Re: format usb drive to fat 32



Forgot to mention that I need it in FAT 32 because it will be attached to my
laptop which is running Win98.

It was my understanding that it wasn't possible for Win 98 to read NTFS
files.

"Shenan Stanley" <newshelper@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:eQPf8Y9LHHA.4384@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
labatyd wrote:
How do I force XP to format a usb drive to FAT 32. It wants to
format NTFS by default. There doesn't appear to be any option. It
had been formatted to NTFS previously.

If you plan on having LARGE files - you'll want it NTFS.
Also if you want any security.

If you have to do FAT32 - Windows XP is not going to do it natively over
32GB anyway.

Format larger than 32GB FAT32 within Windows XP with this utility:
http://www1.mager.org/mkdosfs/

Know that you will be stuck with FAT32 limitations.
With different OSes being able to read and even write to NTFS - FAT32 has
lost its sheen for me and I highly recommend using NTFS.

--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html



.



Relevant Pages

  • Re: Converting system partition to NTFS
    ... For some reason the Acer laptop I bought around 18 months ago came with FAT32 and not NTFS as expected, and I have been thinking of converting it to NTFS for some time. ... "...so that you can repair or troubleshoot via command line because your GUI won't boot up" is not a very compelling reason to install Windows XP on FAT32, this is a notion perpetuated by well meaning Windows 9x users who think that FAT32 is better because it allows you to boot to DOS and access your disk if you run into problems. ... But my system partition is running out of space. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)
  • Re: Want to start from scratch but problems when I reboot
    ... aware that NTFS partitions will not display as such when using FDisk. ... All partitions you create will be FAT or FAT32 ... and XP will install on such a partition. ... running Windows XP: NTFS, FAT, and FAT32. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.setup_deployment)
  • Re: Fat32 not an option from Admin Tools - Disk Management?
    ... | in the partition / format wizard. ... NTFS or NTFS! ... | Knowing full well that Microsoft hadn't eliminated support for FAT32, ... You're right - Microsoft has made FAT32 a difficult option under Windows XP. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.configuration_manage)
  • Re: Fat32 not an option from Admin Tools - Disk Management?
    ... | in the partition / format wizard. ... NTFS or NTFS! ... | Knowing full well that Microsoft hadn't eliminated support for FAT32, ... You're right - Microsoft has made FAT32 a difficult option under Windows XP. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware)
  • Re: Cannot format HDD with FAT32 under WinXP, only NTFS?
    ... you must use NTFS to create volumes larger than 32 GB. ... running MS-DOS, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Me, and many other operating ... In theory, FAT32 volumes can be about 8 terabytes; ... you must use NTFS to format volumes larger than 32 GB. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)