Formatting a flash drive for mac. How to choose a flash drive file system for Mac. Types of file systems and their features

There is nothing complicated in the process of formatting a flash drive on a Windows or Mac computer, and many users have already performed this operation more than once. However, there are a number of nuances that can create certain difficulties, for example, removing write protection, choosing a file system and cluster size, and data recovery.

It should be borne in mind that using formatting you can not only delete all files, but also debug the device if there are problems with its operation.

You can format a flash drive (USB drive) in Windows as follows:

1. Launch the system format tool.

Connect the USB drive, then go to " My computer" Right-click on the flash drive icon that appears and select “ Format».

2. Configure the desired settings.

When selecting a file system, the user specifies the type of data organization on the drive.

There are three different options available:

1. FAT32. This type guarantees compatibility with Windows OS, macOS and most USB-compatible devices, such as game consoles, media players, etc. At the same time, the size of the recorded file should not exceed 4 GB. FAT32 is perhaps the best option for collaboration between Windows and macOS.

2.exFAT. When you select this option, the flash drive will be compatible with Windows operating systems starting from version XP SP2, as well as Mac OS X Snow Leopard and later. This type of file system allows you to write files of any size, but the flash drive may not work on some devices.

3.NTFS. By choosing this type, the user will receive a USB drive fully compatible with Windows. At the same time, on macOS you will only be able to view files without the ability to overwrite them. NTFS also allows you to upload files of any size.

Having decided on the file system type, you need to specify the cluster size, that is, the distribution units. In this case, the user needs to select the minimum amount of memory allocated by the device for one file.

If you specify a cluster size of 64 KB, even smaller files will require a minimum of 64 KB of memory. It makes sense to set the cluster size small if it is expected that many small files, for example, text documents, will be stored on the flash drive. This way you can save free space, but the speed of the USB drive will decrease. If the user intends to store large files on a flash drive, then the value should be specified larger. In any case, you can always leave the default value.

In field " Volume Label» You can rename the drive.

Don't forget to check the box " Quick (clear table of contents)" When you select this option, you can save time on cleaning; however, if you uncheck this box, the system will check the drive for errors, which can be useful for debugging, although the process itself will take a little longer.

When finished selecting options, click " Begin" to start the formatting process.

All the procedures described above can be repeated by reformatting the flash drive.

How to format a secure flash drive

The format function may not be available due to write protection being enabled. It can be disabled using the Registry Editor. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Go to the registry editor using the keyboard shortcut Windows+R and paste into the line that appears regedit, then click Enter.

2. Follow the following path in the folder tree: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → SYSTEM → CurrentControlSet → Control → StorageDevicePolicies(the latest directory may be missing).

3. In a folder StorageDevicePolicies open parameter WriteProtect and change the value from 1 on 0 , then click "Save".

4. Disconnect the flash drive and restart your computer.

Some flash drives have physical write protection in the form of a switch. In this case, you just need to move the switch to a different position.

If there is no catalog StorageDevicePolicies it needs to be created. To do this, right-click on the catalog Control and select " Create» → « Chapter" Please enter as title StorageDevicePolicies.

For the parameter name, enter WriteProtect and make sure its value is equal to 0 .

Then close the Registry Editor, unplug the USB flash drive, and restart your computer.

What to do if you can’t format a flash drive

Sometimes Windows may report that formatting is impossible. The cause of this phenomenon may be a malfunction of both the flash drive itself and the computer.

In such a situation, you can try to use special software to restore normal operation. This software is often located on the website of the flash drive manufacturer. For example, JetFlash Online Recovery is available for drives manufactured by Transcend, and USB Flash Drive Online Recovery is available for ADATA.

In addition, universal programs are available on the Internet that are suitable for flash drives from any manufacturer, such as USB Disk Storage Format Tool.

If you have tried all the methods described above and you still cannot format the drive, it may be faulty and needs to be replaced or repaired.

How to erase and format a flash drive or external drive on Mac?

If you use one or more external drives to store data outside of your Mac's main drive, you'll definitely need to know how to handle them in the macOS environment. We will tell you later in this article. how to properly erase and format USB flash drives or external drives connected to a computer using the standard set of macOS tools, as well as third-party utilities.

1 . Open " Disk Utility» in any way convenient for you (via Dock, Launchpad, Finder explorer ( Programs → Utilities), or Spotlight search).

2 . In the left side menu, select the external drive you are interested in connected to your Mac (it will be displayed in the “ External»).

Please note that both disks and partitions are displayed in the left side menu structure. A disk may contain several separate partitions (their names are displayed slightly to the right of the disk name). By erasing a partition, you will only destroy the files that are stored directly on it. When formatting a disk, all partitions and all data located on this disk are erased. Be careful!

3 . Click the button Erase" Specify a name for the partition or disk and select the format of interest:

• Mac OS Extended (Journaled)- standard macOS file system;
• Mac OS Extended (Journaled, Encrypted)- file system with password and additional encryption;
• Mac OS Extended (case sensitive, journaling)- the file system defines, for example, folders with the names “Yablik” and “Yablik” as two completely different folders;
• Mac OS Extended (case sensitive, journaled, encrypted)- a combined file system with all the nuances of the formats described above;
• MS-DOS (FAT)- used on a PC running Windows with disks of 32 GB or less;
• ExFAT- used on PCs running Windows with disks larger than 32 GB. Use this method if you need to format it to NTFS format.

Typically, Mac users format external drives (especially internal ones) in the Mac OS Extended (journaled) format. Formatting in MS-DOS (FAT) or ExFAT is ideal if you are going to use a flash drive or external drive with both macOS and Windows computers.

ATTENTION! Once you select the encryption option, you will need to create a password and remember it. If you forget the password, you will not be able to decrypt the disk and retrieve the data by any means.

“Rifat, I bought a new disk and I need to make it work on both Mac and Windows.” “Hi, I have a disk, but I can’t write anything to it on my Mac, what should I do?” “Listen, how to format a Mac disk, what would it be?”

My friends and clients ask me approximately these questions once a week, if not more often! So now, I will show you how to format a disk in Disk Utility, for different cases!

First, a short introduction to basic file systems (FS). If you don't want to bother with the theoretical aspects, you can skip below, directly to the formatting procedure.

To format a disk, you need to go to Disk Utility, which is located in the Programs - Utilities (Utilities) folder or find it through Spotlight. In the window that appears, on the left side, you need to select the disk to format - the disk itself, and not the volume name. In my case it is 160.04 GB Seagate TOSH..., not Extended HD. Next, we need to click on the Disk Partition button, at the top in the middle, and here we can see all the options for formatting the disk for different needs! So, now I will describe all the sections and what they give us:

1) Partition scheme - by clicking on “Current”, we can select the number of partitions on the disk. Someone may need to create a disk with 2 or more partitions to store different files or for use on different computers.

2) Partition information - here you need to select the disk name and FS. For use on Mac and Win, select FAT or ExFAT. To use the disk for Time Machine, select Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

3) Parameters - by clicking on this button we select the type of bootloader - this is a very important parameter, because It depends on it whether the disk will be detected on the computer or not!

— GUID Partition Scheme- no matter which FS you select, the disk will only be detected on a Mac with an Intel processor (all modern Macs). Together with the HFS+ file system (Mac OS Extended), the disk will be available for creating backup copies via Time Machine! No other combination of the “Partition Scheme” and FS parameters will allow you to use the disk for copies!

— Apple partition scheme- Designed for use on older Mac computers with a PPC processor. We won't need it.

— Master Boot Record— when you select this item, the disk will be visible on computers with Win. But besides this, the format must be FAT or ExFAT.

ATTENTION! FORMATING A DISK ERASES ALL DATA FROM IT!!! BEFORE FORMATING A DISK, MAKE SURE THAT THERE ARE NO IMPORTANT FILES ON IT OR SAVE THEM TO ANOTHER DATA STORAGE!!!

After selecting all the parameters, you can click on the “Apply” button in the lower right corner and this will appear:

The system will warn you that all data will be deleted from the disk, and if you agree, then click on the “Disk Partition” button. Formatting is quite fast - from 3 to 20 seconds, depending on the disk size.

If you have chosen the path for creation of Time Machine, then immediately after formatting a window may appear asking you to select this disk for backups.

Let me clarify once again which items you need to select for:

— Time Machine and disk operation only with Mac- Mac OS Extended file system and GUID partition scheme;

— Disc for Mac and Win- ExFAT file system and Master Boot Record.

So we figured out how to format a disk in a Mac, and what options you need to choose for different cases! This method is suitable for disks, flash drives, regardless of the connection interface - USB, FireWare or Thunderbolt. If you have any questions or difficulties in the process of formatting a Mac disk, write about it in the comments :)

By the way, if you were interested in this article, then feel free to add to my groups at

The question of how to format a flash drive on a Mac most often arises among users of the Windows operating system who, for some reason, had to use an Apple computer and copy some information from it to an external drive.

In this case, the formatting process using the usual methods (right-clicking and selecting the appropriate command) is not suitable.

But the problem can be solved quite simply - moreover, you can even format it in Mac OS in such a way as to transfer information to a standard PC with Windows and even Linux.

Important! It is worth noting that when formatting, the information that was on the media will be destroyed, so if you have important data, it is worth transferring it to another device.

Basic Formatting Principles

For users who are just starting to use Mac, and who have previously worked only with Microsoft products, it is not immediately clear how to format a flash drive in a system that is new to them.

Although all you need for this is to know about the existence of the Disk Utility utility (or in Russian translation “Disk Utility”).

The next steps should be:

1. Insert a USB flash drive into the USB port;
2. Open Finder (analogous to Windows Explorer);
3. Select “Applications”;
4. Click on the “Utilities” icon.

After this, a list of applications will appear on the screen, from which you should select Disk Utility. Further work is carried out in the Disk Utility window that opens.

Working with Disk Utility

When the Disk Utility panel appears on the screen, you should find your USB drive in the list of devices and select the “Erase” tab.

You should be aware that older Apple operating systems only support formatting in a format suitable for Mac.

And then the information can only be read on another Mac, and your data transfer using a flash drive may be useless.

But such systems are only installed on outdated computers, and Mac OS X is capable of formatting in several ways:

1. In format for Mac OS;

The regular Disk Utility has all these capabilities, although it is possible that converting to NTFS will require installing additional drivers on the Mac.

Method number 1. Formatting for use on Mac OS

If you need to format a flash drive only for use on Macs running any version of Mac OS, you should:

1. Open Disk Utility;
2. Open the “Erase” menu for the flash drive;
3. Select the Mac OS Extended format from the drop-down list;
4. Confirm your actions with the “Erase” command.

Now your drive is clean and waiting for information to be written. But it will no longer be possible to read a flash drive formatted for Mac on a computer running Windows.

In order for the system to detect the USB drive after the Mac, another formatting will be required.

Method No. 2. Converting a flash drive to FAT and ExFAT format

The utility also includes formatting into standard formats such as FAT32. Most modern computers, even with Windows, no longer use it.

However, it is possible that you are going to connect a flash drive with data (for example, with a movie that has the same extension, regardless of the system where it is launched) to a TV or DVD player, which works much more easily with this format.

Your steps when choosing this method are almost the same as in the case of formatting for Mac OS:

1. Opening the utility;
2. Selecting the “Erase” item;
3. Installation in the “MS-DOS (FAT)” or “exFAT” format window.

It is worth noting that multimedia devices such as TVs or DVD players may not work with the exFAT format.

At the same time, it is universal and allows you to use the same flash drive on both a PC and a Mac.

Moreover, it is supported by both modern Mac OS and Windows XP SP2, 7 and, naturally, later versions.

Method No. 3. Formatting to NTSF

The disadvantage of FAT is that it can only use files whose size does not exceed 4 GB.

Which, given the size of modern games, programs, films and even the flash drives themselves (32 GB is considered a completely normal volume for a storage device) is not always enough.

In order to transfer information and not split the file into parts, it is better to format it in NTFS.

The format is also listed in Disk Utility. However, to use it you will have to do the following:

Selecting Windows NT Filesystem

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Or there is a need to completely erase its contents, it is customary to format the drive. This procedure removes all data and often normal operation of the device.

During the formatting process, the computer prompts you to select a file system (FS). This is the name for organizing data on a flash drive. The macOS user has a choice of the following systems: MS-DOS (FAT), ExFAT or OS X Extended.

It is very important to format the drive in the file system that is best suited for your equipment. Let's figure out which flash drive file system is optimal for Mac and why.

Types of file systems and their features

MS-DOS (FAT)- this is what macOS calls the file system, known to Windows users as FAT/FAT32. It is compatible with any computer, and is also supported by consoles and home appliances such as camcorders or even old media players.

For all its versatility, MS-DOS (FAT) has an important drawback: files larger than 4 GB cannot be written to a flash drive formatted in this file system.

ExFAT- a newer FS that is supported on macOS starting from version X 10.6.5, and on Windows - from XP SP2. Obviously, the disadvantage of this format is the lack of compatibility with earlier versions of operating systems. Additionally, not all USB devices support ExFAT. Well, the plus is that it can work with files larger than 4 GB.

Mac OS Extended (Journaled) provides maximum flash drive compatibility with macOS and is the default file system for hard drives on Mac computers. There are no restrictions on the size of the recorded file when using Mac OS Extended (Journaled). At the same time, this FS is not supported by Windows and many USB devices.

You can also see in the list of available FS Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled). It differs from the previous one only in case sensitivity. For example, the files hello.txt and Hello.txt in such a FS will be considered different. If you don't need this, choose the regular Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

NTFS- another FS that you may encounter. Drives formatted in it have no restrictions on file size and are compatible with Windows. But in macOS, files recorded on such a flash drive can only be viewed without the ability to write. Additionally, some USB devices do not support NTFS at all.

Which file system to choose

As you can see, the choice of drive file system depends on what devices you will use it with. If only with Mac and other Apple equipment, choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

ExFAT is perfect for Mac and Windows PCs.

If you want to achieve compatibility of a flash drive with the maximum number of USB devices and do not plan to write files larger than 4 GB to it, choose MS-DOS (FAT).

How to change the file system

To change the drive's FS, use Disk Utility. Don't forget, this procedure destroys all data.

But first check the current file system of the flash drive. To do this, just launch Disk Utility and select the drive in the left panel. After this, detailed information about the flash drive will appear on the screen, including its FS type, which can be seen next to the name of the drive.

If the current file system does not suit you, click on the “Erase” button on the top panel. In the window that appears, select a new FS and click “Erase” again. After a few seconds, the utility will change the file system of the flash drive.

Many users have difficulties using USB drives and external drives in an Apple system, especially if these components were previously used for Windows. Let's take a closer look at why this happens and how to configure the equipment for full use with different operating systems.

External drives support different types of file systems.

Before you figure out how to format a flash drive on a Mac, it's important to know a thing or two about the types of major file systems:

• NTFS. Popular system in Windows. If you connect a disk with NTFS to a Mac device, you can copy and read files from it, but you won’t be able to record anything without third-party programs;
• FAT. It is a fairly old system that was used famously on DOS systems. Today it is supported not only by computers, but also by disks, players, and cameras. In Win and Mac you can write and read FAT files. The main disadvantage is the size of the source files - 4 gigabytes and no more. This is usually a death sentence for high quality films;
• ExFAT. The only difference with FAT is that files can be of any size. A flash drive written in this format will work equally well in different modern operating systems;
• HFS+. It is also called Mac OS Extended, as the name implies, it is designed exclusively for Apple products. You can read information on Windows only using special utilities.

There are several ways to resolve the issue of compatibility of drives on different operating systems. Let's look at them in more detail.

Disk partitioning

The disk can be divided into two separate sections, which will have their own system. The solution is perfect for any hard drives and flash drives; all steps are performed in Disk Utility. All you need is to go to “Disk Partition”, select “2 volumes” in the partition scheme, and then decide what specific volume the parts should occupy. In the same window the format and name are set.

Should the device work on both Windows and Mac? Then you need to choose the right partition scheme. The MBR scheme is considered universal, APM and GUID are not suitable for Windows.

Remember that all information after pressing the “Apply” button will be deleted from the disk. We recommend transferring important files to a flash drive or disk in advance.

This method is considered quite successful for solving compatibility, but until information is transferred from one partition to another: if you select different file systems, you will not be able to change files.

Formatting on Mac OS

To change the file system on a flash drive, you need to perform the following manipulations:

• connect to the USB input;
• click on “Disk Utility”;
• on the left side of the screen, select the section you are interested in, then click on the “Erase” tab;
• come up with a name for the flash drive, select the system you are interested in. The best option for a universal drive is ExFAT or FAT.

Driver application

If you need to leave the NTFS format, but in such a way that you can fully work with it on any system, we recommend using a special driver. Using the NTFS-3G driver and OSXFuse, you can “make friends” between two seemingly incompatible systems. Many programmers have been able to master the method, but they claim that in order to work effectively, all these drivers and utilities need to be further configured.

Results

There are several types of file systems, some of which are not compatible with Mac OS. exFAT is best suited - it is a “universal soldier”; the system makes it possible to view and overwrite information on different OSes. To format drives, Mac has a special assistant - Disk Utility.