File System (formatting, partitioning)

I have a question about the HFS+ (HFS Plus) file system...
I recently purchased a 17 inch Macbook Pro along with a LaCie d2 Extreme External Hard Drive. I am dual-booting on my Macbook Pro using Bootcamp and want to be able to use the external hard drive in both work environments and also be able to access files from each OS. What would be the best and most reliable way to go about doing this.
I was going to format the entire drive as FAT32 since both operating systems can write and read to this file system... but I wanted other opinions on this. Should I partition the drive and have an NTFS partition for Windows XP, a FAT32 partition for both OSes and an HFS+ partition for Mac OSX??
All help is greatly appreciated.

"So, if I understand correctly, Mac Drive would allow me to read and write to an HFS+ volume from both Windows XP and Mac OSX."
Yes and no. MacDrive is a file system driver for Windows. Mac OS X supports HFS+ natively.
"Therefore, I would not have to partition the drive at all and I could have the whole drive formatted as HFS+??"
Nope. Windows XP needs a FAT32 or NTFS drive to boot from, MacDrive will be loaded during the boot process.
"How does Mac Drive work... do I install it on XP?"
Yep. After you installed it, you can see any HFS+ partition in the Windows Explorer as a separate drive.
"Also, does it slow down the drive at all or require emulation or anything like that?"
No.

Similar Messages

  • H.D file system format

    I have a 2000 model imac which originally came with Mac OS 9.6. I've purchased all new CDs for software and the new OS X. I think it's the original OS X cause there is no version on it that i saw. Anyway i had a hard drive in my windows based computer formated in the NTFS file system and i want to put it into my IMAC and put the new OS on it. Even after deleting the partion i still couldn't get it to recognice the new the drive. The drive is 200Gb. I pulled out an old 40Gb h.d i had and partitioned it into two 20 Gb h.d. with the FAT32 format and the 'select destination volume' option still wouldn't give me the hard drive as an option.
    Things i've done:
    deleted all partitions went with an 'unpartitioned' drive
    created a 'raw' partition
    created a NTFS partition
    created a FAT32 partition
    The OS goes through the installation fine until it's time to select a location of installation and only shows up the cdrom drive which of course i can't select.
    Is there anyway of getting my mac to recognize the hard drive?
    Chris

    Thank you all for all the help it has done wonders in getting my imac back up and running. However i've still got one problem. The 200Gb h.d. i put into the imac only shows up as about 127Gbs. I was told that my system will only recognize only up to 128gbs. Is there anything i can do to change this. What if i used Macdrive and made two partitions on the drive will that allow my imac to recognize the extra storage. That's a lot of space going to waiste.
    Another thing is the firmware update?! This is a fresh install from mac OS X 10.1.2. I've already downloaded all the updates that the installed updater program has given me. Everything works smoothly including my optical drive do i still need to locate it and install it?

  • Unable to format/partition hard drive

    So I've recently decided my previous three partitions, including a partition with windows on, are not needed so backed up the files and am trying to simply format the whole hard disk. It lets me format two of the old partitions, but not the one with windows OS on it (erase is greyed out).
    In terminal I tried
    diskutil reformat /dev/disk2
    but get
    disk2 does not appear to have a valid file system format
    Usage:  diskutil reformat MountPoint|DiskIdentifier|DeviceNode
    Completely erase an existing volume with the same name and format as the
    original.  Ownership of the affected disk is required.
    You cannot erase the boot volume, nor can you reformat any device which
    does not have a valid file system (instead use diskutil eraseVolume).
    The partition table is master boot record for the HDD. That's about as far as I can get. Anyone?

    Hi there LazyGenious,
    At this point you may need to boot into the Recovery HD to repartition and reformat your HDD, then reinstall OS X. 
    To boot in the the Recovery HD, choose Apple menu > Restart. Once your Mac restarts (and the gray screen appears), hold down the Command (⌘) and R keys. Once booted, you should be able to launch Disk Utility. At this point you will want to repartition the HDD using the steps outlined in the User Guide below. If you are going to be reinstalling OS X, make sure to select the GUID Partition Table option.
    Partition a disk - Disk Utility Help
     Partition a disk
    Select the disk in the sidebar, then click Partition.
    If you’re partitioning an external disk, make sure it’s connected to your computer.
    Click the Partition Layout pop-up menu, then choose the number of partitions.
    You can enter a size for each partition or drag the divider between the partitions to change their sizes. If a partition’s name has an asterisk beside it, it’s being shown larger than its actual size so the name can be displayed clearly.
    Click each partition, then enter a name for it.
    For each partition, click the Format pop-up menu, choose a format, then enter a size.
    Mac OS Extended (Journaled): Uses journaling to protect the hierarchical file system integrity.
    Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled): Uses journaling and is case sensitive to folder names. For example, folders named “Homework” and “hoMeWOrk” are two different folders.
    MS-DOS (FAT): Use for Windows disks that are 32 GB or less.
    ExFAT: Use for Windows disks that are over 32 GB.
    Free Space: Use to extend the free space for the disk.
    Click Options, then choose one of the following:
    GUID Partition Table: Choose this partition scheme if you’ll be using this disk only with Mac computers.
    Apple Partition Map: This partition scheme should only be used if you’re working with Mac computers using Mac OS X version 10.4 or earlier.
    Master Boot Record: Also known as “fdisk,” choose this partition scheme if you’ll be using the disk as a secondary disk for the Windows operating system you installed using Boot Camp, or for an external disk you’ll be using on a Windows computer.
    Click Apply.
    Once this is process is complete, quit Disk Utility and reinstall OS X using the steps outlined in the article below, starting from step 2. 
    OS X Mavericks: Erase and reinstall OS X
    -Griff W.

  • Can btrfs(2.6.31) file system be used during an install

    Hi,
    I would like to use btrfs for my root and home partition during an initial installation, but I notice that the btrfs in kernel 2.6.30 (what's on the CD) is old and has had the file system
    format changed as of 2.6.31, so is not backward compatible.
    Is there any way to install using the latest btrfs from 2.6.31 (or 2.6.32 if it is out ..)  .... or am I just too beeding edge on this ..
    Cheers,
    Bernie

    Cool, I am not the only one as it seems
    I might be wrong but doesn't btrfs handle file system upgrades? But even then it doesn't seem to be possible to setup the root filesystem for btrfs currently. Because the setup enviroment lacks the proper tools, like mkfs.brtfs.
    Maybe stability is an issue here. Some user might get very angry if their data gets lost After all btrfs is still under development.

  • Partitioning previously used Windows NT File System for use with Mac and PC

    With reference to this thread I found when searching for a solution: Can Windows NT File System(NTFS) format external hard drive work on iMac?
    Below is the comment which led to me creating this new thread.
    "rkaufmann87Sep 8, 2014 8:26 AM Re: Can Windows NT File System(NTFS) format external hard drive work on iMac?
    in response to djj19
    djj19 wrote:
    Hi there,
    I am about to follow your advice also for the same issue, the worry I have is that when I select partition 1, it says "To erase and partition the selected disk..." and so I am worried that if I do this it will erase the current contents of the hard disk drive (which were copied there from PCs in previous use).
    If so, is there a way to use the hard disk drive with a mac without erasing the contents?
    Thanks
    Your case is different and NO do not partition the EHD yet unless you are prepared to completely erase your PC data. Before progressing though, do you intend to share the EHD with a PC and your Mac? If so this is not advisable but it is possible, however you will need to compromise. Please answer that question first and then we can proceed with some advice.
    BTW it's generally not a good idea to ask a question in a thread that has already been answered, particularly one that is 3+ years old! In such a case it's normally better to create your own thread. "
    The answer to the question in the above comment is that ideally I would like to use with both Mac and PC, why is this not advisable?
    Please discuss my best options. I am wondering if I could transfer the current contents of the disk drive elsewhere, partition (which would erase) the disk drive, then put back the contents along with the new files which I have been trying to put on in the first place?
    If this were to work would I then be tied down to only using this disk drive with a Mac?
    Thank you.
    Message was edited by: djj19

    Ideally it is best to have seperate (discreet) EHD's for a PC and Mac due to their differences in HD formatting. However, this is not always feasable but there are alternative solutions availble. Among those are:
    Creating and useing a Dropbox account that can be shared by PCs, Macs, IOS and Android devices. Dropbox allows for 2GB of free storage and additional storage is available for a small monthly fee.
    Another possiblity is formating an EHD so that it may be shared by both a PC and Mac, this format is FAT 32. The downside of doing this is the size of the files written to the HD are limited to 4GB.

  • Disk Utility can't format my external HD - File System Formatter fails

    Hi. I have a Freecom 1.5TB external hardrive that is connected by firewire to my Intel iMac. The drive has worked fine for a year and then suddenly the "error 36 code" appeared and nothing else could be saved to the drive.
    Disk Utility told me that it could not repair the disk and that I should format it. At this stage the problems start!
    DU fails to format the drive with the error "File System Formatter Failed."
    I have read various conversations on this error on these forums and followed the instructions but nothing has worked. I have already
    1) Partioned the disk making sure it is "GUID" - then formatted and it still fails
    2) Used MS DOS to do it but that also fails.
    I have noticed that the SMART status is "not recognised".
    Is there anything else that I can do or am I just doing this wrong? I am thinking that I might be able to do something using the start-up disks but I don't know how to do that and don't want to jepardise my iMac whichis otherwise working fine!
    Any help appreciated.
    Rob

    I went crazy last night with the same issue trying to format my Toshiba external drive. I could format as MSDOS but not Mac journaled. I tried the guid partition scheme etc... no luck.  Then I read somewhere that Leopard has an issue with the partitioning schemes. I hooked it up to my macbook on Tiger and whalla, formatted no problem. Then I was able to hook it up to Time Machine and let it reformat it on my Snow Leopard version of OSX on the iMac. I'm on OSX 10.6.8.

  • How do you install a file system on an empty partition?

    Hi. I'm running 10.3.9 on a B&W G3. I've formatted a 100Gb drive with a 40Gb partition on which Panther is installed (and which is running even as I type) and several empty partitions. I was going to install OS 9 on one of the empty partitions, but Disk Utility doesn't seem to want to let me do install a file system on an empty partition. Hence, the OS 9 installer can't find the empty partitions, and therefore can't install.
    Is there another way to put a file system on an empty partition?
    MTIA, Matt
    PowerBook Titanium G4   Mac OS X (10.4)   Also PowerBook G3, eMac, and misc elderly models

    Matt--
    One suggestion: if you can't figure out how to put a file system on the empty space, you could clone your current partition to an external drive, re-partition the internal drive drive and then clone the external back. Like John, I've heard of utilities that can re-partition a drive without erasing your data, but I just can't imagine using one if I didn't have a clone anyway. So that's what I've done when I want to change a partition size.
    charlie

  • During Windows install, says the Bootcamp Windows partition is incorrect file system and won't install

    I had another Macbook Pro retina which I installed Windows 8 on with no problems via bootcamp.  I just updated to the late 2013 model of the Macbook Pro, and attempted to do the same thing but have had problems.  I create the partition for Windows with Bootcamp, restart the computer, and after I enter my security key in the Windows installation screen it comes to the screen where you have to select the appropriate installation drive.  When I select the drive I created for Windows, it says that it can't install due to the file system.  I have no idea why I'm having this problem because I had done this once before....I can't for the life of me figure out what's wrong and I'm at a loss.
    If anyone can point me in the right direction I will greatly appreciate it...also let me know if there are differences from the early 2013 model and late 2013 model that would've created this problem.  Thanks!!
    Robert

    Well, here is what happened...
    Somehow in making a Windows partition then removing the partition so many times I created an error where it only showed 1/2 of my hard drive...like it was starting to create the second half for the windows side and ran into an error.
    So this turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because what I had to do was go to "Command + R" when I was starting up and format the entire drive, all 500 gb.  This formatted the whole drive and must've erased whatever was causing the trouble.
    Of course, then I had to reinstall OS X, and reinstall my Time Machine backup, but then I opened bootcamp and created the Windows partition again.  This time, when I ran the EFI installer you were referring to on the far right (which I had tried before), it allowed me to click next and continue once I selected the Windows partition.  Thank God!  It must've fixed whatever file system error was hanging it up there every time....because it's installing now.
    What I would suggest if all else fails, just format the whole dang thing.  Then try from square one and see if you can install

  • Gummiboot error : file system is not a fat efi system partition (ESP)

    I am at the point the guide tells me to do some specific work because I got UEFI motherboard
    I did a fat 32 partition (type ef00) of 1G , which is my sda3
    I created a dir /mnt/boot
    I mounted the sda3 there
    I type pacman -S gummiboot
    result is File system /boot is not a fat efi system parttition file system
    error: command failed to execute correctly
    I don't get what I did wrong or what I understood wrong in the wiki. My partition is fat32, I try to install the bootloader gummiboot there but I take that error msg even if it's indeed formated as fat32.
    edit: i've run the pacstrap -i /mnt base , everything worked smoothly and fast.
    Last edited by bigboss (2013-10-10 19:07:22)

    Hopefully you also say this line:
    gummiboot install wrote:Copied /usr/lib/gummiboot/gummibootx64.efi to /boot/EFI/Boot/BOOTX64.EFI.
    The \EFI\boot\bootx64.efi spot on the ESP is special. It is the "default" spot, which was originally intended to ensure that a UEFI USB flash drive, or other external media, would be able to boot.  So in those cases, there is obviously not going to be a firmware entry as there potentially are for internal devices.  So with external media, it finds the first ESP it can and automatically boots whatever is placed in that position.  After a while, this feature started to be implemented to the internal devices as well.
    This of course has its benefits, but also downsides.  It means that you can actually boot UEFI without making an efibootmgr entry at all.  You can instead set the machine to boot from the device (as though you were booting with the old MBR system) and have things set to UEFI.  It will then, like the external devices, find the first ESP and then boot the \EFI\boot\bootx64.efi, whatever that is. But this also has made it so that different installers will "compete" for that default spot. So although gummiboot copying itself to that spot is in my opinion, convenient, I believe the microsoft installer will also make an attempt to write over this as well.  Hence, it is better (but not essential) to have a firmware entry.
    As far as the efibootmgr mounting issue you had, it may be that the info is not in the beginners guide simply because of the recent changes to the efibootmgr binary.  See this section of the UEFI wiki page to understand what happened. Baiscally there is a new system in the kernel for EFI variables, and we have now switched fully.  But I also agree with jasonwryan here that it is also likely that there just simply has to be a balance between providing a nice up to date layout of the installation process in the beginners guide, while not totally regurgitating every single but of information from the rest of the wiki.

  • When i was partitioning my hard drive i ran out of power (so it closed in the middle of the process). now when i try to partition it says Couldn't modify partition map because file system verification failed.

    When i was partitioning my hard drive i ran out of power (so it closed in the middle of the process). now when i try to partition it says Couldn’t modify partition map because file system verification failed.

    You'll have to select the entire external hard drive by the hardware name itself and then apply a new partition table to it under the Partition tab of Disk Utility. Erase and format the drive.
    GUID for OS X.

  • How do you repair the EFI systems partitions when you mac tells you that the live file system is not supported?

    how do you repair the EFI systems partitions when you mac tells you that the live file system is not supported?

    I don't have good news. You will need to repartition and reformat the hard drive in order to determine if the drive is still OK or if it needs to be replaced. If your computer is a 2011 model or later do the following:
    Install Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion Using Internet Recovery
    Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.
    Boot to the Internet Recovery HD:
    Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND-OPTION- R keys until a globe appears on the screen. Wait patiently - 15-20 minutes - until the Recovery main menu appears.
    Partition and Format the hard drive:
    Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
    After DU loads select your newly installed hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
    Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
    Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion. Mavericks: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks and click on the Install button. Be sure to select the correct drive to use if you have more than one.
    Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.
    This should restore the version of OS X originally pre-installed on the computer.
    If your computer is pre-2011 model, then locate the original installer discs that came with the computer. Then do this:
    Clean Install of Snow Leopard
    Be sure to make a backup first because the following procedure will erase
    the drive and everything on it.
         1. Boot the computer using the Snow Leopard Installer Disc or the Disc 1 that came
             with your computer.  Insert the disc into the optical drive and restart the computer.
             After the chime press and hold down the  "C" key.  Release the key when you see
             a small spinning gear appear below the dark gray Apple logo.
         2. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue
             button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.
             After DU loads select the hard drive entry from the left side list (mfgr.'s ID and drive
             size.)  Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.  Set the number of
             partitions to one (1) from the Partitions drop down menu, click on Options button
             and select GUID, click on OK, then set the format type to MacOS Extended
             (Journaled, if supported), then click on the Apply button.
         3. When the formatting has completed quit DU and return to the installer.  Proceed
             with the OS X installation and follow the directions included with the installer.
         4. When the installation has completed your computer will Restart into the Setup
             Assistant. Be sure you configure your initial admin account with the exact same
             username and password that you used on your old drive. After you finish Setup
             Assistant will complete the installation after which you will be running a fresh
             install of OS X.  You can now begin the update process by opening Software
             Update and installing all recommended updates to bring your installation current.
    Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1. You can now download a version of OS X from which to upgrade from your Purchases page in the App Store.

  • [Solved] Canot format MicroSD. File system is read-only

    I formatted it for my special needs some time ago using fdisk.
    Don't remember the partition table, but there was 1 fat32 and 1 ext4 partition.
    Now I want to format it fat32 clean, but I get the errors.
    When I open GParted, it says
    GParted wrote:/dev/sdb contains GPT signatures, indicating that it has a GPT table.  However, it does not have a valid fake msdos partition table, as it should.  Perhaps it was corrupted -- possibly by a program that doesn't understand GPT partition tables.  Or perhaps you deleted the GPT table, and are now using an msdos partition table.  Is this a GPT partition table?
    If I click yes - it shows partitions, but creating new partition table fails, as it is read-only.
    If I click no - it does not show up in the device list.
    Here's a picture of the structure of the device.
    What also strange, I remember making 1 GiB ext4, and rest fat32. But it shows the opposite.
    So I tried formatting it with fdisk
    $ fdisk /dev/sdb
    o
    n
    w
    fdisk: cannot write disk label: Bad file descriptor
    I made sure they are unmounted
    umount: /dev/sdb1: not mounted
    umount: /dev/sdb2: not mounted
    Then I checked the filesystems. The second one appears to be read-only
    # fsck /dev/sdb1
    fsck from util-linux 2.23.2
    fsck.fat 3.0.22 (2013-07-19)
    /dev/sdb1: 18 files, 96978/698280 clusters
    # fsck /dev/sdb2
    fsck from util-linux 2.23.2
    e2fsck 1.42.8 (20-Jun-2013)
    fsck.ext4: Read-only file system while trying to open /dev/sdb2
    Disk write-protected; use the -n option to do a read-only
    check of the device.
    # fsck -n /dev/sdb2
    fsck from util-linux 2.23.2
    e2fsck 1.42.8 (20-Jun-2013)
    /dev/sdb2: clean, 860/65664 files, 56633/262144 blocks
    Tried the zero trick, but failed as well.
    # dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdb
    dd: failed to open ‘/dev/sdb’: Read-only file system
    # dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdb2
    dd: failed to open ‘/dev/sdb2’: Read-only file system
    Tried to disable the write-protection
    # hdparm -r0 /dev/sdb
    /dev/sdb:
    setting readonly to 0 (off)
    readonly = 0 (off)
    After that, fdisk still fails to format.
    In Windows 8, it mounts only the fat32 part.
    diskpart can't erase partition table as well.
    Last edited by Doctor Drive (2013-10-09 08:28:13)

    Finally I found the solution
    MicroSD adapter has a "lock" feature.
    When I inserted the adapter, the lock always triggered to locked state.
    So I fixed it in unlocked state using the ducktape.
    http://kb.sandisk.com/app/answers/detai … -or-locked

  • Verication file system failed to make partition

    I can't make a partition verification file system failed

    Hello,
    In Disk Utility, try Repair Disk first, you need another boot drive or the Install Disc if this is trying on your Boot Drive.
    "Try Disk Utility
    1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
    2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu at top of the screen. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
    *Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
    3. Click the First Aid tab.
    4. Select your Mac OS X volume.
    5. Click Repair Disk, (not Repair Permissions). Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk."
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
    Then try a Safe Boot, (holding Shift key down at bootup), run Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities, then highlight your drive, click on Repair Permissions, reboot when it completes.
    (Safe boot may stay on the gray radian for a long time, let it go, it's trying to repair the Hard Drive.)
    If perchance you can't find your install Disc, at least try it from the Safe Boot part onward.

  • Using bootcamp was installing windows xp, at the select ntfs or fat format selected "leave the current file system intact." How can that be changed to a correct choice. Mac side opens correctly. Windows shows disk error.

    using bootcamp, was installing windows xp, at the select ntfs or fat format mistakenly selected "leave the current file system intact." How can that be changed to a correct choice. Mac side opens correctly. Windows shows disk error. and doesn't respond to press any key. When looking in the startup disk section, windows on boot camp can be seen, but not selected. (13"MacBook Pro  10.6.8)

    Have a read here http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1722 for solution.
    Stefan

  • HFS File system with case sensitive is not accepted to install creative cloud? Is there any other way but install the whole MacOS again after formatting the drive. I cannot belief that Adobe is so bad to it's Mac customers..

    After many hours setting up OS10.10 from he scratch the last step should be installing m Adobe apps again.
    trying this I always get the error message that creative cloud does not accept case sensitive file systems and I shall use another drive.
    This means I have to set up the whole machine again after formatting without case sensitive but then having copy problems with my NAS?
    I cannot belief that Adobe is really demanding this. If so this would show how urgent this market need alternatives and some more competition...

    Hi,
    You can refer below link for more information.
    Error "Case-sensitive drives not supported" or similar install error | Mac OS

Maybe you are looking for