macOS and Linux computers, however, can only read files stored on such a drive they cannot write to an NTFS-formatted drive. NTFS is native to Windows, and most hard drives are preformatted for this file system.
If you plan to use your drive for File History backups on a Windows computer, and you use only Windows, stick to NTFS (New Technology File System).So how do those five file systems differ, and which one is right for you? Non-Linux computers can use five main file systems: NTFS, HFS+, APFS, exFAT, and FAT32. If you use a Mac, the likelihood that you’ll have to reformat the drive is higher. But if you buy a drive secondhand or if you plan to switch between operating systems, you may still need to reformat it for use on Windows.
Before doing this, make sure to move any important data off of the volume.If you buy an external drive-such as one of our recommended portable or desktop hard drives, portable solid-state drives, or USB 3.0 flash drives-you may need to reformat it to work with your operating system of choice, since different operating systems use different file systems to process data.Īlthough it’s true that any drive is compatible with both Windows and macOS once it’s formatted properly, most drives come preformatted for Windows out of the box. Tap the Delete button, and Disk Utility will destroy the volume. At the top of the window, tap the – (minus) button where it says Volume.
In any case, here’s how to add a volume to your external hard drive. Once you’re done, you’ll have multiple partitions that you can work with. This will reformat your drive without the partition.Īnd that’s it. To remove partitions - Go back into the partition screen, select the partition you want to be removed, and hit the – (minus) button.Make sure you backup or remove any important data before partitioning. Note - Partitioning a drive will also reformat the drive.Disk Utility divides the space in half by default. The slider button is just above the +/- buttons. Using the slider on the pie graphic, change the size until your partition is as big as you want it.Sometimes, using other formats will mess up your hard drive. It is very strongly recommended to use APFS. Give your new partition a name, and then select the format.In the pop-up, the utility asks if you want to create a whole partition or just an extra volume.
Next, click the + (plus) button underneath the pie graphic to create a new partition.On the next screen, click the Format box and switch it to APFS.At the top of the screen, click the Partition button.Select your external hard drive on the left margin.Double-click Disk Utility when it pops up. Open Finder and type Disk Utility into the search bar.You can use other formats, but it gets a little wonky. Connect the drive you want to partition.Also, if you do intend on using your external hard drive to boot Windows, Apple strongly recommends using Boot Camp to partition the drive instead of the Disk Utility feature.