Go to your macs dock at the bottom of your desktop. Toshiba wd seagate 1tb 2tb 3tb portable external hard disk. But dont panic read the post and find the best solution to fix you need to format the disk before you. May 16, 20 hi all, ive just installed a new western digital 3tb red hard drive in one my macpros bays the one nearest the front. Does seagate expansion 2 or 3tb work on i apple community. Mar 30, 2018 format 3tb hard drive to fat32 with aomei partition assistant.
If you want to create multiple partitions on your external hard drive in fact, you should for better file organization, heres a stepbystep guide. Dec, 2019 first, lets see how to format an external hard drive or usb drive in macos which works with both mac and pc platforms, first plugin your drive in macos machine. The my passport for mac drives builtin 256bit aes hardware encryption with password. Format an external hard drive or usb flash drive for mac os x. Toshiba canvio,slim,connect, basics, 100gb 200gb 300gb 400gb 500gb 1tb, 2tb, 3tb, 4tb, 5tb, 6tb 7tb 8tb 9b 10tb 20tb, 40gb 50gb 60gb 70gb 80gb 90gb. Ideally, any hard disk can be used on either mac or windows pc. This page includes two methods on how to format hard drive in windows 10, 8 and 7 via diskpart format or free thirdparty hard drive formatting tool. Get the best deals on 3tb internal hard disk drives when you shop the largest online selection at. Formatting 3tb internal or external hard drive from ntfs to fat32 so that. Please see below on how to reformat your external hard drive on mac and windows. In this guide, well show you how to format an external hard drive so you can not only get rid of the. Why you cant create a new volume with unallocated space on 3tb hard drive.
Though not strictly a 3tb issue, all of the shipping 3tb hard drives also use advanced formata lowlevel storage scheme employed on newer drives. Apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it automatically chooses a compatible format for you. Formatting a 3tb external hard drive microsoft community. When i booted up and opened disk utility it didnt show at all at first then afte a restart it now shows but wont let me format it. Now i need those files and other data that were stored on my formatted 3tb disk. However, my 3tb external hard drive was formatted by accident when a message popped out and said i needed to format the drive before using it.
Open the disk utility app and highlight your external hard drive. Highlight your drive and click partition in disk utility. Seagate external hard drive how to set up on a mac. A hard drive is perfect for music, video files and photos.
When i format it with osx, win7 wants me to format it. Toshiba external hard drive how to set up on mac youtube. I just got two new 3tb seagate drives for my mac pro at work 4,1 snow leopard that disk utility will not format. How to format or partition an external hard drive for mac. When i install windows 7 professional 64 bit on my 3tb seagate barracuda drive, it partitions it to 2tb of storage, leaving the remaining inaccessible.
While its convenient to purchase the hard drive that will work with your computer right out of the box, most external hard drives can also be reformatted so youre not limited to your initial choice. Following site procedures for reformatting to mac os extended journaled and erasing the disk using mac disk utility, i received the message unmounting disk mediakit reports not enough space on device for requested operation. May 08, 2012 im having the exact same problem with two seagate 3tb hard drives in a macpro. Oct 15, 2015 hi, if you wish to use the disk between a pc and a os x, then choose exfat as the format. Click the icon for your external hard drive in the sidebar on the left. See disk 2 has a 3tb storage space, on which there is a partition f that takes up 2tb disk space and still 746gb disk space is shown as unallocated.
How to format external hard drive to use on mac and pc. Besides, if you want to format the internal and external 3tb hard drive to fat32, the aomei partition assistant must be the best choice. Installed in drive bays 3 and 4 reboot, get message that computer cant read drive, click initialize to open disk utility choose erase tab, mac os extended. How to format a drive for mac and pc compatibility macyourself. However, you cant write or delete files from a mac. You may choose either method to apply for formatting your hard drive. Therfore, you can connect backup plus desktop to a windows pc without formatting the hard drive. I checked the wd web site and it instructed me to format it using disk management answer id 3865. How to format an external hard drive for mac youtube. Dec 29, 2014 toshiba canvio,slim,connect, basics, 100gb 200gb 300gb 400gb 500gb 1tb, 2tb, 3tb, 4tb, 5tb, 6tb 7tb 8tb 9b 10tb 20tb, 40gb 50gb 60gb 70gb 80gb 90gb. No matter how big your hard drive is, you cannot use any space beyond 2tb. From the volume format menu, choose mac os extended. To format as a mac disk, choose either apfs or mac os extended journaled.
Dec 29, 2015 how to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. Jul 04, 2017 a mbr disk supports up to 2tb hard drive, which is the reason why your 3tb hard drive only shows 2tb, and why you cant create a new volume with unallocated space on 3tb hard drive. Feb 08, 2020 how to partition an external hard drive on mac. Your backup plus desktop is formatted as ntfs for compatibility with windows out of the box. How to format an external hard drive for mac and windows. Click on the erase option from the four options available in the main window. How to create a new volume with unallocated space on 3tb. Wd 3tb my passport for mac portable external hard drive, usbc. We here will show you the full guides on how to format fat32 and ntfs drives on mac as an example. Put in the settings for your seagate expansions formatting. Format 3tb hard drive to fat32 with aomei partition assistant. No worry, actually it is not impossible to realize it no matter you use an external or internal drive of your windows system. Now, i guess you might know how to solve the 3tb drive only shows 746gb issue. However, it is not possible to format hard drive to exfat, the only option under the window of format file system is ntfs default.
Such as sony ps3, ps4, xbox one, xbox 360, media player, mac. Feb 03, 2020 disk utility in macos high sierra or later can erase most disks and volumes for mac using either the newer apfs apple file system format or the older mac os extended format, and it automatically chooses a compatible format for you. Here are the best mac hard drives and external storage options in 2020. I am having a huge dilemma with my new western digital 4tb hard drive. To give a clearer description of 3tb hard drive only uses 2tb, i have prepared a picture for you to show this issue. In order to be able to use a 3tb drive you need to format it as gpt as you have found. Seagate portable 4tb external hard drive hdd usb 3. How to format an external drive for mac launch disk utility.
I also show to format the drive for usage with macintosh systems. Sometimes, you may want to try format directly to format your external hard drive partition to exfat for mac and windows. It came formatted for mac os and i need to format it under ntfs. How to format a hard drive for both windows and mac. I have a 4tb gpt external usb hard drive that i need to format as. If however, you only need to use this drive on os x, then simply choose mac os extended journaled. It also offers macfriendly functionality, with apple time machine compatibility out of the box, and its own password tool. Seagate expansion on mac, want it but can i use on my mac. Nov 19, 2009 i am having a huge dilemma with my new western digital 4tb hard drive. Simply connect the power supply, and hard drive with desktop using a usb cable and the windows operating system will immediately recognise it. Seagate backup plus 4tb external hard drive portable hdd light blue usb 3. But in order for the computer and drive to talk to one another, the drive has to be formatted.
Mar 31, 2020 to give a clearer description of 3tb hard drive only uses 2tb, i have prepared a picture for you to show this issue. Toshiba portable hard drives canvio premium for mac. The my passport for mac drives builtin 256bit aes hardware encryption with password protection helps keep your digital lifes contents secure. Hi, if you wish to use the disk between a pc and a os x, then choose exfat as the format. Windows support for hard disks that are larger than 2 tb comkb2581408 authoring. Format disk error external hard drive is the annoying error. Using a 3tb hard drive with windows 7 professional 64 bit.
Now use minitool partition wizard to convert mbr disk to gpt so as to fix 3tb hard drive showing as 2tb. Wd 2tb black my passport for mac portable external hard drive. I have no internal disk drive to run my old snow leopard install disk in order to run the old disk utility to reformat the 3tb hard drive. When you want to use your seagate expansion freely on your mac the best way is to format.
Im trying to format my wd red 3tb drives so they can be read on both my win7 and osx machines 10. First, lets see how to format an external hard drive or usb drive in macos which works with both mac and pc platforms, first plugin your drive in macos machine. A hard drive can be used on any type of computer pc or mac. My passport for mac portable storage is ready to use out of the box so you can start transferring files, saving your memories and backing up right away. Sep 28, 2019 a bit about using your seagate expansion in ntfs on your mac. How to format internal or external 3tb hard drive to fat32. Support windows and mac system requires reformatting for mac os. Yes, you can use your seagate expansion portable hard disk on mac. Select your external hard drive or usb flash drive from the list on the left. Any hard drive can be formatted for mac and here is how you do it. For instance, you can use the space analyzer function to scan the 3tb hard drive and give you a better view of the hard drive space usage, you can use the disk benchmark feature to test disk speed, etc. When i did this, it partioned the drive into two drives 2tb and 700gb, and it will only allow me to format the 2tb partition. The canvio premium for mac has a high quality diamondcut aluminium design that will complement your highend mac devices.
Wd backup software makes it easy to protect your important files, photos, videos and. Hi all, ive just installed a new western digital 3tb red hard drive in one my macpros bays the one nearest the front. Many people think it is hard to format the windows drive on macintosh. Trouble formating 3tb harddrive logical volume group.
If its formatted as anything else then reformat using disk utility to mac os extended jornaled. Enter a name for the external hard drive in the name field. The best format for your external hard drive the hellotech blog. Recover data from formatted 3tb external hard drive. Nov 22, 2014 how to format a 3tb or 4tb hard drive lee trigs. Get the best deals on 3tb internal hard disk drives when you shop the largest online. Well, for that you need to understand how external hard disks mostly work. If you have more than one partition, on the hard drive, you may wish to remove these and return the hard drive to a single partition, first. Select your macs hard drive in the lefthand column, to reveal more options, then select the partition button. How to create a new volume with unallocated space on 3tb hard.
Seagate expansion desktop 3tb external hard drive buy. Choosing the right format for your external hard drive b. I have a 4tb gpt external usb hard drive that i need to format as fat32. Install this seagate expansion desktop 3tb external hard drive in a fraction of seconds and save all your digital data with ease.
Buying and using an external hd is one thing, getting the most out of it is quite another. Jul 06, 2011 though not strictly a 3tb issue, all of the shipping 3tb hard drives also use advanced format a lowlevel storage scheme employed on newer drives. For instructions on how to format your hard drive on a mac, please reference the following links. What do i need to do to format the entire 3tb drive i. When i format the drive using win7, osx wants me to initialize it. However, ntfs is not fully compatible with mac computers. When you want to copy and paste your work documents, holiday photos or music. How to format a hard drive windows 10, 8, 7, vista, xp.
Seagate expansion 3tb usb 3 drive unboxing and formatting for mac. The latest 3tb hard drives pack in the storage, but theyre only partially. How to format an external hard drive the easy way in 2020. I strongly suspect its a conflict between os x and seagate.
Seagate backup plus portable 4 tb external hard drive hdd red usb 3. If youre erasing your startup disk, you might be prompted to enter your apple id. A mbr disk supports up to 2tb hard drive, which is the reason why your 3tb hard drive only shows 2tb, and why you cant create a new volume with unallocated space on 3tb hard drive. That means you must format the drive with at least 1024byte clusters. How to format internal or external 3tb hard drive to fat32 in. Besides, if you want to format the internal and external 3tb hard drive to.
Disk wont format external drives for mac wd community. Its a good idea to backup your data for your mac using time machine. Format disk error in external hard drive fix you need to. Use disk utility to erase format a hard disk, ssd, flash drive, or other storage device. Wd 2tb my passport ultra for mac silver portable external hard drive, usbc. Once disk utility is open youll see the list of available drives on the left.
Aomei partition assistant is a good partition manager that can partition your hard disk safely and quickly. Hi, i have a western digital external hard drive with 3tb capacity and it is completely filled with crucial files. It seems to be ok, however id double check the format to see that its set to mac os extended journaled. The my passport for mac drive includes usbc and usba cables, so you can save tomorrows content with the mac computers of both today and yesterday. Operation failed dont understand the space issue and since the disk is unmounted ii am unable to do. Mar 31, 2020 for instance, you can use the space analyzer function to scan the 3tb hard drive and give you a better view of the hard drive space usage, you can use the disk benchmark feature to test disk speed, etc.
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