NTFS-3G for Mac OSX. NTFS-3G for Mac OS X brings NTFS read/write support to Mac OS X, along with additional advanced features. It is based on NTFS-3G, an open source NTFS driver that is ported into numerous platforms, but also includes other software projects to build a complete toolset for managing NTFS volumes. NTFS-3G for Mac requires. NTFS also supports file permissions, file encryption and other features that make NTFS more suitable than a FAT32. For these reasons all modern versions of Windows must be installed on a drive which is NTFS formatted. The only real downside of NTFS is a lack of compatibility with older versions of Windows and non-Windows operating systems. Convert NTFS to FAT32 with EaseUS Partition Master. Best for: Windows Beginners. Difficulty Level.
- Ntfs For Mac
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- Fat32 Vs Ntfs
- Ntfs And Fat32 For Mac Download
You might have heard about the terms of FAT32, NTFS or exFAT and need to decide which one to choose as the best file system for your SD card or USB flash stick. Don’t worry. In this article, we are going to introduce the three file systems so that you’ll know the difference between FAT32, NTFS and exFAT as well as their pros & cons and compatibility.
In order to avoid problems like slow USB transfer speed or “the file is too large for the destination file system”, it is necessary to know all the features and limitations of different file systems. For example, Windows operating system gets installed making the use of NTFS file system for partition formatting. In a similar way, FAT32 is used for files in removable disk drives and other such devices which have interface-based storage to keep the files. Basically, the exFAT file system is the modified derivation of FAT32. Keep looking if you need more information to differentiate FAT32, NTFS and exFAT files systems.
File System
While we are working with computer and other storage devices, all the workabilities are based on some kinds of algorithm and coding. There are some rules which are implemented to bring out that feature and function of every system. The file system is one of such sets of rules which are derived to process the data storage and keep it secured in a storage device. The computation system is brought in use to store the files in a secured manner.
File system surely is important to make the data stored with its value in the storage device. If it is not there, then only the undefined data will be stored in it. There are many types of file systems which can be used to store the files in different storage options or devices. They are Flash File System, Disk File System and many others. FAT32, NTFS and exFAT are the types of Disk File System.
How to format a USB stick to FAT32, NTFS or exFAT:
It is very easy to format a storage device to any of the three file systems on a Windows computer. Just right click on the disk drive in Windows File Explorer and choose Format, then you will get the options.
Allocation Unit Size
Allocation Unit Size, also known as Cluster Size is an important part of file systems. On a partition of the file, the smallest space occupied by it is termed as Allocation Unit Size. You can vary the file size as per your need ranging from 4096 to 2048K. At the time of formatting, the default allocation unit size is applied to all the files. The file is stored into the same number of pieces as its allocation unit.
Tips: Due to the mechanism of file systems, the data you deleted is not immediately removed from storage devices before new data is saved. Therefore, it is still possible to recover lost files from SD card, hard drive, USB flash stick or computer with a good data recovery software.
1. FAT32 File System
FAT stands for File Allocation Table which is one of the oldest file systems used for storage of data. Initially, it was designed as an 8-bit FAT file system to store the data into an 8-inch floppy disk.
With many modification and advancement, FAT32 was introduced in 1995. It is a great aid to store the files into the removable or external storage device or drives. Up to 4 GB of single file and a total of 8 TB as the maximum disk size for FAT32. So, it is used to store only the small files not the apps or files having a large size. To overcome this limitation of FAT32, NTFS is used.
Compatibility: All version of Windows, Mac, Linux, and almost anything with a USB port.
Pros:
- It is an amazing file system to store files in flash drives.
- It is lightweight and has cross-platform compatibility.
Cons:
- You can only store files having a size-limited up to 4 GB and partition size up to 8 TB.
2. NTFS File System
As we have already seen that FAT32 is not capable to store the large files. To nullify that limitation, NTFS is selected as the default file system with modern techniques to store the file with a large file and partition size.
NTFS or New Technology File System came into use in 1993 with the introduction of Windows NT 3.1 operating system. It is capable to store almost all types of files with a high range of file size limits. In other words, it is capable to store all types of files available at present.
NTFS is also featured with disk usage quotas, reparse points, sparse file support, file-level encryption and distributed link tracking. Moreover, it is also designed so as to display backward compatibility. That means, it is not limited to be used with any latest version. You can use this file system to store using any previous versions. However, this file system is somehow limited to Windows XP and later versions of Windows. You can only read the formatted files of NTFS using Apple’s Mac OSX. You can edit the file of NTFS using some particular versions of Linux.
Compatibility: All version of Windows, Microsoft Xbox One, Mac (read-only) and Linux (write support for some versions)
Pros:
- There is an inexhaustible limit of files to be stored using NTFS. You can store a file of any partition size.
- It is mainly used to store files in internal hard drives.
- It is used for the installation of software as well.
Cons:
- It is compatible with limited cross-platform.
- You can not edit the NTFS formatted file using Mac.
3. exFAT File System
exFAT or extended FAT is the modified and advanced file system which is used to fill the space of FAT32. It is mainly used in modern digital cameras and in ball games. Moreover, it is also used to format the high capacity SDXC memory cards. It is capable to support the formatting storage of large files and is lightweight as well. This is the reason why exFAT is considered in many fields where there is a need to support files larger than 4 GB. exFAT SD card is used in daily life for many purposes where the FAT32 is not capable to support due to its limitations of file size. You can copy a full HD movie easily using exFAT SD card and do many other such works.
At present, Microsoft is looking after the US Patent 8321439 which is developed for accelerating the file search speed. It is named as Quick Fine Make Lookup through which one can find his/her file by using Name hashtag or such keywords. This set of the specification has not yet brought up for the exFAT file system due to which this file system users are using a restricted licence over their files. They can get access to the file’s licence completely after the release of full specification set by Microsoft. Due to this, vendors from many countries are not using the exFAT file system for the open-source operating system or any commercial software.
Compatibility: Windows XP and later versions, Mac OS X and later versions, Linux (using FUSE), Android
Pros:
- It is lightweight as compared to NTFS.
- It is an intermediate solution over FAT32 and NTFS.
- You can read/write the exFAT formatted files using compatible Mac version as well.
- More devices support exFAT than NTFS.
Cons:
- Its usage is restricted by Microsoft and does not give complete access over the licence to the user.
Verdict
Hence, you have seen all the basic and important features of these three file systems. Now, it will be easy for you to differentiate these file systems and select them appropriately for storing and formatting your files. Generally, exFAT is ideal for flash drives, NTFS for internal drives, and FAT32 is more widely supported by devices. However, in some cases, it is necessary to format a storage device as a file system against the regulation above in order to make the device work smoothly. If you have any queries related to these file systems, or whether you really need to safely remove USB, write it to us using the comments section.
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PAGE CONTENT:
- What are file systems?
- FAT32 vs NTFS: What's the difference?
- What's the best Windows USB format tool?
- Format USB to FAT32 & NTFS
- Convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data
EaseUS Partition Master is your optimal choice to format the USB drive to FAT32 or NTFS in Windows 10/8/7:
As a tiny, portable and somewhat capacious removable storage media, the USB flash drive, thumb drive or USB stick seems to be seen everywhere among modern computer users. What are the purposes of owning a flash drive? In general, we use a USB drive mainly for transferring files across operating systems and different devices, or making a bootable USB drive for booting up a failed or crashed computer.
In order to make full use of a USB drive's capacity and performance, it's essential to format it with an appropriate, compatible and efficient file system. Do you know what is the best file system for a USB drive? Should you choose FAT32 or NTFS while formatting the USB flash drive? Here we will explain reasons and give answers to whether you should format USB drive to FAT32 or NTFS with the best USB format tool.
What are file systems?
A file system can be interpreted as an index or database containing physical location of every piece of data on a storage drive. The structure and logic rules used to manage the groups of data and their names is called a file system.
A Windows computer, Mac, smartphone, Xbox and any place that stores data must adopt particular kinds of file systems to read, write, store and organize data on various storage media, including a flash drive, memory card, pen drive, hard drive, HDD or SSD. In simple terms, without a matched file system, the media will be totally useless as it cannot be recognized at all by your certain device.
There are many different kinds of file systems. Each one has different structure and logic, properties of speed, flexibility, security, size, etc. Following examples are the most commonly acknowledged and used file systems on popular operating systems.
Don't miss: completely free FAT32 & NTFS formatter for USB
NTFS: (NT File System) It's the default file system for all Windows versions.
HFS+: (Hierarchical File System) It's the default file system for macOS versions.
APFS: (Proprietary Apple File System) It's developed as a replacement for HFS+ since the release of iOS 10.3 and macOS 10.13.
FAT32: (File Allocation Table 32) It's an older standard Windows file system before NTFS.
exFAT: (extended File Allocation Table) It's developed based on FAT32 and offers a lightweight system without all the overhead of NTFS.
EXT2, 3 & 4: (Extend File System) It's initially created specifically for Linux.
EXT2, 3 & 4: (Extend File System) It's initially created specifically for Linux.
FAT32 vs. NTFS: What's the difference?
Now you should have a basic understanding of a variety of file systems in prevalence. When it comes to the final selection for a USB flash drive between FAT32 or NTFS, which one will you choose?
Following is an overall explanation of each.
FAT32 is compatible with all operating systems since it's a simple file system and has been around for a really long time. In contrast, NTFS is more robust and effective than FAT as it adopts advanced data structures to improve reliability, disk space utilization and overall performance. The application of NTFS has grown but FAT32 is still more universal.
What's more, FAT32 can be converted to NTFS but it's getting hard to convert NTFS back to FAT, due to the facts that NTFS has great security, file by file compression, quotas and file encryption.
Don't miss: completely free FAT32 & NTFS formatter for USB
FAT32 or NTFS? Which one should you choose?
If you're looking to decide which file system to use when formatting a USB drive, most of all, you should consider two of the most important aspects: portability and file size limits when made your own decision.
Ntfs For Mac
As you can judge from the comparison table, FAT32 is almost supported by all operating systems, only to notice that it cannot transfer or store a single file larger than 4GB & max partition size should be under 2TB in size. However, NTFS seems to have no limit in dealing with extremely large files and partition sizes.
Ntfs Vs Fat32 For Mac
In one word, it's a good idea to choose your own format like this:
If you'd like to use the USB on older computers, or non-PC systems like digital picture frames, TV sets, printers or projectors, choose FAT32 because it is universally supported; In addition, if you're using multiple different operating systems in one same computer, FAT32 is also a nice choice.
While if you're using the USB drive as a Windows computer backup drive, to store high-definition videos, movies, pictures and any other large files, at the same time, asking for a high security, choose NTFS.
Ntfs And Fat32 For Mac Hard Drive
What's the best USB format tool?
Once made your own decision as above guided, it's time to format your USB drive a desired file system. No matter it's a newly bought flash drive or a used one, you can directly use a capable USB format tool to format the USB drive to FAT32 or NTFS.
As a matter of fact, in Windows OS for example, there are many accessible ways for users to format a disk. The most familiar ones are Windows File Explorer, Windows Disk Management and Windows Command Prompt. Here we introduce none of them. Instead, we show you a third-party Windows USB format program - EaseUS Partition Master Free, which will greatly ease your worry of encountering the problem of 'Format option is greyed out', 'Windows cannot complete the format', etc. What's more, the third-party software is free, user-friendly, powerful and be able to convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data, which the aforementioned programs cannot handle that.
Guide: format USB to FAT 32 & NTFS
Step 1: Select the USB drive to format.
Connect the USB drive or pen drive to your computer. Download and launch EaseUS partition software. Right-click the USB drive you intend to format and choose 'Format'.
Step 2: Set the drive letter and file system.
Assign a new partition label, file system (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3), and cluster size to the selected partition, then click 'OK'.
Step 3: Check the warning box.
Click 'OK' if you see the Warning window. If you have important data on it, back up the data in advance.
Step 4: Apply the changes.
Click the 'Execute operation' button first, and then click 'Apply' to format the USB drive.
![And And](https://www.hdd-tool.com/de/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/convert-ntfs-to-fat32_3.png)
Guide: convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data
Fat32 Vs Ntfs
Step 1: Install and launch EaseUS Partition Master on your computer.
![Fat32 Fat32](/uploads/1/1/8/2/118299459/524425553.png)
Step 2: Select a FAT32 partition, right-click on it and select 'Convert to NTFS'. If you need to convert a storage device such as SD card or USB flash drive to NTFS, insert it into your PC first and repeat the previous operation.
Step 3: Click 'OK' on the pop-up dialog box to continue.
Ntfs And Fat32 For Mac Download
Step 4: Go to the upper left corner, click the 'Execute 1 Operation' button and you will see the operation details. Click 'Apply' and 'Finish' when the process completes.