- How to format my hard drive on macbook air how to#
- How to format my hard drive on macbook air Pc#
- How to format my hard drive on macbook air plus#
- How to format my hard drive on macbook air mac#
Using exFAT, you can store files of any size and use them with computers made in the last 20 years.
How to format my hard drive on macbook air mac#
If you want to use your external hard drive with Mac and Windows computers, the best format to use is the exFAT. You can also drag the white dots at the edge of the circles to change the size of each partition.Īdditional FAQs What Is the Best Format for a Mac External Hard Drive? Select a name, format, and size for each partition.
How to format my hard drive on macbook air plus#
To create a partition, at the bottom of the pie chart, click the plus (+) sign.
How to format my hard drive on macbook air Pc#
This is ideal if you use a Mac and PC and want to transfer files between both operating systems via your external hard drive. Once your drive has been formatted (see the steps above), you can partition it into two formats. It will also help protect your drive if it’s infected with malware since it would be contained in one partition section. A partition offers dedicated space for a bootable backup of your OS or your Time Machine backup files.
How to format my hard drive on macbook air how to#
How to Partition an External Hard Drive on a Macīy partitioning your external hard drive, you can have separate drives for Mac, PC, and other operating systems. Now select the “Erase” button and wait a few minutes as your hard drive formats.At the “Scheme” option, choose “GUID Partition Map.”.To use the drive with both Mac and Windows, select “ExFAT.”.For compatibility between newer and older Macs, choose “Mac OS Extended (Journaled).”.For a Solid-State Drive, choose “APFS (Apple File System).” This option might not be available if you haven’t formatted the drive before, so choose another one, then reformat it into APFS if needed.Add a name for your hard drive, then set its format:.At the top of the pop-up window, select “Erase.” Then proceed to fill in your external hard drive details.To be sure you’ve set the top level, click the right-pointing arrow on the left of the drive icon. Be sure not to select your external drive’s lower level, as this will cause formatting problems. Click on the first level of your external drive.In the pop-up on the left, your external hard drive should appear in the list under your Mac’s internal drive, under the “External” heading.Choose “Utilities” then “Disk Utility.”.From the “Finder” window, select the “Applications” folder from the left pane.Select the “General” tab, then check that the “External Drive” checkbox is checked.If it doesn’t, try opening “Finder.” Then choose “Preferences.” Once connected, a drive icon should appear on your desktop.Plug your external hard drive into your Mac. If you’re using a MacBook to format the drive, ensure it’s either fully charged or connected to a power supply to ensure it doesn’t turn off in the middle of the process.What to do if you’ve lost data Sometimes it doesn’t matter how closely you look for your files, you just won’t be able to find them. If that solves the problem, you know the drive is safe to continue using. If it’s an external drive, try a different USB cable or dock, or pop the drive into another USB enclosure-the adapters in external drives are more prone to failure than the drives themselves. status is fine but you’re still experiencing problems, look at other links in the chain. Bad sectors may not become a real problem until you fill up the drive with enough data, so if you want to be on the safe side of things, don’t push your luck and replace the drive soon. If it cautions you that the drive has some bad sectors, it’s probably time to buy a new one-your drive may keep working for years, but it may also fail when you least expect it. You can do this using utilities built into your computer, but it’s easier to run a tool like CrystalDiskInfo (Windows) or DriveDx (Mac), which will give you a clear, easy-to-read diagnosis. If you aren’t sure whether a drive has experienced run-of-the-mill corruption or is on its way to hard drive heaven, check its S.M.A.R.T.