Go to the start menu, type in cmd in a search bar, hit enter and then you can see. When the new owner starts up the mac, they can use their own information to complete setup. To format usb flash drive without erasing or losing data, youll have to go through the below two stages with the usb drive which you want to format. This blog explains the method to change the format of external hard drive without losing data using both manual and automated approach. Most usb flash drive users do not ever think to format their drives. Plug the drive into a usb socket if you have a recent macbook or macbook pro that only has usb c connectors, youll need a usb c to usb a adaptor. Follow the steps below without losing information to reformat the external hard drive on mac. It is a onestop remedy to change the format of the external hard drive without deleting files. How do you format external hard drive without losing files. Formatting seagate portable hard disk without losing data on hdd. Before formatting external hard drives, make sure you have created backup for the all important digital data. Either way there is a solution to having an existing external hard drive for mac and pc. There may be a kind of risky way to do it without backup.
Jul 20, 2016 convert ntfs to fat32 in external hard drive without losing data. A quick browse on the webs many tech forums reveals that too many people think data recovery and format drive are mutually exclusive terms. How to fix unallocated external hard disk drive unallocated disk can make data inaccessible and lost for good. Recover lost data from external hard drive before repairing it to avoid data. If you are a personal user, you can try its professional edition. Easy ways to format usb drive without losing data recoverit. How to easily convert gpt to mbr without data loss using. However, if you want to convert ntfs to exfat to make external hard drive compatible with mac and pc, 3 steps are required. Usb drives and external hard drives use the windows fat32 to format for compatibility. Diy fixrepair corrupted usb drive without formatting. But you can get back your formatted data from the mac hard drive by using a mac hard drive. Reformat external hard drive without losing data yes, its possible to reformat your external hard drive without losing your data. Connect the external hard drive with your mac via usb cable and wait for it to get recognized. Recover lost data from raw drive and then reformat raw drive to ntfs.
Its exactly the same procedure if you need to reformat a flash drive on a mac. Moving files from macformatted external hard drive to pc. Download and install this software on your windows or mac. Raw usb recovery, formatfix raw usb drive, data recovery. Dec 02, 2019 follow the steps above to learn how to how to convert mac hard drive to windows without losing data in minutes. The software supports a variety of hard drive brands, usb 2. When you encounter usb not formatted error, usb not accessible nor readable and some other problems, the best way to fix the issue is to format the usb flash drive. You just have to shrink the hdd, format that shrunk partition into whatever you want, backup the files into that partition, delete the previous. How to reformat an external hard drive without losing your. Firstly, connect your external hard drive to your computer using a usb port.
I hope you enjoyed my article on how to make an external hard drive compatible with mac and pc without reformatting. Follow the steps given below to reformat the external hard drive on mac without losing data. Thus, today we are going to discuss the steps that can fix hard drive corruption without formatting the drive. If you windows xp, click on run and then execute cmd. One way to do this is to convert the raw hard drive to ntfs using the cmd command method. How to convert a macformatted drive to a windows drive. Get a solution to reformat an external hard drive without. Next, open file explorer, navigate to this pc in the lefthand column, and click on the shortcut in the devices and drives section of the main window, you should see your external hard drive. Try another usb cable to connect the hard drive to your mac. Instead, well just be wiping the drive and starting over from scratch. How to repair external hard drive on mac without losing data. Convert ntfs to fat32 without formatting using freeware. Formatting a hard drive will delete all of the data off of it. New to the forum i have a seagate freeagent goflex external hard drive in the ntfs format with about 400gb data on it.
How to format an external hard drive from a mac to windows. When you format a hard drive, you are rebuilding your file system and in affect removing. Learn how to convert fat32 to ntfs without losing data on internal hdd, external hard drive or usb drive using cmd and professional tool in windows 7810. Problem is, i cant reformat it without losing deleting my data from it, can i. Do you save backups of your hard drive onto an external hard drive. Most do not even realize it is possible to manipulate their file storage in this way. M3 data recovery uses rebuildrepair file system method.
Is it possible to format usb flash drive without losing data. Aomei partition assistant standard is powerful partition manager that allows you to convert file system between ntfs and fat32 without losing data, no need to format selected drives. Reformatting external hard drive on mac is a bit different because it doesnt have the option of quick formatting, but it still. Aomei partition assistant professional allows you to change file system between fat32 and ntfs without formatting in windows xp, vista, 7, 8, 10. If you want to optimize the usage of your computer hard drive, follow to set your disk with a more reliable file system ntfs without losing any data. Click on the erase tab, choose your external hard drive and select mac os extended journaled and then click erase then simply drag and drop your data. Bitwar data recovery will display a list of all internal drives and all external drives connected to your computer. How to format an external hard drive and remove errors. It will also format largesized partition to fat32, like 64gb sd card, 500gb and 1tb external hard. Physical damage can make a pen drive nonresponsive. With the way we poweruse our macs these days, there is always a need for more storage. Formatting seagate portable hard disk without losing data.
How to reformat an external hard drive without losing your data on mac. How to reformat an external hard drive without losing your data. Weve shown you how to securely wipe a hard drive with your mac, and doing so in recovery mode isnt really different from doing so within macos. Fortunately, usb drive data recovery software is a perfect tool that will help you to recover files from usb drive without formatting it. How to repair corrupted hard disk without formatting. Fix corrupted usb format problemflash drive without losing data. Alternatively, you can choose to use thirdparty software and apps that not only allow you to read hfs and apfs file systems, but also allow you to understand how to convert your mac drive to windows without losing data. H is again the letter of the drive to be converted. The best ways to change you file system is to erase the hard drive and format it from scratch. Now it is time to convert or format raw usb drive to fat32 with windows explorer, disk management, diskpart command or the 3rdparty format tool. Mac linux windows internet ios browsers android chrome os how things work gaming hardware.
Fix corrupted usb format problemflash drive without. First, back up the data on the mac formatted drive if you have anything important on it. Formatting also fixes glitches and software conflicts in the system. Then, you can share external hard drive between mac and pc. This section would still fix the main purpose of not formatting your hard drive that is, not losing data. In other words, steps to repair a corrupt hard disk without losing the data. Hence, you must backup your important files before reformatting the drive if you want to save them. If you dont want to lose the important data, you need to use seagate recovery software. Reformatting the external hard drive on mac is a bit distinct because it doesnt have the choice to format quickly, but with a different name, it still has the same choice. How to use toshiba external hard drive on mac solved.
Easeus data recovery software comes handy when you need to recover lost data after fixing the usb. Convert fat32 to ntfs without formatting or losing data. Whether you go the software or hardware route depends on your situation. Aug 26, 2019 best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in windows 710. Go to computer, and note the name of the drive whose file system you wish to convert. If there are some solutions that can convert raw to ntfs without formatting and data loss, it will be perfect. Windows may display prompt to format the corrupt raw drive volume. Click start button and search commond, then rightclick one it and afterward press run as administrator. Jan 17, 2020 by this way, you can easily format an external hard drive for mac and pc without losing any data. Or, erased the mac external drive without backing it up in the first place. Copy a data disk uing one optical drive using disk utility on os x how to. You would have to copy the data on your hard drive to your mac, then reformat it with the disk utility application.
This article explains how to format a macbook pro without losing your data in the internal hard drive and guide you how to recover data after wrong formatting. First, connect the external drive to your computer using the usb port. Test these usb flash drive repair solutions one by one and fix your usb flash drive, pen drive or hard drive without formatting. Format external hard drive without data l apple community.
How to reformat an external hard drive without losing. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. Oct 15, 2015 you would have to copy the data on your hard drive to your mac, then reformat it with the disk utility application. This checks the drive for errors and fixes them automatically. The following article describes something which may address your underlying i. Its a direct continuation of the original dos format used on floppy diskettes and hard drives. Fix raw hard drive to ntfs without formatting and data loss.
Mar 16, 2020 it will improve hard drive performance. Connect the raw external hard drive to your pc step 2. External hard drive compatible with mac and pc without. Can you reformat it without losing all of your data. Can you format seagate portable expansion hard drive without data loss. How to wipe your mac and reinstall macos from scratch.
Type cmd in the search bar if you use windows 7, windows 8, windows 8. If you have a mac lying around, you can plug the drive. Then, you simply would reformat the drive for it to be used again. For this, we will recommend recovering the data from your external hard drive using fonedog data recovery. After finishing the data recovery, you are not afraid of losing any data on that usb drive. So before formatting your laptop, make sure you back up all of the documents, pictures, and other files that you want to save. Besides all the backup options shown, if the 2t bytes disk is full maybe some of the methods expressed can not be done unless you partially zip it. If a wireless network is available, you can choose it from the wifi menu in the menu bar. The fat or file allocation table is quite possibly the most widelysupported disk format in existence today.
How to convert a 2t hard drive fat32 to exfat without. Steps to recover data after wrong formatting step 1. Check if there any software update is available in your app store in that an outdated driver could make your external hard drive. Seems like all the mac os formatting options are pretty useless then if its os x exclusive. Here is how you retrieve your data after reformatting your disk. Create a bootable usb drive for ubuntu using mac or windows how to.
It will prevent data theft as all the important data is deleted without leaving a trace. This is a tutorial to repair corrupted, unreadable and unmountable external hard drives on mac computers, but in case of losing data accidentally, you can recover your files from the external hard drive with iboysoft mac data recovery at first. Dec 01, 2010 reformatting my external hard drive without losing data. How to format a macbook pro without losing your data. The easiest way is to drag it from one drive to another. While your mac might not be physically able to accommodate another hard drive, especially if you have a portable mac, your storage options are virtually limitless when you start using external hard drives for mac. How to reformat to mac without losing files external. Different methods to fix corrupted flash drive without losing any data fix damaged usb drive without formatting. Aug 28, 2019 how to reformat an external hard drive without losing your data on mac.
Formatting actually reformatting a solid state drive ssd is a quick and simple process to restore the drive to a clean state, similar to when the drive was new. But it is very easy to get a mac to use and understand an ntfs formatted drive. The only free application that will let you do this we are aware of is hfsexplorer, which uses java and is really only suitable for the odd file transfer fat32 the most compatible option. If you are looking to sell or donate your old drive, you will want to not only reformat your drive, but also erase all the data in a separate action. Jun 30, 2012 hard drive to go between mac and pc without deleting anythin by cheapsis jun 30, 2012 6. For any physical damage, you need to fix the drive. How to reformat to mac without losing files external drives. How can i reformat my external hard drive without losing data. Hi, i am trying to salvage data from a dead laptop by taking the hd and, from an external enclusure, using it as an external hd. Hard drive to go between mac and pc without deleting anythin. Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. How to fix raw external hard drive without losing data. Therefore, you need to find a tool to convert fat32 to ntfs without losing data.
How to reinstall macos from macos recovery apple support. Dec 16, 2014 there are a ton of reasons why you may need to reformat your mac its slowing down, too many unneeded files to delete manually, major technical issues or maybe youre just selling it on for an. You should know which one it is since you just formatted it. Is possible to format hard drive without losing files. Click on the erase tab, choose your external hard drive and select mac os extended journaled and then click erase then simply drag and drop your data onto your newly formatted disk. Know how to change format of external hard drive without.
All without the need for a recovery disc or thumb drive. For whatever reason, formatting will erase everything on your seagate portable hard drive. Go to the start menu, type in cmd in a search bar, hit enter and then you can see something named cmd. Here well take how to format usb on windows pc without losing data as an example.
This portable storage device makes the data transfer process easy and troublefree. Mar 06, 2019 how to reformat the external hard drive on mac without losing data. If youre a mac or windows operating system user, you can try this powerful data recovery and for solving data loss problems from the hard drive in an easy manner. How can i reformat my external hard drive without losing. All is set, then you can go ahead to format the drive on your mac. Read about it, id have to back up the data or save with time machine. If you can read any of the files, copy them to another drive before formatting your usb drive. Add virtual cd and dvd drives to your pc with alcohol. Click fix drive to fixformat raw drive to ntfs without losing data. Jan 04, 2012 how to format an external drive for mac compatibility.
And highlevel formatting also removes the saved data on a hard drive, usb or memory card. Yes, it is possible to format the removable disk without losing data. Fix corrupted flash drive without formatting or losing any data. Further, disk utility does not provide any option to undo format. We will walk you through how to fix unallocated hard drive and recover data from the disk. How to convert mac hard drive to windows without losing data. Feb 23, 2020 provided methods for fat to ntfs conversion are applicable on sd card, usb flash drive, external or internal hard drive in windows 1087xpvista. So, computer users often save important files like pictures, videos, documents, etc. How to fixformat raw drive to ntfs without losing data. Best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in. Dec 26, 2017 if you want a truly clean installation, however, you need to first wipe your hard drive. Expand the size of c drive without losing and formatting data. How to format usb flash drive without erasing or losing data.
Also, if your current hard drive is more than 5 years old, it probably is nearing the end of its service life and needs to be replaced. If raw drive cannot be fixed, please go to solution 2 to recover lost data from raw drive and then reformat raw drive to ntfs. Jan 15, 2020 macos recovery makes it easy to reinstall the mac operating system, even if you need to erase your startup disk first. Chkdsk is a windows utility that can check the integrity and fix the various file system errors on the storage device. Thankfully, if you use a few little workarounds, you can reformat an external hard drive without losing everything on it. Convert ntfs to fat32 in external hard drive without losing data. Apr 20, 2018 sometimes it happens that your hard drive gets corrupted or attacked by a virus and you dont have any backup or copy files dont lose hope you can reformat it without losing its files. Usb flash drives are the best means for data storage in comparison with internal hard drives. Nowadays, it is also possible to convert hard drive without losing any data like you can easily convert fat32 to ntfs. Locate your external drive from the list of devices and drives. Steps to use chkdsk cmd to fix raw drive to ntfs without.
Formatting an external hard drive would erase everything on it. It is the best way to format usb drive without losing data. This process wont actually convert the file system. This is a simple procedure and is achieved the same way for all drive types and through all connections, be they usb, firewire, or thunderbolt. Initially, i had 250 gb internal ssd space, now i have 176 gb left. How to format a drive without deleting files using free space youtube. Best way to convert fat 32 to ntfs without losing data in windows 710. If your mac restarts to a setup assistant, but youre selling it, trading it in, or giving it away, press commandq to quit the assistant without completing setup. This article shows how to convert your drives and provides you with another easy way to convert from gpt to mbr without using command prompt. How to safely format your laptop hard drive dignited.
You dont have to be a technological wiz to reformat your usb drive. To format hard drive for mac and windows without data loss, we suggest using minitool partition wizard and its convert ntfs to fats32 function. When you are about to format mac hard drive, it is vital that you have a complete understanding of the mac file system format too. If you cannot read them, they are already effectively deleted.
However, the new machine cannot read the disk and keeps prompting me to reformat it. Yes, what you can, and what you should do are 2 diff. However it is an easy way to make the most out of your data storage experience. How to reformat mac os x without a recovery disc or drive. Yes, connecting an external hard drive or usb flash key to a mac will generally read and work fine as is because the mac can easily read other filesystem formats, including windows msdos, fat, fat32, exfat, and ntfs formats, but unless you intend on using the drive between a windows and mac machine, formatting it to be entirely mac compatible. Thank you for helping us maintain cnet s great community. Do you want to convert gpt to mbr without data loss using command prompt. Rightclick on the drive s icon to bring up the context menu, then. Format external hard drive for mac with disk utility. Formatting a drive will erase all data and partitions on the disk. How to fix raw external hard drive without formatting. Reinsert the external hard drive into another usb port or to another mac computer.
But what happens if that drive becomes corrupted, and you have to reformat it to make it accessible again. Formatting an external hard drive will delete any information on the device, likewise reformatting your system will essentially bring your mac back to a clean factory state, thus removing all. Can you format seagate portable expansion hard drive without. How to reformat external hard drive without missing data. Can i format 500gb seagate expansion external disk without data loss when it has disk not formatted error. Convert ntfs to fat32 without formatting hard disk via freeware. So first backup,the data and then format to your chosen format. Formatting hard drive for windows laptop back up all of your important data. Im afraid my data on the hard drive around 500gb might be too big for time machine to save. But most people can not do it, as formatting will cause all files lost on the device. But you can get back your formatted data from the mac hard drive by using a mac hard drive recovery software, as explained next.
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