How to make your USB or Hard Disk compatible to both Mac and Windows (Step by Step guide)

Image Courtesy wonderhowto.com

How many times have we founds ourselves with a USB that only works with our computer and no one else! Often resorting to emailing that massive Powerpoint file 30 minutes later. Today, this is going to end as we have created a fantastic step by step guide on how to make your drive compatible for both Mac and Windows. 

I bet you have seen many formats on your computer but understand that your Windows PC and Mac understand one format well and that is exFAT. The exFAT file system eliminates the two major deficiencies of FAT32: the largest partition and file sizes it supports are virtually unlimited by today’s standards. Awesome, it’s perfect! Almost… since exFAT is fairly new, it isn’t compatible with older Macs and PCs. Any Mac running 10.6.5 (Snow Leopard) or 10.7 (Lion) supports exFAT, while PCs running Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista SP1, and Windows 7 are compatible. If you know you’ll be using computers running updated versions of these operating systems, exFAT is the clear best choice.

Format a drive using Disk Utility on a Mac
1. Launch Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities).
2. Select your external hard drive or USB flash drive from the list on the left.
3. Click on the Erase tab. Select the format – Mac OS Extended (HFS+), MS-DOS (FAT32), or exFAT – then name the drive.

4. Click the Erase button and the drive will start formatting. Be aware that formatting a drive deletes all of the files on it, so back up anything important before completing this step.

Now you are ready to conquer the Windows world!

Format a drive using Windows
1. Go to Computer (or My Computer in Windows XP).
2. Select your drive from the list and right-click on it. Choose Format from the contextual menu.
3. A window will pop up where you can choose the format – NTFS, FAT32, or exFAT. Make sure the allocation unit size is set to default and type in a volume label.

4. Click Start to format the drive.

Now you are ready to conquer!

Fynd provides Laptop, Desktop, Smartphone, Network setup & repair service in Singapore. Our services include laptop, desktop repair, data recovery, setup & maintenance of your IT infrastructures and also 24/7 onsite IT support services.