On the other hand, if you are using a Mac and want to figure out what needs to be done to format a USB drive, keep in mind that you just need to explode to be successful “in business”. Disk Utility, a “standard” application available in OS X, thanks to which you can easily manage hard drives , flash drives and external media of various types.
The procedure you must face is very simple. All you need to do is connect the USB-drive formatting Mac and run Disk Utility, by clicking on an element via attached to the menu bar, then press the top of the utility and double-click the application icon. Alternatively, you can access Disk Utility by clicking on the magnifying glass located in the upper right corner of the screen. Mac desktop by typing Disk Utility in the search bar to focus and double-clicking on the first displayed result shown as Best.
In the window that opens, select the name of the club on the left sidebar and then click the initialize button placed on top. Then select the file system you want to use to format the device by choosing it from the drop-down menu. format.
How to choose a file system
Even on a Mac, the choice of file system is fundamentally dependent on the type of file you want to save on your device and the devices you want to use it on. You can refine your ideas on how to choose a file system by looking at the list below.
- MS-DOS (FAT) This is a rather outdated file system, but for this very reason it can guarantee a high level of compatibility. Pendrives formatted with this file system can be used for both reading and writing on all PCs, all major operating systems, and a variety of other devices, including tablets, smart TVs, set-top boxes, and DVD / Blu players. ray. In addition, this file system has some disadvantages that are not trivial, such as high data fragmentation and the inability to store files larger than 4 GB.
- EXFAT This is a file system that, as the name suggests, is an evolution of MS-DOS (FAT) that reduces data fragmentation and removes the 4 GB weight limit. This file system is not as compatible as the previous one, but it is still compatible seamlessly with all major PC operating systems and many other devices, including smart TV , set-top box, tablet and living room player.
- Extended Mac OS It is a predefined OS X file system. It has no particular file size restrictions and does not cause much fragmentation, but its degree of compatibility outside the Mac world is very poor.
Format USB
After selecting a file system, assign any name flash drive by writing it in the name. And leave the selected option under the element intact circuit , if the button is available Security Settings. You can also press it to indicate the degree of security with which the operation is performed. That is, how many times the data on the formatted device has been overwritten. Click on the button to finish. initialize start the procedure for formatting the flash drive.
After a few seconds, you will be shown a blue progress bar in the center of the windows indicating the progress of the operation. After the USB memory formatting procedure is complete, press the Final button.
You can then retrieve the key from your Mac by right-clicking on the device icon on your desktop and selecting Retrieve “codename” (instead of “Named code” you will find the name of your flash drive) attached to the OSD. Alternatively, you can retrieve the key from the Mac by dragging the last icon onto the trash icon present in the dock.
As I explained how to format a USB drive on a PC, Macs support read-only NTFS drives (that is, they allow you to read files on drives formatted with that file system. But not modify or add new ones). To format USB drive to NTFS in OS X you need to install third party drivers. You will find all details in my guide on How to format NTFS from Mac.