This may be apfs, or it may be mac os extended journaled depending on how the drive is currently formatted and whether you using macos. Once booted from the backup drive you need to partition and format the internal drive. Disk utility, as its name implies, is a utility for management of hard drive, cddvd and compressed image files. Have you ever tried to format a disk in mac os x and disk utility wont unmount the hard drive for formatting. When you format a disk with disk utility, it can be your mac s main hard drive, which is referred to as your startup disk, or any other drive, including a usb flash drive, ssd, or another storage device. Macclean360 is one of the best disk cleaning and management software for mac os. Save any files you need to another volume before formatting. Just select the one you want to format and click on the erase tab. Jan 04, 2012 just bought a 4tb segate drive for my mac to use with time machine. This will work in all modern versions of apple mac osx including 10. Download paragon partition manager free if you have not already, then install the software.
Unfortunately, disk utility in macos high sierra doesnt make that option easy to find. Within disk utility, the partition icon is grayed out. Step one if your hard drive is an external drive, connect it to the computer. Format a disk for windows computers in disk utility on mac. Step 1 open finder, applications, then go to utilities and disk utility. When the driver is installed, you format your ntfs disks with disk utility where you select windows nt filesystem as the format. How to format a usb external disk for mac osx using disk. How to format drive with compatible file system for mac. How to fix macintosh hd greyed out in disk utility. If you need a very detailed guide, refer to this article. Bootable usb hard disk format tool free download easeus. All external usb disks can be formatted to work on mac osx, but not always straight out of the box. How to format a disk to ntfs using mac os x ask different. Mar 20, 2020 4 free disk formatting utility to format hard drive in windows 10, 8, 7.
Select your drives as the destination and install installing a sata drive as a storage unit 10. In this post, we have collected four free and powerful disk formatting utilities, which allows users to format a hard drive, even the bootable drive easily and successfully in all editions of windows. I havent tried this one, but it should also do the job. To format external hard drive on mac, all you have to do is plugin your hard drive and launch disk utility. Fortunately disk utility, built right into macos, can help. If you are using a mac, you can run the builtin disk utility to quickly format a hard drive or external hard drive under mac os. Open the disk utility app on your mac using one of the following methods, depending on the type of disk or volume you want to erase. How to reformat mac os x without a recovery disc or drive. Apple file system apfs and in the disk utility help article. How to format hard drive for mac compatibly in os x disk. Its a multipurpose tool that handles formatting, erasing, repairing, and partitioning hard drives, among other things. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Format a hard drive using mac os x disk utility iclarified.
Proceed based on whether youre erasing your startup disk or some other disk. Step 2 follow the steps above to format the drive, and then you can use it with time machine on your mac system. Aug 30, 2016 you can, however, format a windows hard drive from a mac if you connect the windows hard drive to the mac and format it through disk utility, or the command line as described above. Formatting a drive will erase all data and partitions on the disk. For windows, it offers quick format feature when you rightclick the hard drive on the computer. Others say it lost many of the basic capabilities that old mac hands took for granted. To format an external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. To format a disk using apples disk utility, simply follow the steps below. Open the disk utility app and highlight your external hard drive. Right click the macintosh hd in disk utility and select mount button. 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. In the sidebar, select the disk you want to format to use with. In the finder window click applications, go to utilities, scroll down the screen and double click on disk utility.
Click the format popup menu, then choose a volume format. As a result, many of you may have valuable data saved in the hard drive which you tend to format. Now you will need to select the disk you wish to format. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods revealed. How to format a macs hard drive using disk utility. The following is based on the latest version of macos.
How to format external hard drives on a mac sweetwater. Download disk formatting software for mac doyourdata. When you get a new hard drive, it may already be formatted for windows or mac. 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. Disk utility will automatically choose the format for you. To format external drive to file system compatible with mac and pc, connect the drive to your computer and follow the detailed steps given below take formatting hard drive to exfat in windows 7 for example. How to install macos or os x on a new hard drive for your mac. The new version of disk utility is much more colorful and some say easier to use. Use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. Download the best free hard drive format tool and format hard drive. Open disk utility go to the applications folder and then to another folder, known as utilities. 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.
Select the external usb device and then start to create a bootable disk of easeus partition software. This wikihow teaches you how to format a seagate hard drive on a mac computer. How to format a mac hard drive with disk utility lifewire. Sometimes, the macintosh hd greyed out in disk utility just because it cant be mounted. 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. 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. Understanding hard drive partitioning with disk management. All is set, then you can go ahead to format the drive on your mac. Formatting a disk or volume erases all the files on it. In this case, you can try mounting the drive manually. 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. File system formats available in disk utility on mac. After du loads select your internal hard drive this is the entry with the mfgr. Click on disk utility and select quit disk utility.
How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Formatting a drive erases all its contents, preparing it for new data and replacing the file table. Mac os x installation basics sata drive seagate support us. Disk utility shows each process it completes in the window. Most users dont have a habit of classifying data, files on their hard drives.
What disk utility looks like in lion through yosemite. Format external hard drive for mac with disk utility. The formatting process erases and formats the selected drive. How to use your macs disk utility to partition, wipe, repair. In this video we look at the process of formatting a hard drive, flash drive. 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. It is a 2 tb seagate external hard drive that the mac store reformatted for me to use with time machine.
In this tutorial we look at formatting disks via the gui app called disk utility and its equivalent command line tool diskutil. Connect the hard drive or usb key to the mac launch disk utility, located in applications utilities locate the drive name from the left hand side of disk utility and click on it click on the erase tab across the top. Spotlight is the quickest way to open disk utility. Before continuing, make sure that you have a backup of any files that you want to keep. Before starting the formatting hard drive in mac, you have to connect your mac system to external hard drive. Its a bit like the disk management tool built into windows, but more capable and, thanks to recovery mode, easier to access from outside the operating system. Dec 22, 2019 how to format external hard drive mac. Erase or format your macs drives using disk utility lifewire. If you are having a hard time using the command line, try the disk utility app, which is simpler and uses the gui.
Mar 16, 2020 once the process finishes, again access the disk utility and change the format to mac os extended journaled. And while the various cloning apps have a lot more features, if you dont have access to thirdparty apps, using disk utility will create a perfectly usable clone, although it may require a few more steps and lacks some nice features, such as automation and scheduling. Before formatting any hard drive, its a good idea to backup any data or files you want to save before formatting. Disk utility does not show apfs format apple community. If youre preparing a mac for resale or troubleshooting a misbehaving machine, you might opt to format your macs hard drive. Disk utility presents several tools at the top of the window. If you want to create multiple partitions on your external hard drive in fact, you should for better file organization, heres a stepbystep guide. For apple mac users, the easier way to format usb flash drive to fat32 is using the disk utility. So now that youve decided to format your drive, youll need to know how. The easiest way to format the drive for mac is by using macoss builtin disk utility for fat32 or exfat. Choose a new name and format for your drive, then click erase. Nov 30, 2019 disk utility is free and included with every copy of the mac os.
Dec 21, 2017 disk utility, as its name implies, is a utility for management of hard drive, cddvd and compressed image files. Note the smart status of the drive in dus status area. Open disk utility open finder applications utilities disk utility. Connect your hard drive or external hard drive to your mac. Apr 26, 2020 additional information how to format a hard drive for mac. Sep 06, 2019 how do i use disk utility to reformat my hard drive. It can happen for external usb and firewire as well as internal disks. 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. Bonus tip data recovery from formatted hard drive on mac. How to force a hard drive to unmount for formatting in mac os. However, the formatted data can be recovered by data recovery software. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. Now in this interface, you will see a format option. Format hard drives with disk utility in macos apple gazette.
The utility is an inbuilt windows tool that can be used to perform the following functions. Disk utility is a free application that comes with mac computers. Disks with master boot record partition maps cannot be partitioned. May 09, 2008 these are instructions on how to format a hard drive using mac os x disk utility. The easiest way is to drag it from one drive to another. Once you open the disk utility app, you can see all the drives on your mac are listed on the lefthand sidebar. Most users use disk utility to erase a disk or hard drive. This will open the disk utility app, where you will find all the internal and external drives that are connected to your mac. It is the fastest way to format an external hard drivedevice under mac os. In the disk utility app on your mac, choose view show all devices.
You can create single makes, which act like a hard drive, which offer you to store data on them from the primary hard drive or any other location like an external hard drive. How to force a hard drive to unmount for formatting in mac. Formatting the drive will permanently erase all the data and files stored on the hard drive forever. You can run it on your mac, and use it to format external hard drive or device on your mac. Jan 29, 2020 open disk utility from the utilities folder in your applications. Most of its advanced features, such as partitioning, formatting, cloning, partition table management are intended for power users of the operating system, however, the utility may be useful for an average mac user with its basic features as well. But some mac users might need to erase them from the command line on mac os. To format a usb flash drive to fat32 in mac os x follow these steps. Heres a tutorial on how to format a drive on a windows computer. Hence, you must backup your important files before reformatting the drive if you want to save them. Unformat mac hard drive recover formatted hard drive on mac.
Just bought a 4tb segate drive for my mac to use with time machine. For example, the drive that you are trying to select for formatting may not be recognized by the utility, or it may be greyed out and not clickable. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. Connect the usb fash drive to the mac os x computer. How do i use disk utility to reformat my hard drive.
How to format the hard disk drive in windows 7 computer. Open the disk utility app on your mac using one of the following methods, depending. When disk utility cant repair this disk error appears if you forget to make a backup of your external hard drive or other data drives and format it, free download minitool mac data recovery on your mac. Disk utility on mac supports several file system formats. To do that, the only thing you need is a bit of precise syntax to make sure that you are erasing the proper disk. Cant erase or reformat a drive in macos disk utility. Os xs disk utilitywhich enables you to format, partition, repair, and perform other kinds of maintenance on disks including ssds, flash drives, and disk imagesis good for what it does. The internal hard drive of your mac, also known as macintosh hd or startup disk, is used to store operating system directory and other data, supporting computer to work in a normal manner. The disk utility included with mac os x is powerful, and it should handle all the functions you need it to perform.
You may also set a direct connection to your computer. However, there are times when it simply doesnt work very well. Formatting a drive so you can install and boot macos requires the guid partition map. Formatting a disk using apples disk utility is the easiest and most straightforward method of the two. Jul 04, 2017 the applications primary use is to format hard drives with disk utility. As usual, insert the drive let us say the hard disk or usb drive. You can format a drive using the disk utility in mac. These are instructions on how to format a hard drive using mac os x disk utility. When you press the erase button, open the security option in the popup window and you will see the secure erase option. This could be a external hard drive if its your own mac hard drive. Formatting an external hard drive would erase everything on it. You can format a disk or volume using one of the following file system formats. After making the bootable usb hard drive format utility, you can.
Dec 01, 2014 once booted from the backup drive you need to partition and format the internal drive. After booting into recovery mode, select disk utility from macos utilities and click continue. Read our roundup of the best storage devices available now. How to format external hard drive mac 2 simple methods. It could be ssd, yet the internal hard drive may not show up on the mac, finder or disk utility, stoping you from accessing your data or booting your mac up. Apr 30, 2020 to format an external hard drive for mac with time machine, you must follow the steps below. If you purchase a new hard drive formatted with a windowscentric flavor ntfs or fat32, youll need to format it in a macfriendly format before you can get the most. How to back up files on disk utility apple community. Best 4 free hard drive format tool download easeus. Then proceed to highlight your computers hard drive. In the main interface, right click the partition on that need.
Launch easeus partition master, select create winpe bootable disk on the main window. In the sidebar, select the drive you want to erase or reformat. The applications primary use is to format hard drives with disk utility. In disk utility on mac, you can erase and reformat storage devices to use with your mac. Erase and reformat a storage device in disk utility on mac apple. Erase and reformat a storage device in disk utility on mac. How to format a startup drive for a mac if you want to format a drive that will be used as your macs startup disk, the procedure is a little different from formatting it for use as a secondary.
Erasing a disk or volume permanently deletes all of its files. Wait for disk utility to erase or reformat your drive, then click done. Open disk utility from the utilities folder in your applications. Its a very easy process and well take you through each of the steps below. Highlight your drive and click partition in disk utility. You can format your hard disk drive with the help of disk management. Reformatting the drive will erase all data on the drive, so you should copy any data you want off the drive prior to formatting. How to fix internal hard drive not showing up on mac. While the program loads, it will scan the disks attached to the system and present a list. Download hdd low level format tool utility for lowlevel hard disk drive formatting, with support for sata, ide or scsi hard disks, as well as removable drives of any size.
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