Adding NTFS external disk to FAT32 internal

[RoyS]

I recently upgraded my system from W98 to XP, with the
internal C-disk remaining as FAT32. Am now adding a (200gb)
external HD to use for large files (video etc.).

Given the size of the disk, should I format it as NTFS??
Does XP accept a mix of NTFS and FAT32 (on separate devices)?

Also, I plan to move (share) the HD between two XP systems.
Can I use the disk management function to ensure that I
keep the same HD identity letter?

Many thanks in anticipation - Roy

 

[Yves Leclerc]

XP does support a mix of FAT32 and NTFS. However, XP will only format a
drive to 32 MB when FAT32 is selected. This is a limiation in XP.
Formatting with FAT32 in Windows 98 does not have a limit.

Y.

 

[Yves Leclerc]

OOPS! That should be 32 GB instead of 32 MB!!!

Y.

 

[R. C. White]

Hi, Roy.

WinXP can mix and match FAT12, FAT16, FAT32 and NTFS, as well as CDFS and
UDF and any other PC disk format I've ever heard of. ;<)

Unless you plan to install Win9x/ME on that computer, you might as well go
ahead and convert your FAT32 volume to NTFS to gain the greater security,
both in the sense of secure from unauthorized access and in the sense of
secure from file system failures. There's no hurry, though; WinXP will be
happy with FAT32 as long as you are.

For any HD over about 137 GB, your hardware and software must be able to
support 48-bit addressing. If you don't know what that is, read these two
articles from Maxtor and PC Magazines. They both are over a year old; you
can have Google search for "big drives" to find over 5,000 articles.

Big Drives
http://www.maxtor.com/en/technologies/big_drives/

Live Large with Big Drives
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,519303,00.asp

Given the size of the disk, should I format it as NTFS??

Yes. Microsoft limits WinXP's ability to create FAT32 volumes to only 32
GB. If you use Win98, you can format a volume as large as about 127 GB as
FAT32, and then WinXP can use the whole thing. But you'll have to divide
your 200 GB drive into multiple volumes if you insist on using FAT32. WinXP
will happily format the whole 200 GB as a single NTFS volume, if that's what
you want.

Can I use the disk management function to ensure that I
keep the same HD identity letter?

As you probably know, WinXP has its own system for assigning drive letters
depending on the configuration (HDs, partitions, CD/DVD drives, USB "thumb"
drives and other devices) that it finds each time it reboots. But we can
use Disk Management to assign the letters we want, and WinXP will try to
reassign these same letters each time. So, you can assign this big volume
as X:, for example, on your first WinXP machine. Then install it in the
second WinXP machine and use Disk Management to assign it letter X: there,
too. Just be sure not to pick an early letter (like D: or E that might
get usurped by some new device when this computer is booted without the 200
GB HD plugged in.

RC

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

Personally, I wouldn't even consider using FAT32 when NTFS is an
option. FAT32 has no security capabilities, no compression
capabilities, no fault tolerance, and a lot of wasted hard drive space
on volumes larger than 8 Gb in size. But your computing needs may
vary, and there is no hard and fast answer.

To answer your questions without getting too technical is
difficult, but has been handled quite well by Alex Nichol in the
article here:

FAT & NTFS File Systems in Windows XP
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfs.htm

Somewhat more technical information is here:

Limitations of the FAT32 File System in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=kb;en-us;Q314463

Choosing Between File Systems
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tr...prodtechnol/winntas/tips/techrep/filesyst.asp

NTFS file system
http://www.digit-life.com/articles/ntfs/

WinXP can read FAT12 (the file system used on 3.5" diskettes),
FAT16, FAT32, CDFS (the file system used on most CDs), and NTFS with
equal facility. Further, the file system on any one disk/partition or
diskette has absolutely no affect upon the operating system's ability
to read other compatible file systems on other disks/partitions.



Bruce Chambers

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[Frank]

I recently upgraded my system from W98 to XP, with the
internal C-disk remaining as FAT32. Am now adding a (200gb)
external HD to use for large files (video etc.).

Given the size of the disk, should I format it as NTFS??
Does XP accept a mix of NTFS and FAT32 (on separate devices)?

Also, I plan to move (share) the HD between two XP systems.
Can I use the disk management function to ensure that I
keep the same HD identity letter?

Many thanks in anticipation - Roy

WD ships their HDD's preformatted, is yours?

 

[RoyS]

New disk now installed, formatted and working - many thanks
for the advice. ... Roy