Use the security options to format a previously used hard drive. Step 1 open finder, applications, then go to utilities and disk utility. Now in this interface, you will see a format option. Quit out of the disk utility app, and this time choose reinstall os x and continue. Install, boot, and run mac os x from an external hard drive. Read only ntfs from native mac os x to readwriteformat ntfs from mac os x, here are some alternatives. Click the erase tab, choose a volume format from the dropdown menu and then type a. You can still use either file system for your hard drives and attached storage devices, with both having their own pros and cons. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods revealed.
Oct 06, 2016 have you ever tried to format a disk in mac os x and disk utility wont unmount the hard drive for formatting. The data formatted by awecleaner can be recovered by data recovery software. To do this, open disk utility and connect the drive to your mac. Step 1 open finder, applications, then go to utilities and disk utility step 2 follow the steps above to format the drive, and then you can use it with time machine on your mac system part 3. Even though most people associate formatting with system installation, there are many other reasons why you might want to format your hard drive. Os x can default read ntfs disks, but not write to them. The different partition format types on mac the different partition format types on mac when you attach a storage disk to a mac with the purpose of erasing or repartitioning it, youll be presented with the option of selecting one of the three available partition maps. Partition a hard drive for macos time machine and windows. How to format external ssd for mac time machine mashtips. If you need to recover formatted mac hdd, simply install the recovery tool. Then proceed to highlight your computers hard drive. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods.
Mac os x installation basics sata drive seagate support asean. Jan 31, 2016 this will demonstrate how to format a hard disk to be completely mac os x compatible, the entire process is handled through disk utility as demonstrated with an external hard drive attached to a. How to wipe your mac and reinstall macos from scratch. How format the hard disk in singleuser m apple community. Some mac users may require the ability to erase a disk or erase a hard drive from the command line on mac os, a task which is typically performed through the disk utility application from the gui. Open disk utility applicationsutilities disk utilities 2. Tutorial how to format hard drive on your mac os x the. After you connect an external drive to your mac, open the applications folder from the finder window. Choose view show all devices from the menu bar in disk utility. Uses the apfs format and is casesensitive to file and folder names. Both windows and mac os offer builtin disk formatting tool. The disk utility application is located in the utilities subfolder. Sep 06, 2019 the simplest way to install macos or os x on a new hard drive is by using internet recovery mode.
One of the major limitations of this format is that its not able to write files larger than 4gb, which can be quite a setback. In the volume format dropdown menu, select mac os extended journaled if you plan to place the mac tiger operating system on this drive to make it a bootable drive. If you dont plan on using the drive for time machine, skip steps 5 to 11 below and continue with step 12. How to force a hard drive to unmount for formatting in mac. So i would like to format the hard disk because when i start the mac, it cant load the operating system.
Then select disk utility from the utilities window and click continue. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. Follow the instructions that appear on screen, license agreements and all, and choose the hard drive to use in. Dec 29, 2015 give the drive a descriptive name and leave the default settings. For this reason i prefer to format the hard disk and perform a. Its a multipurpose tool that handles formatting, erasing, repairing, and partitioning hard drives, among other things. To format an external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. If you are using a mac, you can run the builtin disk utility to quickly format a hard drive or external hard.
For most reasons to erase, including when reformatting a disk or selling, giving away, or trading in your mac, you should erase your entire disk. Yet when you connect a macformatted drive to windows, youll be informed that you need to format the disk in drive x. How to erase a disk for mac use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. The sidebar now shows your disks devices and any containers. Under external in the left hand menu, click on your external hard drive and then click on the erase button. For instructions on how to format a drive in mac os 10. Locate the drive name from the left hand side of disk utility and click on it. This mode is only available on apple computers made after 2009 that were running os x lion or later. Connect the usb fash drive to the mac os x computer. Have you ever tried to format a disk in mac os x and disk utility wont unmount the hard drive for formatting.
Launch awecleaner for mac click disk manager select the hard drive and click on format button. Select erase and ensure that the format is mac os extended journaled. The usb drivers come with the fat format by default. Apple system disk for mac free download and software. Apfs apple file system this is the new file system that apple bought to macs with high sierra and it will be the default if you are using that. If youre having problems with your hard drive or need to make changes to it, os x mavericks disk utility is a good place to start. Open disk utility applicationsutilitiesdisk utilities 2. Partition a hard drive for macos time machine and windows 10. Ntfs, fat, and all derivatives of fat are only for msbased operating systems. The command line approach to disk erasure in macos is a bit different and it requires precise syntax to insure that you are erasing the proper disk, making this method of erasing any disk only. How to format an external drive for mac launch disk utility. If what you formatted is external drive usb pen drive, memory card, memory stick etc, connect the device to you mac machine first and then install the format recovery program. However, os x and windows both can read and write to a format called fat32, which used to be used for windows all the way back into the msdos days.
To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow these steps. In this video we look at the process of formatting a hard drive, flash drive, or ssd on an apple computer. If your mac is from before 2009 or never had os x lion, click here to jump to the next section. How to format external hard drives on a mac sweetwater.
How to format a disk to ntfs using mac os x ask different. Format a hard drive using mac os x disk utility iclarified. Launch disk utility, located in applications utilities. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac laptop mag. It can happen for external usb and firewire as well as internal disks. Once you open the disk utility app, you can see all the drives on your mac are listed on the lefthand sidebar. Select the seagate drive on the left that shows the capacity 3. Step 1 connect the external hard drive you want to format to your mac, then start the disk utility app that you can find under applications. The format is good for handling the files between both os under 4gb size. How to force a hard drive to unmount for formatting in mac os. What disk utility looks like in lion through yosemite. Click on the erase option from the four options available in the main window. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x. Jan 02, 2017 select the mac partition we created in windows 10, click erase on the menu bar, choose mac os extended journaled in the format list box, then click erase.
When the driver is installed, you format your ntfs disks with disk utility where you select windows nt filesystem as the format. If youre preparing a mac for resale or troubleshooting a misbehaving machine, you might opt to format your macs hard drive. I tried to start the snow leopard installation dvd on startup, to reinstall it, but the hard disk is not detected. The simplest way to install macos or os x on a new hard drive is by using internet recovery mode. Step 2 follow the steps above to format the drive, and then you can use it with time machine on your mac system. This is a simple procedure and is achieved the same way for all drive types and through. How to format hard drive for mac compatibly in os x disk. For apple mac users, there are two ways to format a usb flash drive to fat32, including disk utility and. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Give the drive a descriptive name and leave the default settings.
Apfs vs mac os extended which mac disk format is best. Just select the one you want to format and click on the erase tab. If you already used your external hard drive on a pc, be sure to back. Select the partition tab on the right hand side of the disk utility window 4.
Quickly format an external hard drive for mac and windows pc. Heres a look at how to use disk utility to perform this function. How to format an external drive for mac compatibility. Fat32 is the crossplatform format for windows and mac os x. If you want to be super security conscious, you can select the security options button. Bonus tip data recovery from formatted hard drive on mac. Read only ntfs from native mac os x to readwrite format ntfs from mac os x, here are some alternatives. If a wireless network is available, you can choose it from the wi. Launch disk utility and then click to select the external hard drive listed on the left. Disk utility is a free application that comes with mac computers. Once disk utility is open youll see the list of available drives on the left. Choose one of the following apfs formats for mac computers using macos 10.
How to achieve format recovery on mac os x the tutorial. How to format a hard drive in mac os x connecting external hard drives. How to format usb flash drive to fat32 on mac os xmacos. Power on the computer while holding down the option key. I am thankful i ignored the update prompts which keep appearing ever few days or so and didnt upgrade to high sierra and i really resent the continued attempts by apple to force me to upgrade to high sierra. How to recover data from formatted external hard drive on mac. How to reinstall macos from macos recovery apple support. Learn how to use macos recovery to reinstall the mac operating system on your builtin drive or an external drive. Aug 30, 2016 some mac users may require the ability to erase a disk or erase a hard drive from the command line on mac os, a task which is typically performed through the disk utility application from the gui. For this reason i prefer to format the hard disk and perform a new installation.
How to install macos or os x on a new hard drive for your mac. Before using an external hard drive on a mac, you should format it using disk utility. So, if users anticipate using the flash drive with more than one operating system, they will definitely benefit from the fat32 file system. File system formats available in disk utility on mac. May 01, 2020 how to erase a disk for mac use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. Guid partition map, master boot record, and apple partition map. Apr 30, 2020 to format an external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. Msdos fat is the most popular format amongst external hard disks, as its both readable and writable by nearly all operating systems, windows and os x included.
This insures that you will have a compatible hard drive with. Dont click the format disk button or windows will erase the contents of the driveclick cancel. Mac os x installation basics sata drive seagate support us. Apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it. The file format has to be mac os x journaled and you have to use the guid partition map. Jan 02, 2016 msdos fat is the most popular format amongst external hard disks, as its both readable and writable by nearly all operating systems, windows and os x included. How to reformat mac os x without a recovery disc or drive. Make your mac feel like new again with a fresh install of os x. Both mac os x and windows allow users to format their hard drives using builtin utilities. If you want to permanently erase data on the hard drive, you can try the solution 3. Mac os extended journalled should work fine with high sierra even if you cant format the disk on your own mac. How to access mac osx extended formatted hard drive in. The command line approach to disk erasure in macos is a bit different and it requires precise syntax to insure that you are erasing the proper disk. The best ways to format an external drive for windows and mac.
Use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other. The apple file system apfs is the file system used with mac devices running macos 10. This will demonstrate how to format a hard disk to be completely mac os x compatible, the entire process is handled through disk utility as demonstrated with an. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Reformatting an external hard drive for use with mac osx is not as. Compare the different options for formatting an external hard drive to work with windows and mac.
The format apple support for mac owners for time machine is mac os extended journaled. But luckily, there are file systems well supported by both mac and windows pc, and they are fat32 it might be called msdos on mac and exfat. While os x can read and write to fatbased filesystems, ntfs is read only on. For windows, it offers quick format feature when you rightclick the hard drive on the computer. Apfs apple file system is only for newer macs running macos. If youre preparing a mac for resale or troubleshooting a misbehaving machine, you might opt to format your mac s hard drive. Start by clicking a disk or volume in the column on the left and then click one of the five tabs. Its a universal format that is compatible with mac os xmacos, windows, linux and dos systems. Jan 15, 2020 learn how to use macos recovery to reinstall the mac operating system on your builtin drive or an external drive. In disk utility, of os x utilities, select the partition in the lefthand column that you created in the previous step. Next, we will head over to the mac, where we will need to prepare the mac portion of the external hard disk for use with the macos. For apple mac users, the easier way to format usb flash drive to fat32 is using the disk utility. Select mac os extended if you plan to use the drive as a media capture scratch drive.
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