Am I FAT 32 or NTFS?

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Guest

That's my question. So how can I find out?

( I have to do a clean install of XP and I'm told it's one of the choices
I'll have to make--which system to use--and I plan to keep whatever it is I'm
using. If I can find out what it is, I mean.)

Thanks in advance for help.

Don
 
Don said:
That's my question. So how can I find out?

( I have to do a clean install of XP and I'm told it's one of the
choices I'll have to make--which system to use--and I plan to keep
whatever it is I'm using. If I can find out what it is, I mean.)

Thanks in advance for help.
Click to expand...

My Computer --> Right Click on the drive in question (Local Disk (C:)
usually) and choose properties. Under the General Tab is your answer..

File System: NTFS
or
File System: FAT32
 
Right click on your drive's icon in Explorer or My Computer and select
"Properties". It will show you the file system plus alot more.
 
Windows XP runs best when installed on a drive
formatted NTFS. FAT32 is not as efficient and wastes
space due to larger cluster sizes.

NTFS Preinstallation and Windows XP
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/winpreinst/ntfs-preinstall.mspx

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows Shell/User

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

:

| That's my question. So how can I find out?
|
| ( I have to do a clean install of XP and I'm told it's one of the choices
| I'll have to make--which system to use--and I plan to keep whatever it is I'm
| using. If I can find out what it is, I mean.)
|
| Thanks in advance for help.
|
| Don
 
Don said:
That was quick. Many thanks. It's NTFS and I'll leave it there.
Click to expand...

One thing to note - NTFS has many benefits, but you will not be able to
access NTFS partitions using normal FAT boot diskettes. You'll have to
boot from the CD (usually to the recovery console) to do this, or use
another linux-based boot CD with a file manager. You can get the
six-diskette MS boot set, but that's basically the same as using the CD,
only slower.

It's important to be able to boot with access to the hard disk, as there's a
fairly common bit of registry damage that is fairly easy to fix, but much
harder to fix if you don't have access to the drive.

For a description of that particular issue,
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=307545
http://www.aade.com/XPhint/XPrecovery.htm

The issue with the recovery console is that by default, access to
directories is limited. And the problem with relying with an installed
recovery console is, what happens if the drive won't boot? Keep a bootable
CD on hand.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307654

If you want to extend the access of the recovery console, follow the
directions here, in the "Use Group Policy to Add Power to Recovery Console"
section.

http://www.aade.com/XPhint/XPrecovery.htm

You can also for the most part gain access to the drive by simply moving it
to another XP machine. USB2 drive cases work great for this purpose.

HTH
-pk
 
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