Disk Utility Formats? Help!

Hello,
I need to know what all the formats are and what each of them does and means in disk utility when trying to erase a disk. My computer runs Mac OS X Lion (10.7.1).
Thank-you.

If you wish to share the USB drive between Macs and PCs I suggest that you go for MS-DOS (FAT) since this format can be read by both platforms.
The default format on Mac OS X is Mac OS Extendended (Journaled) but this can not be read on Windows machines.

Similar Messages

  • Disk Utility - Format Time for 500GB (Zero Out Data)

    Hello.
    Is there one length of time for formatting a hard drive with one pass of Zero Out Data? For instance, does the length of time change depending if you format with zeros using USB2, FW400, FW800, or eSATA?
    *My Format Setup*
    LaCie Rugged 500GB All-Terrain (USB2 & FW400/800)
    FW800 Cable
    GUID Partition Table
    Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
    Zero Out Data (One Pass)
    I'm formatting with a FW800 connection. Disk Utility has said it will take 1.5 hours for about 3.5 hours now. The blue bar has progressed even though the time remaining is incorrect. At this rate, it will take seven hours to format 500GB.
    I'm going to be formatting multiple 500GB and 1TB drives, and I'm wondering if the time I'm experiencing is normal. Therefore, it should take a day to format 1TB with one pass of zeros. Is this correct?
    Thank you for your help! =)
    Message was edited by: Revearti

    It takes a long time to zero out data on a 500GB drive. The larger the drive, the longer it takes. I don't think the connection makes a difference, since each of your listed options are high speed. Never tried it on an external with USB 1.1, so can't give you any real time experience there. But it will take well over an hour to write zeros on every block of a 500GB drive.

  • How 10.6.2 Disk Utility format "HFS" CD image for System-8?

    Hi,
    I've spent 2 days trying to learn how to create a CD-ROM that a System 8.0 Mac can read. The problem is that System 8.0 cannot read HFS+. I'm try to create a CD-ROM with the System 8.1 Update will correct. But I can't get 10.6.2 to create a HFS formatted CD-ROM. Disk Utility allows me to specify a CD/DVD Master image, but the format choices are only HFS Extended, MS-DOS, and NTFS. I held down the Option key, but additional format types do not appear.
    Can someone please help?
    Thank you,
    Don

    I donated a ProCenter 210 (System 8.0), Mac 7200 PowerPC (System 7.6.3), LaserWriterPlus, and an Apple Color StyleWriter, plus some other stuff.
    The equipment is at the Easter Seals Jolliet school. I have 2 System 8.0 install images and 1 System 8.1 Update install image on my MacPro 10.6.2. CD-ROMs are the only way I can bring the system software to the school. But the older systems cannot read HFS+. I'll try FAT again, but haven't been successful.
    I don't know why Apple still charges for System 8.0 given that it's no longer supported and rarely used. It's not like using System 9 which I would prefer.
    Thank you,
    Don

  • External Hard Drive not working thanks to disk utility format MS Dos?

    hello everyone, i have a problem and i have no idea what to do, heres the deal.
    a friend of mine bought a toshiba external 320gb hard drive, i have 100gb of video footage he needed, i opened the hard drive, used it without a problem, he took it home and he couldnt use it on his PC so i did some research and found out that to use it on a PC and MAC i had to format it using disk utility to MS dos, so i did that, after that both my macs dont recognize the HD and if i try a PC, it appears but you cant do anything with it, if i try to format it it says to insert a disk in that drive....
    is there anyway i can fix this? or do i owe my friend a 320gb external HD?
    thanks

    Mac format is different than windows format. Fat32 is recognized by both systems, but has its limitations. You just need to reformat the drive to NTFS on a PC. I believe HFS+ was probably what your original drive was. If it was Fat32, it would have been recognized on the PC.
    For future reference, just install the NTFS driver on your mac. You can find it here http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/24481/ntfs-3g. Reformat the drive on a PC, install the driver and you can read and write to Windows NTFS drives and never have to worry about it again. Just right click on it in Windows and format it to NTFS.
    Hope that helps.

  • CD burning with disk utility - format and size for 800 MB - 90 minutes CD

    Hi Support,
    I'm trying to burn a CD with 800 MB (90 minutes) using disk utility. When I create a new empty image I can select the size. Unfortunately there is no option for a 90 minutes CD. When I create the image with 800 MB and I try to burn it, disk utility tells me that the image is too big. So my first question is what is the maximum size for such a CD?
    Next question, which format should I use? When creating a new empty image, I have the options "Beschreibbares Image" and "Mitwachsendes Image" (I have a Germann OS). But I dont't have the option to create a "CD/DVD Master", which is availabe, when I create an image from a folder. What I have to do, is to convert the image afterwards to a "CD/DVD Master". This is very circumstantial.
    So my questions are:
    1. Is there an easier way o create an empty disk image for a CD/DVD?
    2. Is the format "CD/DVD Master" required to burn a CD. It is also possible to burn images with other formats. What is the advantage/disadvantage of this format?
    3. Which format is required to use the CD in a Windows computer or a standalone CD/DVD player? The volume format must probably "MS-DOS Filesystem" in this case?
    4. Is it possible to burn multi session CD's in this case?
    5. Is there a comprehensive documentation somewhere available for this burning issue on Mac? The help of disk utility is really not enough.
    Thanks for answers and hints Thomas

    Hi thmayr!
    Although the original instructions were for a 700 MB disc, perhaps the article linked to below, could be helpful.
    From "Macworld" Feb 2005 issue p.90 Link To Article. Scroll to the second tip on the page: "Unix Tip of the Month: Utilize Extra Space on CD-Rs".
    Content:
    Create a new folder in the Finder.
    Drag everything you want to burn, up to 700 MB, into the folder.
    Open Terminal and type cd ~/Desktop
    Press the Enter key. This changes Terminal's active directory to your user's Desktop folder.
    Type hdiutil makehybrid -o myburn.iso (There's a space after the o in iso, and myburn can be any name you choose) DON'T press Enter
    Switch to the "Finder"
    Drag & drop the folder you created onto the Terminal window. Terminal should fill in the full path to the folder.
    Press Enter. Enter key will then execute the command.
    What you have done is used the hdiutil Unix command to create a hybrid disk image named myburn.iso (you can choose whatever name you like, in place of myburn, but use iso for the extension.
    You should see the message "Creating hybrid image" in your Terminal window, as well as an indication of the task's progress.
    When finished, you should see a disk image called myburn.iso on your Desktop.
    You can use Disk Utility to burn this image, or you can type
    hdiutil burn ~/Desktop/myburn.iso in Terminal
    Insert a blank CD-R when prompted, and then just wait until it's done.
    ali b

  • Disk Utility Formatting to MS-DOS FAT Not Compaditible

    Hi, I'm having problems with the new disk utility. In leopard I can format my sd cards to work with my wii but now after formatting both my sd cards neither of them work. Is there anyway to get them to work again? Or do I have to get a different disk utility? Any help would be great!

    I am having a similar problem trying to create MS-DOS DVD data disks. I create a MS-DOS disk image with Disk Utility. Disk Utility shows it as a MS-DOS (FAT) 4.7GB. I burn it from Finder and in the Burn Dialog, it states that "This disk can be used on Macintosh and Windows" computers. I click okay, but he resulting DVD is in Mac OS Extended format.
    Disk image files should be burned using Disk Utility, not Finder. Finder will create a DVD that is readable on both Mac and PC, but the DVD will contain the disk image file. A PC will not know how to open that to get at the data files inside.
    A simpler way is to not use a disk image file, but just the Finder. Insert a blank DVD, wait for it to appear in the Finder sidebar, drag files to it, then click the Burn icon next to it. This will generate a hybrid DVD. A PC can read it even though a Mac will see it as Mac OS Extended format

  • Disk Utility Formatting problem with Menu

    Formatting keeps failing in DVDSP so I've been formatting it and then burning it in disk utility. But once it's burned, the remote and player won't return it back to the menu without reinserting the disk. Can someone help.

    Go here
    http://dvdstepbystep.com/layofland.php
    Click on the disk icon in the blue section the look in the purple section to the lower right. Your commands will be listed - what to they read?
    Go to the tracks and look at the commands and end jumps - anything listed?
    Also take a look here on how to set jumps/returns, sounds like it may be the issue
    http://dvdstepbystep.com/returnmenu.php
    http://dvdstepbystep.com/trackmarkers.php

  • Cannot write or delete files from DVD+RW after erasing it through Disk Utility. Help.

    Hello. I erased (completely not quickly) my 4.7 GB DVD+RW with the help of Disk Utility in which it was successful, it asked me to open Finder, DVD Player or Disk Utility, I chose Finder. Then I dragged a MP4 and burned it, it asked me to name the blank DVD+RW so I named it and then it successfully burned the file onto the DVD+RW, now when I try to burn a file again (as it is a RW) by dragging the file to the DVD+RW window the cursor shows a stop sign with it (the sign which is a circle and there is a diagonal line it it) and it denies to write files again, when I try to remove a file it doesn't do it as well. Please help.
    P.S When I secondary click on the DVD+RW icon and click get info it says "Capacity : 4.7 GB" and "Available : 0 Bytes" even when the MP4 file is just 8.3 MB.
    Computer: Macbook Pro 13-Inch (Non-Retina) Highest Configuration.
    Please Help.

    Hello Aditya's Apple,
    Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
    If you want to write again to a CD RW or DVD RW disc you will need to first erase it, and then start another burn process.  The only time you can burn multiple times to a disc without first deleting what is on it, is by multisession burning.  The following article explains more.
    Disk Utility 12.x: Record on a recordable CD more than once
    http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5823
    Disk Utility 12.x: Erase a disk, CD, or DVD
    http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5849
    Take care,
    Alex H.

  • Disk Utility - Format

    Hi All,
    A rather dumb question, but for the purpose of peace of mind for backups, here goes.
    I have a few external HD's, which I have formatted using disk utility. The data on there must be deleted in an unrecoverable sense so I used the 7 - Pass Erase.
    My question: When plugging in an External HD, after opening disk utility, in the left window is show:
    465.8 GB Seagate FreeAgent
    XXX Files
    where "XXX" = My real name.
    Which one do I select to format or does it not really matter. The reason I asked is because I did a format and selected the first option i.e. 465.8 GB..., but after format completion the "XXX File's" still remained there. I just left the disk name as Untitled during the format option selection.
    I hope the above makes sense.
    Thank for any feedback
    Ciao

    SKYTORT wrote:
    When plugging in an External HD, after opening disk utility, in the left window is show:
    465.8 GB Seagate FreeAgent
    Which one do I select to format or does it not really matter.
    Select 465.8 GB Seagate FreeAgent (It is the upper icon and represents the entire drive. The xxx lower icon is only the volume.
    -mj

  • My new ssd doesn't show up in Disk Utility please help

    Hi all,
    I had a HDD failure in my mbp (2012). It completly crashed. I was able to make a copy of some files through Disk Utility. (Note: at this point i could only enter disk utility after start up not in the actual OS)
    So i bought a Kingston ssdNow v300.
    What i did is the following:
    Put an clean Mavericks install on a usb drive.
    Put the ssd in the MBP
    Pressed the option key to boot through the USB and the mbp didn't see the usb.
    Booted up through command + R and the computer did see the usb however it did not see the new SSD.
    Tried booting up again with command + R and it did see the SSD in the disk utility (after a long load time of recovering the disk data)
    Now i knew i had the reformat the ssd in order to install OS X again.
    However all the options are greyed out! I can't choose erase/reformat nothing.
    Also i rebooted several times and sometimes the mbp didn;t see the ssd anymore... and sometimes it did.
    Also if it does see the ssd in the disk utility and i close and re-open disk utility, the ssd in gone!
    So sometimes it is recognized and sometimes it isn't.
    I am not able to reformat it through an external exclosure or anything.
    Also I tried deleting osx mavericks installer on the usb drive and put Os recovery assistant on it. (Which the computer did recognize)
    But also this didn't work at all.
    I really don't know what to do anymore.
    I was hoping to be able to just simply reformat the ssd through disk utility but it doesn't give me this option.
    please help is appreciated!

    You need to use external media in FCP if you're going to work with Motion. Or export the clips you need from FCP.

  • Disk Utility formats Hard Drives as Logical Volume Group

    I just replaced a hard drive which had died in my Mac Pro which has OS X 10.9.5. To format the new 3TB hard drive I went to Disk Utility. I used "Erase" in its fastest form and the drive was formatted with the Type: Logical Volume Group.
    I remember this was a problem a few years ago when I first put hard drives in this computer. I think it was considered a bug in the Disk Utility in OS X 10.8 that it would automatically format drives greater than 2 TB as Logical Volume Group. The solution for me was to restart the computer with my OS X 10.6 disk and use the Disk Utility in that to reformat the drive. I never really understood why Logical Volume Group was a problem but I just obeyed what the wise ones of the Internet had to say.
    So, now I am wondering if I should reformat my new Hard Drive as GUID using my OS X 10.6 optical disk again? If it was a bug in the Disk Utility of OS X 10.8 then why is it not fixed in the Disk Utility of OS X 10.9? Is there an actual problem with having disks format formatted as Logical Volume Group? Is this now just Apple's way of doing things?
    Thank you.

    keg55 wrote:
    You could do your reformat using your 10.6 DVD. That's a decision that's up to you.
    Not every bug in a previous OS gets fixed in a new OS.
    I don't believe CoreStorage (Logical Volume Group) causes any sort of issues. Whenever one encrypts their Macintosh HD, the format is converted to CoreStorage. Fusion Drives are using CoreStorage and now Yosemite converts portables (laptops) to CoreStorage during the install process. As far as Yosemite is concerned, Apple seems to have gone the route of CoreStorage for portables. Even during the Setup on a portable, FileVault is offered with the default of YES being checked. So, if a customer isn't paying attention and continues with the install, they could encrypt their drive without knowing to uncheck the default checkbox.
    Thank you for your reply.
    I have decided to reformat my new hard drive using my 10.6 disk. I like being able to split it up into more than one volume if need be.
    I understand that not every bug in a previous OS gets fixed, but this strikes me as being really a very large bug, so I think it would be good if Apple addressed it.
    It is useful to know about Yosemite's behaviour. When I upgrade to Yosemite I will be a bit more prepared. In fact my MacBook Pro has FileVault on with Mavericks so Yosemite won't change anything there.

  • Locked disk icon in sidebar & disk utility no help

    I have read of others' problems with permissions. I too am having one now. The disk icon in the sidebar is locked. Get info on disk and click to unlock, verify password. The permissions section says custom access for each user type: .....(Me), (unknown), and everyone.
    Then try to use Disk Utility. Will let me repair the disk with no problems found. But repair permissions is grayed out.
    Per another thread tried to run Terminal command: chflags nouchg /Volumes/* but got permission denied.
    What next? Thanks in advance.

    Secondary disk. Startup disk had similar problem but was able to verify and repair permissions.
    Ran command and response was:
    Macintosh-2:~ paulgraham$ sudo chflags nouchg /Volumes/"Help"
    sudo: /var/db/sudo writable by non-owner (040777), should be mode 0700
    WARNING: Improper use of the sudo command could lead to data loss
    or the deletion of important system files. Please double-check your
    typing when using sudo. Type "man sudo" for more information.
    To proceed, enter your password, or type Ctrl-C to abort.
    Password:
    Macintosh-2:~ paulgraham$

  • Known problem with Disk Utility formatting Windows NT drive ?

    I have had a strange problem while formatting a newly purchased Iomega USB (Seagate) with version 11.1 (252.4) of Disk Utility (OS 10.5.8). The drive was NTSF and I wanted Mac OS extended. The first attempt failed, unfortunately I didn't note the exact message. I tried again and this time D.U. was stuck on on a wait progress bar with message "not a multiple of 4". Disk Warrior reported disk too severly damaged. Only Drive Genius could properly format the drive. Anyone knows what happened?

    I'm not sure what caused the problem you observed, but did you first change the partition scheme to a Mac-friendly one before you tried to do the reformat?
    Thanks.
    Well, no I didn't and I simply applied "erase to Mac OS extended". Maybe there is a change from earlier versions of D.U. So far and as far as I am aware, D.U. would erase a DOS disk and by default choose the Apple partition scheme. But this default setting could have been changed to GUID with the Intel Macs, or even to DOS if the drive is DOS. This option is hidden in further options in the partition settings along with the DOS partition scheme and unless you decide to partition the drive and not just erase it, it is not visible. As a matter of facts, Drive Genius offers the choice between Mac OS and GUID as you erase the disk.
    So this could be the culprit, if for instance D.U. erased to Mac OS extended but kept the DOS partition scheme. It seems unlikely though that the developers didn't take that error possibility into account to include a warning of some sort... but that's what I wanted to make sure.

  • Disk Utility/Repair Help Please...

    Hi
    I have been having some issues with a Kernel Panic on my MBP. I am trying to solve them with the help of the X-Lab, but when I do the disk utility>repair permissions I get the following messages:
    Repairing permissions for “Macintosh HD”
    Warning: SUID file "System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/ARDAgent.app/Contents/MacOS/ARDAg ent" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Warning: SUID file "System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/DesktopServicesPriv.framework/Versions/A/Reso urces/Locum" has been modified and will not be repaired.
    Permissions repair complete
    Does anyone think this may be a contributory factor. If it is unlikely that these are not to do with the Kernel Panic, any ideas as to what they are and what I should do.
    many thanks in advance
    Rob

    Those messages are normal and may be ignored.
    This article is for Leopard, but still holds true for Snow Leopard:
    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1448

  • Can not erase my old macbook, because the 'erase' option is not highlighted when i go to disk utility! help

    i am trying to completely erase an old macbook, but when i go to disk utility and click on the disk, the 'erase option' is not highlighted. not sure what to do with this. is there a way to re-start and press some f-butons which will erase the **** thing? help!

    i no longer have the install disk- this laptop is really old! if i had the start up disk, i'd be fine
    this is what i'm getting when i try-

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