os extended journaled from the format dropdown, choose to name the disk and then click erase. 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. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac laptop mag. You can select the exfat format when using the disk. How to format an external drive for mac compatibility. How to format external hard drives on a mac sweetwater. Disk utility is also used in order to manage volumes, and organize data into partitions. Save any files you need to another volume before formatting.

That means you can connect a usbc cable for a superfast transfer of all your data to a new mac machine, or make an exact bitforbit copy of your mac on an external hard drive. You can format the drive from either the mac or the windows machine. To format or reformat an external hard drive on mac, youll need the builtin disk management tool called disk utility. 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. How to format a drive with the apfs file system on macos. Feb 27, 2018 before using an external hard drive on a mac, you should format it using disk utility. You will learn the easiest way to format drive on mac and windows as exfat. Format external hard drive for mac with disk utility. How to format drive with compatible file system for mac and. 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.

Follow these instructions if you plan to share an external hard drive between pc and mac computers. Create sections called partitions in a large external drive. Format a disk for windows computers in disk utility on mac. How to format an external disk or a flash drive for mac. The easiest way is to drag it from one drive to another. This is an article for mac, it is erasing a hard drive from a mac command line, it is not a windows tutorial. Acronis true image 2020 also allows you to clone an active mac system disk without having to stop and reboot. For example, in the screenshot below, the macformatted drive is disk 2. Here are the following most common reasons why would you like to format an external disk or a flash drive for mac under mac os extended journaled.

After you connect an external drive to your mac, open the applications folder from the finder window. This is a simple procedure and is achieved the same way for all drive types and through all connections, be they usb, firewire, or thunderbolt. Master boot record is appropriate for external drives used with a pc or boot. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. There are a good number of reasons why you might want to format an external disk or a flash drive for full mac compatibility. First, note the number of the disk in the disk management window. In this guide, well show you how to format an external hard drive so you can not only get rid of the. Each partition can be managed as a separate hard drive for organizing folders, storing backup files, or as a hybrid system containing mac and windowsformatted drives. Highlight your drive and click partition in disk utility. Oct 29, 2019 to format external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. This site contains user submitted content, comments and opinions and is for informational purposes only.