Insert the drive in the USB port. Right, Click on the drive then hit on the Format option. Now choose the desired file system from FAT, FAT32, NTFS or exFAT from the new dialogue box. Give a name to the drive.
I was looking to use an external, exFAT formatted, drive to move files between a laptop running Windows 10 and a Mac running High Sierra. I was able to load the files from the laptop onto the 320 GB SimpleDrive. However, I was unable to access the drive from the Mac (it did not show up in Finder or the Mac's disk management utilities).
Using an external drive between Mac and Windows computers can be a hassle, since you constantly have to reformat it to fit which computer you're using it on. Instead of reformatting it all the.
Plug-in your drive into the computer’s USB port. Open up File Explorer and right-click on the drive.
Summary :
Issues on resizing exFat partition in Windows “I have two partitions on my 1TB external hard drive; one is exFAT partition which I want to increase size. But the Extend Volume option in Disk Management is greyed out. Is there any way to extend exFAT partition without losing data? I’m using Windows 10”.
Which allocation unit size should you use for an exFAT partition? What is the best allocation unit size for exFAT format? If you are confused about the allocation unit size exFAT, don't worry. This post from MiniTool will show you how to set the right allocation unit size for exFAT partition.
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When you try to create or format a drive to exFAT with disk management tools, you are able to choose a proper allocation unit size for the exFAT partition according to your needs. However, not many users have a clear understanding about what allocation unit size is and what allocation unit size they should use for exFAT format.
Here is the full guide of NTFS vs FAT32 vs exFAT. Check out this post to know the differences.
Given that, this post will demonstrate you what allocation unit size is and how to set the best allocation unit size for exFAT format. If you are interested in this, please keep on reading.
About Allocation Unit Size
In computer file systems, a cluster or allocation unit refers to the smallest logical amount of disk space that can be allocated to hold a file. We know that hard drives are divided into many clusters to save data on it, but how big is a cluster? Well, the size of a single cluster is decided by the allocation unit size selected when the partition is created or formatted.
So, allocation unit size is also known as cluster size, which determines the smallest chunk of disk space that holds a file.
What is allocation unit size? What is another name for a file allocation unit? How can you change allocation unit size? You will get the answers in this post.
When you create or format a partition, you can set the allocation unit size for the partition. And usually, the allocation unit size will be set as Default, as many people don't know what it is and how to set it. So they just use the default value for the allocation unit size. And some users don't even notice the allocation unit size option.
Actually, the allocation unit size or cluster size can influence your disk performance or disk space utilization. If the allocation unit size is not set properly, it may reduce the data read-write speed and waste a lot of disk space.
So it is very necessary to change cluster size reasonably. And before changing cluster size for your partition, you can check out the following contents to learn what the best allocation unit size is or what allocation unit size should you use for exFAT.
What Allocation Unit Size Should I Use for exFAT?
As mentioned before, cluster size represents the smallest amount of disk space that can be used to hold a file.
One cluster can only hold one file, but one file may take up multiple clusters depending on the file size and the cluster size. This is to say, if the file's actual size is smaller than the size of a cluster, it will still take up a cluster. If the file's actual size is more than a cluster, the file will take up two or more clusters.
Therefore, if you save large files to a drive that uses small clusters, data read-write speed will be reduced, because each file is broken into small pieces and it needs time to gather all the broken pieces and access them as one. If you save small files to file system with large clusters, a lot of disk space will be wasted. And that’s why you should set cluster size reasonably.
So we get this conclusion: if the size of the files you want to store on the drive is large, then a large cluster size is recommended, which will increase the data read-write speed. If you plan to store lots of small files, it is advisable to set a small cluster size, which can improve the disk space utilization.
If you have no idea about your file size and unit, Default is also a good choice. It will choose a proper cluster size for your drive based on the capacity. For example, according to Microsoft, the executing standard of default cluster size for exFAT is:
7MB – 256MB: 4KB
256MB – 32GB: 32KB
32GB – 256TB: 128KB
>256TB: Not supported
Which allocation unit size you should use for exFAT format? Now you should know that it depends on the size of the file you will store on the exFAT drive. Besides, if you want to learn more information about the default cluster sizes for other file systems, you can check out this post from Microsoft: Default cluster size for NTFS, FAT, and exFAT.
How to Change Allocation Unit Size for exFAT
Now you should it is necessary to choose a proper allocation unit size for your exFAT, NTFS to FAT32 partition. If you want to change cluster size to improve your disk performance or enhance the disk space utilization, you can try the following two methods to change allocation unit size for exFAT partition.
Change Allocation Unit Size exFATwith MiniTool Partition Wizard
MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition is an all-in-one partition manager, which can help you manage NTFS, FAT32 and exFAT partitions in a simple way.
As a powerful partition manager for Windows users, it can help to move/resize partition, format partition, extend partition, copy disk/partition, convert NTFS to FAT32, convert MBR to GPT and check file system and so on.
With the Format Partition feature in MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition, you can clear all the partition data and then reconfigure parameters such as partition label, file system and cluster size for the specified partition. So, by formatting the drive, you can reset the allocation unit size exFAT so as to meet your actual demands.
Tip: To change cluster size of the exFAT partition via formatting will delete all the data on that partition. Make sure there is no important data in the partition or backup all the files in advance.
Here are detailed steps:
Step 1.Download MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition by clicking the following button. Then install and launch MiniTool Partition Wizard to get its main interface.
Step 2.Then select the partition which needs to reset cluster size and choose Format Partition feature from the left panel.
Step 3.On the pop-up window, you can set partition label, file system and cluster size for the selected partition. Set the file system to exFAT and choose a cluster size from the drop-down menu according to your needs and then click OK.
Step 4.Preview the changes you just made. At last, click the Apply button to allow the change.
Tip: To change allocation unit size for NTFS or FAT32 format, you can utilize the “Change cluster size” feature in MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Edition, which can help you change allocation unit size without losing any data.
Change Allocation Unit Size exFATwith Command Prompt
Command Prompt, is also known as CMD, is the command-line interpreter available in Windows operating system. It can help you perform a lot of operations to solve various Windows problem and manage disks and partitions.
If you are familiar with Windows 10 Command Prompt, You can also use Command Prompt to format your partition and change its allocation unit size with commands. Just follow the steps below.
Note: If you don't use the Command Prompt to perform tasks very often, you’d better make a backup of the important files on your disk, as sometimes mistaken operations may cause unexpected data loss.
Step 1: Type cmd in the Windows 10 Cortana search box and right click the best match Command Prompt to select Run as administrator.
Step 2: In the Command Prompt window, type diskpart and hit Enter.
Step 3: then type the following commands one by one and hit Enter after each:
List disk
Select disk * (* refers to the number of the target disk or partition)
List partition
Select partition *
Format fs=exFAT unit=32k (you can just change the 32k to other allocation unit sizes you want.)
After the above commands are executed successfully, you can store files to the exFAT partition with the new allocation unit size.
You may be interested in this post: 10 Command Prompt Tricks that Every Windows User Should Know
Bottom Line
After reading this post, now you should know what allocation unit size you should use for exFAT partition and how to change exFAT allocation unit size or cluster size with two different methods.
If you have any good idea on allocation unit size for exFAT format or if you have any question about how to change cluster size exFAT with MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition, you can leave a message on the following comment zone and we will reply as soon as possible. If you need any help when using MiniTool software, you can contact us via [email protected].
Allocation Unit Size exFAT FAQ
Exfat Vs Ntfs External Drive
The allocation unit size you should use depending on how much your average file size is. If you have lots of small files, it is recommended to use a small allocation size so your disk space won’t be wasted. If you have many large files to store, you’d better choose a large allocation unit size to improve the data read-write speed.
If you plan to store large files on the FAT32 partition, a large allocation unit size is recommended. On the contrary, if you store small files, a small allocation unit size for FAT32 would be better. If you have no idea about the file size, just choose Default when selecting allocation unit size.
An allocation unit refers to a cluster, which is the smallest data block on the disk that holds a file. A proper allocation unit size is important for a partition to save files. If you save small files to file system with large clusters, it will waste a lot of disk space. If you save large files to file system with small cluster, it will decrease the disk read-write speed.
Allocation Unit Size is also known as Cluster size. A cluster is the smallest chunk of the disk that is used to hold a file. Allocation unit size or cluster size determines the size of a single allocation unit/cluster. Users can change the allocation unit size when formatting a drive.
In this modern world, USB drives are used to transport data from one device to another through an offline medium. Windows offer some file system to offer flash drive by default to format the flash drive like FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT. So in this technical guide, we are going to discuss the modern ways to restore formatted USB drive using FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT.
Short description of Flash Drive
USB or flash drive is the small and compact device that is easy to carry and they can store lots of data that depends on your storage limit. You can use them to give data from your computer to another person’s computer also you can use it to take the backup of your device. You can easily complete the cleaning pf the old data but the important thing is to the formatting file system.
How To Decide The File System To Format USB Flash Drive?
On windows, you have 4 options to format the drive i.e., FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT. They can be selected according to the target environment or you also opt for them according to the advantages. So, if you don’t want to search restore formatted USB drive later, then you must have to take a backup of your drive you want to take backup.
Advantages of FAT/FAT32
Format Usb Drive Exfat
These 2 operating system i.e., FAT and FAT32 is compatible with most of the OS. They require less storage space and helps the data scanned. The data is too small in size that it allows storing huge data into the drive.
Advantages of NTFS
NTFS is the better file format system used to format the external USB drive. It offers the very least amount of space for wastage and security by encrypting the data. The data present here is in the compressed form which allows you to store more data in the few spaces.
Advantages of exFAT
exFAT is the best file system to utilize the disk management and it allows the people to write the files over 4 GB and there is also a partition of more than 32 GB in size.
All these file systems also allow us to restore formatted USB drive. Hence you always can recover your data if you by mistake format your file. Adobe 10 update download.
How To Format An External USB Flash Drive?
Insert the drive in the USB port.
Right, Click on the drive then hit on the Format option.
Now choose the desired file system from FAT, FAT32, NTFS or exFAT from the new dialogue box.
Give a name to the drive. You can also opt for the format option.
Note: Before you start the process of formatting the drive for the case when it has some important data.
In the end, click on the start button to start the process of formatting. Then, click on the Yes button and data will be erased automatically and after that, you’ll get notified.
How To Format USB using CMD
Open Command Prompt.
Type diskpart and hit enter.
Type list disk and hit enter.
Now select the targeted disk and hit enter.
Type clean and click on the enter button.
Type create partition primary and then click on enter.
Type format fs=ntfs and press enter. If you want another file system then you can choose accordingly.
Now type assign.
Note: This process will format your drive and assign a drive to the removable USB drive.
It is always suggested to the user to always take the backup before you are going to format your drive to recover it for the case to recover it when you mistakenly formatted your important files/data.
How to Restore Formatted USB Drive or Flash Drive Using the Previous Version
To recover permanently deleted files using CMD you can take the help of the previous version option. This option is easily available in Microsoft Windows 10/8.1/8/7. So to do that, follow the steps:
Exfat External Hard Drive
Find the deleted file folder and Right-click on it.
Select the Properties option.
Here all previous versions of that file are available.
So from the list of the previous versions choose the file edition you are looking for.
Finally, hit on the Restore button.
External Drive Exfat Or Ntfs
If this method fails to recover your files from the flash drive then you have only one option i.e., Recovery with the help of the Data Recovery Tool.
Format Hard Drive To Exfat
Final Words
In this technical blog, you are informed about all the process to restore formatted USB drive and process of formatting using the FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT. Apart from this, we will give you a suggestion to get you out of every problem. In the last, you always recommended taking the backup of your files before formatting. If every recovery process fails then use professional tools,Android file transfer windows 7 usb. this will always help you.