1 Why Should I Care?

Many disk drives use NTFS (New Technology File System) developed by Microsoft. Unfortunately, some devices and operating systems do not support NTFS. In such cases, it is sometimes necessary to use FAT32.

2 Formatting in FAT32 Using Windows

Most versions of Windows do not support FAT drives that are larger than 32GB. Hence, it is often necessary to use a third-party utility.

For smaller drives, CompuApps provides a free tool called SwissKnife that is very popular. Several drive manufacturers also provide free tools. For example, both Seagate and Western Digital have such utilities.

3 Formatting in FAT32 Using OSX

OSX includes a DiskUtility that can be used to format drives in FAT32. To us it:

1. Double-click on the drive.
2. Choose Applications-Utilities-Disk Utility
3. Select the drive. (Be careful!)
4. Choose Partition
5. Choose a "Volume Scheme" and enter a "Name"
6. Change the "Format" to MS-DOS (FAT)
7. Click on Options
8. Select "Master Boot Record"
9. After the formatting process completes, eject the drive (e.g., right-click on the drive and select "Eject"