How to format external hard drive for mac and pc

How to format external hard drive for mac and pc for mac os#
How to format external hard drive for mac and pc mac os#
How to format external hard drive for mac and pc Pc#
How to format external hard drive for mac and pc free#

How to format external hard drive for mac and pc free#

YouвЂ™ll also be asked if youвЂ™d like to run First Aid on the drive before erasing - this is more for those with corrupted drives, so feel free to skip if you want.

Click Erase to reformat your drive - this shouldnвЂ™t take more than a few minutes, but it could vary depending on storage size and the type of drive youвЂ™re using.

Enter the name of the drive and select the format of your choice in the Format dropdown menu.

When youвЂ™re ready, hit the Erase button.

If youвЂ™re using more than one drive, be sure that itвЂ™s the one you want to reformat as the process is largely irreversible.

Select the external drive under the External Drive subheading on the left-hand side.

You can search for the app by accessing Spotlight (Command + Space) or by going to Finder > Applications > Utilities.

Connect your external drive to your Mac.

ItвЂ™s worth noting that reformatting a drive will erase everything stored on the drive, so make sure you transfer important files before you follow the below steps. Thankfully, reformatting an external drive on a Mac is a relatively straightforward process - Apple even ships Macs with a built-in utility to do so. To make it clear, we recommend you stay away from NTFS if youвЂ™re looking to use your external hard drive on a Mac. That being said, thereвЂ™s no way to reformat to NTFS on a Mac (and why would you?) without splashing out on third-party software.

How to format external hard drive for mac and pc mac os#

NTFS is the default file format for Windows PCs, and much like AppleвЂ™s APFS and Mac OS Extended, itвЂ™s only compatible with Windows machines. While itвЂ™s not as efficient as AppleвЂ™s APFS, the universal support makes this the go-to for most external hard drive users.

How to format external hard drive for mac and pc Pc#

Like its older sibling, ExFAT is compatible with Mac, PC and Linux, but doesnвЂ™t have the same 4GB file limit. ExFATД®xFAT is an upgraded version of FAT32. However, the ageing file system has a big flaw: itвЂ™s limited to a maximum of 4GB, and itвЂ™s prone to disk errors too. FAT32ДЇAT32 is the go-to for some, offering cross-platform compatibility between Mac, PC and Linux, ideal for those that hop across different platforms on a day-to-day basis.

How to format external hard drive for mac and pc for mac os#

You can also opt for Mac OS Extended (Encrypted) to password-protect the data on the drive - a great security feature for those dealing with sensitive data and/or travelling with an external drive. ItвЂ™ll play nicely with your Mac, but like the above APFS, Mac OS Extended isnвЂ™t compatible with Windows or Linux PCs. If youвЂ™re running macOS Sierra or an earlier version of macOS/Mac OS X, Mac OS Extended is the default file format. With a focus on speed and reliability, it should come as no surprise that APFS is exclusive to SSDs and flash storage devices - if youвЂ™ve got a standard external hard drive, youвЂ™ll have to opt for another option. Introduced as a replacement to Mac OS Extended, the new file format offers improved efficiency and reliability, although it comes at a cost: APFS isnвЂ™t compatible with pre-High Sierra Macs, and it wonвЂ™t work with Windows or Linux machines either. APFSДЄPFS is AppleвЂ™s choice of file format for Macs running macOS High Sierra or later. The file format you select largely depends on what youвЂ™ll be doing with the external drive, and which operating systems you use on a daily basis. You see, thereвЂ™s not one but several different file formats for you to choose from, offering various levels of compatibility between different operating systems. When it comes to reformatting an external hard drive, the biggest decision youвЂ™ll have to make is with regards to file format. ItвЂ™s easy to do on a Mac using AppleвЂ™s built-in Disk Utility, and hereвЂ™s where we show you how. But unlike other electronics on the market, itвЂ™s possible to reformat an external drive to work with the operating system(s) of your choice.

If youвЂ™ve just bought yourself a shiny new external drive and canвЂ™t get it to work on your Mac, itвЂ™s possible that the drive isnвЂ™t compatible with macOS.