NTFS vs FAT32

[Jim]

I have an XP Home SP2 tower computer. C: is FAT32 and contains the system
in the single 80G partition, D: is NTFS, and I: is a USB external, also
NTFS. I'm aware that it's a simple matter to convert the FAT32 to NTFS, but
not to go the other way, NTFS to FAT32. Am I better off leaving things
alone or converting all to NTFS, or somehow converting D: and I: and to
FAT32.

TIA,
Jim

 

[Alias]

I have an XP Home SP2 tower computer. C: is FAT32 and contains the system
in the single 80G partition, D: is NTFS, and I: is a USB external, also
NTFS. I'm aware that it's a simple matter to convert the FAT32 to NTFS, but
not to go the other way, NTFS to FAT32. Am I better off leaving things
alone or converting all to NTFS, or somehow converting D: and I: and to
FAT32.

TIA,
Jim

You're better off NTFS all the way. Do a back up first, just in case,
though.

Alias

 

[kurttrail]

I have an XP Home SP2 tower computer. C: is FAT32 and contains the
system in the single 80G partition, D: is NTFS, and I: is a USB
external, also NTFS. I'm aware that it's a simple matter to convert
the FAT32 to NTFS, but not to go the other way, NTFS to FAT32. Am I
better off leaving things alone or converting all to NTFS, or somehow
converting D: and I: and to FAT32.

TIA,
Jim

Are you having some problem, or are you just being anal.

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."

 

[Workshop]

Read this before converting anything:

[CONVERTING FAT32 to NTFS in Windows XP]
http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/ntfscvt.htm

Usually the conversion process goes very well .. it's pretty much a
rock-solid utility .. but even so make sure to backup important data onto
other media or other harddisk before doing the conversion.

 

[Jim]

Are you having some problem, or are you just being anal.

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."

As Meatloaf once sang, two out of three ain't bad. Two helpful replies, one
wisecrack from some pompous ass.

Jim

 

[Cymbal Man Freq.]

Are you having some problem, or are you just being anal.

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."

Norton Recycle Bin and maybe some Windows system files prevented me from
formatting an NTFS partition so I would be able to reformat it as FAT 32. I
ain't gonna uninstall a functioning NSW 2005 (then reinstall it) just to
reformat a partition that just probably doesn't need repartitioning anyway.
Something is always accessing the near-empty drive, it could be the hidden,
hidden system files!

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I have an XP Home SP2 tower computer. C: is FAT32 and contains the system
in the single 80G partition, D: is NTFS, and I: is a USB external, also
NTFS. I'm aware that it's a simple matter to convert the FAT32 to NTFS, but
not to go the other way, NTFS to FAT32. Am I better off leaving things
alone or converting all to NTFS, or somehow converting D: and I: and to
FAT32.

TIA,
Jim

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.

You can safely convert your current hard drive to NTFS whenever
desired, without having to format the partition and reinstall
everything. As always when performing any serious changes, back up any
important data before proceeding, just in case. A little advance
preparation is also strongly recommended, so you can avoid any
performance hits caused by the default cluster size:

Converting FAT32 to NTFS in Windows
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfscvt.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

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[kurttrail]

As Meatloaf once sang, two out of three ain't bad. Two helpful
replies, one wisecrack from some pompous ass.

I'll assume that your answer to my question would be the latter.

As my daddy used to say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

While I readily admit I'm an a**hole, I did have a point to make.

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."