- Other available filesystems include fsckmsdos, which runs on FAT file systems; fsckexfat, which examines ExFAT filesystems; and fsckudf, which looks at UDF file systems. Fsck will check the file system and attempt to repair any damage that it finds.
- The manpage for exfatfsck says:. Exfatfsck checks an exFAT file system for errors. Note that it cannot repair corrupted FS, it just reports found errors. One way to fix is to plug it into a Windows system and scan and fix errors there.
Oct 16, 2020 • Filed to: Windows Computer Solutions • Proven solutions
'exFAT' file system is the latest file system that has been launched and many people are looking to convert from the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. This article is for those looking to convert their file systems.
ExFAT SD Card on Mac Corrupted - I've tried a lot of things #1 Post by Converseallstar95 » Thu Oct 19, 2017 5:49 am One day the SD card stopped working in my Mac and tells me to 'initialize' it, so I open disk utility and try first aid and I am met with this. ExFAT support on macOS seems to have some bugs because my external drives with exFAT formatting will randomly get corrupted. Disk Utility is unable to repair this at first, but the fix is this: Use diskutil list to find the right drive id. You want the id under the IDENTIFIER column, it should look like disk1s1. FAT32 and exFAT are usable for both Windows and Mac operating systems. That's to say, you are unable to write to NTFS drives on macOS Catalina, Mojave, and any earlier Mac operating systems. If you try to copy or drag files on an NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac, you'll be unable to but see the greyed-out no symbol as below.
This article gives a brief detail on the difference between the 'FAT32' and 'exFAT' file systems, different ways to format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Windows which include using file explorer, disk management, command prompt, and AOMEI partition assistant tool. In addition to this, you can also see some bonus tips to be followed while formatting the partitions.
Part 1: 'FAT32' vs. 'exFAT': What's the Difference and Which One Is Better?
'FAT32' (File Allocation Table) is the most popular file system as it is the oldest and is used by almost every Operating system. But, 'exFAT' is the latest file system which is widely used in formatting external and USB drives. Let us understand which one is better by comparing the following
| Feature | 'FAT32' | 'exFAT' |
| Devices Supported | Compatible on any Operating system, video game consoles, media players, Android USB expansions, and many other devices | 'exFAT' is also compatible on all types of devices as 'FAT32' but it might not work for some media players and Android devices |
| Sizes Supported | Supports the files which are up to a max of 4GB in size. | There is no limit for any file sizes. So it is widely used to store large-sized files. |
| Speed | When compared to 'exFAT', 'FAT32' is slow in writing and reading data | 'exFAT' is faster than 'FAT32' in writing and reading the data |
Based on the above table, it is proven that the 'exFAT' file system is far better than the 'FAT32' file system when you have files with large sizes and need effective and efficient formatting.
Part 2: How to Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Windows?
Way 1. Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' in File Explorer
Using File Explorer, you can format the flash drive from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' easily and effectively following the below steps:
Step 1: Open File Explorer by pressing 'Windows' + 'E' keys.
Step 2: In the explorer look for your USB flash drive and right-click on it.
Step 3: Click on 'Format' and select 'exFAT' from the 'File System' list.
Step 4: Click the 'Start' button in the end.
Way 2: Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' using CMD
You can convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' using a CMD prompt if you know the commands to perform the Diskpart. To use this Diskpart tool, you need to follow the below steps:
Step 1: Open Run dialog box and type 'diskpart ' to the run the Diskpart.
Step 2: Type the following command and press enter after every command:
- 'list disk'
- 'select disk n'
- 'list partition'
- 'select partition m'
- 'format fs = 'exFAT'
From above n = no of external drives, m = no of external drive partitions.
Step 3: Once all the above commands are executed, the formatting progress will be completed within a short time.
Repair Exfat Machine
Way 3: Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' with Windows Disk Management
Windows Disk Management is an effective built-in feature provided by Windows which helps you in managing the hard disk partitions without any difficulties or errors. It might not be an effective solution when compared to other third-party tools but it is enough to convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT'. For this follow the below steps:
Step 1: Open 'Disk Management' by right-clicking on the Windows start menu.
Step 2: Select the 'FAT32' formatted partition, right-click on it and click on 'Format'.
Step 3: In the format page, change the 'file system' to 'exFAT' from 'FAT32' and click on 'Ok'.
Step 4: Now the formatting process will start and you may lose all your data so make sure that the important data is taken as a backup.
Step 5: Once the formatting is done, you can see that 'FAT32' is converted to 'exFAT' in the disk management interface. Top strategy games for mac.
Way 4: Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' through a third-party converter
Generally, the above-mentioned methods may or may not work as they may face issues like write-protection, file system corruption, etc. In such cases, third-party tools like the AOMEI partition assistant can give better results in formatting the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. Follow the below steps for using the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
An important point to note is to take a backup of all the important files and data because once the formatting has been started, you may lose all your data and it will be difficult to retrieve the data.
Follow the below steps for using the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
Step 1: Launch AOMEI
Download, install, and double click on the AOMEI icon to launch the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
Step 2: Format Partition
In the interface, choose the drive that you wish to format and right-click on it. In the menu displayed, click on 'Format Partition'.
Step 3: Choose 'exFAT'
In the 'Format Partition' interface, select 'exFAT' from the file system menu. 'Partition Label' and 'Cluster Size' can be added as per the need. Click on 'Ok' and 'Apply' to perform the formatting.
Following the above-mentioned steps, you can format your disk partition or drive from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' easily and effectively.
Part 3: Bonus Tips to Convert 'FAT32' to NTFS on Mac and Linux
1. Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Mac
You can easily convert a 'FAT32' file system to 'exFAT' using the 'Disk Utility' option on Mac. Follow the below steps for the following: Best buy microsoft office 2019.
Step 1: Go to 'Applications'->' Utilities' and launch 'Disk Utility'.
Step 2: In the Disk Utility interface, select the external drive that you want to format.
Step 3: Under the 'Erase' tab, select the 'exFAT' file type from the menu list.
Step 4: Click on the 'Erase' button to start the formatting from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT'.
2. Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Linux
To format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' file system on Linux, follow the below steps:
Step 1: To view all the drives attached to your system, type sudo fdisk -l in the command line.
Step 2: Select the drive that you want to format and type sudo wipefs -a /dev/sdb to start fresh with a new 'exFAT' file system
Step 3: Follow the on-screen instructions and select 'exFAT' from the message 'HPFS/NTFS/exFAT' it displays
Step 4: Press 'w' to sync the disk partitions.
Step 5: Type sudo mkfs.'exFAT' -n hardDisk /dev/sdb1 to format your drive to 'exFAT'
The Bottom Line
As mentioned in the article, different ways can be used to convert or format from the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. Follow all the above-mentioned procedures to easily and effectively format your drive.
While formatting your drive using file explorer, command prompt, or disk management, you may find some trouble because of the issues like write-protection, file system corruption, etc. So, it is recommended to use the 'AOMEI Partition Assistant' a third party tool which provides an interactive and easy to use interface to format effectively without any interruptions.
People Also Ask
When compared to 'FAT32', 'exFAT' is a better file system type in the following aspects:
- There is no file size limit for 'exFAT', but 'FAT32' can support up to a size of 4GB only.
- 'exFAT' file system performs faster writing and reading of data when compared to 'FAT32'.
You can convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Mac using the Disk utility option that it provides. In the disk utility, follow the below steps:
- Select the disk partition that you want to format from the list of disks displayed on the left pane of the interface.
- Under erase tab->File system, select 'exFAT' and click on erase.
This will format your partition completely with file type as 'exFAT'.
How do I convert my flash drive from 'exFAT' to 'FAT32'?
Converting your flash drive from 'exFAT' to 'FAT32' has become very easy now. Follow the below steps to format:
- Double-click on 'This PC' and from the list of drives select the flash drive.
- Right-click on the flash drive and click 'Format'.
- In the Format window, select the 'file type' as 'FAT32'.
- Click on Format.
Partition Recovery
- Partition Management
- Solve Partition Problems
- Partition Tips
External hard drives are important storage media for both Mac and Windows users. Usually, you can read and write to files on an external hard drive on your Mac. But there are chances that this external hard drive shows read-only on Mac. For example, many people have reported that their WD My Passport external hard drives are read-only on Mac. When you check its disk information, you will find you can only read the external hard drive on Mac. Moreover, users who use USB flash drives and SD cards on Mac also encounter this read-only problem.
You may be wondering why you can't write to this external hard drive even though you are the owner of this disk, and more importantly, if you can fix this read-only problem without formatting or not?
Thus, this post will analyze three external hard drive read-only cases so that you can find a relevant and feasible solution to your problem.
- Table of contents
- Case 1: The read-only external hard drive is NTFS file system
- Case 2: Disk permissions are changed as read-only
- Case 3: Can't write to external hard drives on Mac due to disk errors
- Bonus part: Fix SD card read-only on Mac
Case 1: The read-only external hard drive is NTFS file system
A file system controls how data is stored and retrieved on a disk. There are many different kinds of file systems, and each one has different structure and logic, properties of speed, flexibility, security, size, etc. By default, Windows uses Microsoft NTFS file system while Macs use HFS+ and APFS for OS volume. FAT32 and exFAT are usable for both Windows and Mac operating systems.
That's to say, you are unable to write to NTFS drives on macOS Catalina, Mojave, and any earlier Mac operating systems . If you try to copy or drag files on an NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac, you'll be unable to but see the greyed-out no symbol as below. And when you open files on this external hard drive, you will find your documents being read-only. For an NTFS file system SD card on Mac, files like photos are locked as you can only read them.
Therefore, if you find your external hard drive read-only, for example, a Seagate external hard drive shows read-only on Mac, the first thing that comes to your mind should be to check if this drive is NTFS file system.
How to check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system on Mac?
Mac studio fix powder c30. Simply, you can check this by viewing its disk information either in Disk Utility or in the Finder, and here is how.
Method 1: Check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system in Disk Utility
Step 1: Click on Launchpad at the dock of your Mac and choose Other in the menu.
Step 2: Choose Disk Utility among these utilities and open it.
Step 3: When it is launched, click on the external hard drive you have problem with in the left sidebar. You will see an obvious 'Windows NT File System' in the right column.
Method 2: Check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system in the Finder
You can also check this in the Finder with a few clicks.
Step 1: Open the Finder and right-click on this external hard drive.
Step 2: Choose Get info in the context menu.
Step 3: You will see 'Windows NT File System (NTFS)s' after File system if the read-only drive is formatted with Microsoft NTFS file system.
Then, after making sure that it is the Windows NTFS file system that makes your external hard drive read-only on Mac, you can go head to fix this problem. Try to repair the read-only external hard drive with or without formatting.
Solution 1: Format this external hard drive to exFAT/FAT32
Exfat For Mac And Pc
It is possible that you just recently bought a new hard drive and found it is formatted as NTFS. In this case, if you don't have anything important on this drive or you have a copy of a data backup, you can simply format this external hard drive without worrying about data loss. To formatting this read-only hard drive, you can just go to Disk Utility and Erase it.
There are several formats you can choose, and erasing this disk into which file system depends on how you intend to use the drive.
- APFS: If you plan to use the drive on macOS 10.15 Catalina, macOS 10.14 Mojave, and macOS 10.13 High Sierra, you can format it into APFS for better experience.
- HFS+: It is also known as Mac OS Extended, whose later versions added journaling to prevent corruption of the file system structure. Therefore, you can choose HFS+ if you are going to use this external hard drive on macOS Sierra and earlier Mac operating systems.
- FAT32/exFAT: If your storage device is an SD card or USB flash drive, and you'd like to read-write this portable drive both on Mac and Windows OS, you'd better erase it with exFAT or FAT32.
Solution 2: Run NTFS for Mac software on Mac
However, if you have several important files on this external hard drive, and you frequently swap your work between Windows and Mac computers, formatting this drive definitely is the last solution you would resort to. The reason is, as you may know, formatting a hard disk will wipe your data out of this drive and cause data loss.
Repair Exfat Partition
Then when external drive is NTFS-formatted, how can you fix the read-only drive without formatting?
An NTFS driver for Mac should be the most convenient tool for people who want to fix this issue without formatting, because you can work natively and seamlessly on NTFS file system external hard drives on your Mac in a few clicks. The NTFS for Mac software you can try is iBoysoft NTFS for Mac to make the NTFS drives writable on Mac.
About iBoysoft NTFS for Mac
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac can mount NTFS external hard drives in read-write mode on your Mac, granting people full access to read, write, edit, copy, and delete files on NTFS-formatted drives.
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac- Best NTFS Disk Management for Mac
- Grant full access to read, write, edit, copy, move, transfer, and delete files on NTFS file system external hard drives, SD cards, USB flash drives, etc. on Mac
- Erase disks to NTFS file system on Mac
- Unmount multiple drives with one click
- Support macOS 10.15/10.14/10.13/10.12 and OS X 10.11/10.10/10.9/10.8
Repair Exfat Drive On Mac
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac is also a wonderful tool to manage NTFS external drives on Mac. It's a menu bar app, from which users can mount, repair, erase NTFS hard drives, external hard drives, SD cards, USB flash drives, etc. with a simple click.
Tutorial to write to NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac with iBoysoft NTFS for Mac
Step 1: Free download, install and launch iBoysoft NTFS for Mac on your computers.
Step 2: Connect NTFS external hard drive to Mac.
Step 3: Write to NTFS external hard drive after the external hard drive is mounted successfully.
Solution 3: Fix read-only NTFS external hard drives with the command line (not recommend)
You can also try the experimental method to enable NTFS read-write support with command prompt on your Mac. However, it is not recommended as it is not stable and could result in data loss if it goes wrong. So, use the command line with caution!
Warning: Do not use this method as a long-term solution to write to NTFS drives that contain important files. Meanwhile, do not use this method if you are not familiar with the command line, in case that you input a wrong command and cause unexpected damage to your Mac and drives.
Well, if you insist…here is how to do this:
Step 1: Click Go at the upper right of your desktop and go to the Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
Step 2: Input 'sudo nano /etc/fstab' to edit the fstab file (supply your password when prompted).
Step 3: Type 'LABEL=NAME none ntfs rw,auto,nobrowse' in the editor window for the fstab file. (Be sure to change the word NAME to the name of your drive)
Step 4: Press Control + O to save the file, followed byControl + X to exit.
Step 5: Unmount your NTFS drive and attach it again.
Case 2: Disk permissions are changed as read-only
The Sharing and Permissions option is set up to determine who can delete or modify a file or program copied to the drive. Thus, if the permissions are changed by you or others, a message will pop up and inform you that the file is read-only or you don't have permission to save when you save changes to this disk.
In this case, if you right-click on the icon of your disk and choose 'Get info' to check the disk information, you will find you can only read this external hard drive or SD card even though it is not NTFS file system. That's to say, you can't write to this drive.
If this is the cause for your external hard drive being read-only, you can try the following solutions and fix this issue without formatting your drive.
Solution 1: Change the permission of this external hard drive
If your files on this external hard drive show as read-only or locked, or if you try to move some files to the Trash but get no response, you can try to change the permission of this disk.
Step 1: Open the Finder and find your external hard drive in the left sidebar.
Step 2: Right-click on this drive or volume and choose Get info, and then scroll down to Sharing & Permissions.
'exFAT' file system is the latest file system that has been launched and many people are looking to convert from the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. This article is for those looking to convert their file systems.
ExFAT SD Card on Mac Corrupted - I've tried a lot of things #1 Post by Converseallstar95 » Thu Oct 19, 2017 5:49 am One day the SD card stopped working in my Mac and tells me to 'initialize' it, so I open disk utility and try first aid and I am met with this. ExFAT support on macOS seems to have some bugs because my external drives with exFAT formatting will randomly get corrupted. Disk Utility is unable to repair this at first, but the fix is this: Use diskutil list to find the right drive id. You want the id under the IDENTIFIER column, it should look like disk1s1. FAT32 and exFAT are usable for both Windows and Mac operating systems. That's to say, you are unable to write to NTFS drives on macOS Catalina, Mojave, and any earlier Mac operating systems. If you try to copy or drag files on an NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac, you'll be unable to but see the greyed-out no symbol as below.
This article gives a brief detail on the difference between the 'FAT32' and 'exFAT' file systems, different ways to format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Windows which include using file explorer, disk management, command prompt, and AOMEI partition assistant tool. In addition to this, you can also see some bonus tips to be followed while formatting the partitions.
Part 1: 'FAT32' vs. 'exFAT': What's the Difference and Which One Is Better?
'FAT32' (File Allocation Table) is the most popular file system as it is the oldest and is used by almost every Operating system. But, 'exFAT' is the latest file system which is widely used in formatting external and USB drives. Let us understand which one is better by comparing the following
| Feature | 'FAT32' | 'exFAT' |
| Devices Supported | Compatible on any Operating system, video game consoles, media players, Android USB expansions, and many other devices | 'exFAT' is also compatible on all types of devices as 'FAT32' but it might not work for some media players and Android devices |
| Sizes Supported | Supports the files which are up to a max of 4GB in size. | There is no limit for any file sizes. So it is widely used to store large-sized files. |
| Speed | When compared to 'exFAT', 'FAT32' is slow in writing and reading data | 'exFAT' is faster than 'FAT32' in writing and reading the data |
Based on the above table, it is proven that the 'exFAT' file system is far better than the 'FAT32' file system when you have files with large sizes and need effective and efficient formatting.
Part 2: How to Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Windows?
Way 1. Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' in File Explorer
Using File Explorer, you can format the flash drive from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' easily and effectively following the below steps:
Step 1: Open File Explorer by pressing 'Windows' + 'E' keys.
Step 2: In the explorer look for your USB flash drive and right-click on it.
Step 3: Click on 'Format' and select 'exFAT' from the 'File System' list.
Step 4: Click the 'Start' button in the end.
Way 2: Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' using CMD
You can convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' using a CMD prompt if you know the commands to perform the Diskpart. To use this Diskpart tool, you need to follow the below steps:
Step 1: Open Run dialog box and type 'diskpart ' to the run the Diskpart.
Step 2: Type the following command and press enter after every command:
- 'list disk'
- 'select disk n'
- 'list partition'
- 'select partition m'
- 'format fs = 'exFAT'
From above n = no of external drives, m = no of external drive partitions.
Step 3: Once all the above commands are executed, the formatting progress will be completed within a short time.
Repair Exfat Machine
Way 3: Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' with Windows Disk Management
Windows Disk Management is an effective built-in feature provided by Windows which helps you in managing the hard disk partitions without any difficulties or errors. It might not be an effective solution when compared to other third-party tools but it is enough to convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT'. For this follow the below steps:
Step 1: Open 'Disk Management' by right-clicking on the Windows start menu.
Step 2: Select the 'FAT32' formatted partition, right-click on it and click on 'Format'.
Step 3: In the format page, change the 'file system' to 'exFAT' from 'FAT32' and click on 'Ok'.
Step 4: Now the formatting process will start and you may lose all your data so make sure that the important data is taken as a backup.
Step 5: Once the formatting is done, you can see that 'FAT32' is converted to 'exFAT' in the disk management interface. Top strategy games for mac.
Way 4: Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' through a third-party converter
Generally, the above-mentioned methods may or may not work as they may face issues like write-protection, file system corruption, etc. In such cases, third-party tools like the AOMEI partition assistant can give better results in formatting the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. Follow the below steps for using the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
An important point to note is to take a backup of all the important files and data because once the formatting has been started, you may lose all your data and it will be difficult to retrieve the data.
Follow the below steps for using the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
Step 1: Launch AOMEI
Download, install, and double click on the AOMEI icon to launch the AOMEI partition assistant tool.
Step 2: Format Partition
In the interface, choose the drive that you wish to format and right-click on it. In the menu displayed, click on 'Format Partition'.
Step 3: Choose 'exFAT'
In the 'Format Partition' interface, select 'exFAT' from the file system menu. 'Partition Label' and 'Cluster Size' can be added as per the need. Click on 'Ok' and 'Apply' to perform the formatting.
Following the above-mentioned steps, you can format your disk partition or drive from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' easily and effectively.
Part 3: Bonus Tips to Convert 'FAT32' to NTFS on Mac and Linux
1. Convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Mac
You can easily convert a 'FAT32' file system to 'exFAT' using the 'Disk Utility' option on Mac. Follow the below steps for the following: Best buy microsoft office 2019.
Step 1: Go to 'Applications'->' Utilities' and launch 'Disk Utility'.
Step 2: In the Disk Utility interface, select the external drive that you want to format.
Step 3: Under the 'Erase' tab, select the 'exFAT' file type from the menu list.
Step 4: Click on the 'Erase' button to start the formatting from 'FAT32' to 'exFAT'.
2. Format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Linux
To format 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' file system on Linux, follow the below steps:
Step 1: To view all the drives attached to your system, type sudo fdisk -l in the command line.
Step 2: Select the drive that you want to format and type sudo wipefs -a /dev/sdb to start fresh with a new 'exFAT' file system
Step 3: Follow the on-screen instructions and select 'exFAT' from the message 'HPFS/NTFS/exFAT' it displays
Step 4: Press 'w' to sync the disk partitions.
Step 5: Type sudo mkfs.'exFAT' -n hardDisk /dev/sdb1 to format your drive to 'exFAT'
The Bottom Line
As mentioned in the article, different ways can be used to convert or format from the 'FAT32' to the 'exFAT' file system. Follow all the above-mentioned procedures to easily and effectively format your drive.
While formatting your drive using file explorer, command prompt, or disk management, you may find some trouble because of the issues like write-protection, file system corruption, etc. So, it is recommended to use the 'AOMEI Partition Assistant' a third party tool which provides an interactive and easy to use interface to format effectively without any interruptions.
People Also Ask
When compared to 'FAT32', 'exFAT' is a better file system type in the following aspects:
- There is no file size limit for 'exFAT', but 'FAT32' can support up to a size of 4GB only.
- 'exFAT' file system performs faster writing and reading of data when compared to 'FAT32'.
You can convert 'FAT32' to 'exFAT' on Mac using the Disk utility option that it provides. In the disk utility, follow the below steps:
- Select the disk partition that you want to format from the list of disks displayed on the left pane of the interface.
- Under erase tab->File system, select 'exFAT' and click on erase.
This will format your partition completely with file type as 'exFAT'.
How do I convert my flash drive from 'exFAT' to 'FAT32'?
Converting your flash drive from 'exFAT' to 'FAT32' has become very easy now. Follow the below steps to format:
- Double-click on 'This PC' and from the list of drives select the flash drive.
- Right-click on the flash drive and click 'Format'.
- In the Format window, select the 'file type' as 'FAT32'.
- Click on Format.
Partition Recovery
- Partition Management
- Solve Partition Problems
- Partition Tips
External hard drives are important storage media for both Mac and Windows users. Usually, you can read and write to files on an external hard drive on your Mac. But there are chances that this external hard drive shows read-only on Mac. For example, many people have reported that their WD My Passport external hard drives are read-only on Mac. When you check its disk information, you will find you can only read the external hard drive on Mac. Moreover, users who use USB flash drives and SD cards on Mac also encounter this read-only problem.
You may be wondering why you can't write to this external hard drive even though you are the owner of this disk, and more importantly, if you can fix this read-only problem without formatting or not?
Thus, this post will analyze three external hard drive read-only cases so that you can find a relevant and feasible solution to your problem.
- Table of contents
- Case 1: The read-only external hard drive is NTFS file system
- Case 2: Disk permissions are changed as read-only
- Case 3: Can't write to external hard drives on Mac due to disk errors
- Bonus part: Fix SD card read-only on Mac
Case 1: The read-only external hard drive is NTFS file system
A file system controls how data is stored and retrieved on a disk. There are many different kinds of file systems, and each one has different structure and logic, properties of speed, flexibility, security, size, etc. By default, Windows uses Microsoft NTFS file system while Macs use HFS+ and APFS for OS volume. FAT32 and exFAT are usable for both Windows and Mac operating systems.
That's to say, you are unable to write to NTFS drives on macOS Catalina, Mojave, and any earlier Mac operating systems . If you try to copy or drag files on an NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac, you'll be unable to but see the greyed-out no symbol as below. And when you open files on this external hard drive, you will find your documents being read-only. For an NTFS file system SD card on Mac, files like photos are locked as you can only read them.
Therefore, if you find your external hard drive read-only, for example, a Seagate external hard drive shows read-only on Mac, the first thing that comes to your mind should be to check if this drive is NTFS file system.
How to check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system on Mac?
Mac studio fix powder c30. Simply, you can check this by viewing its disk information either in Disk Utility or in the Finder, and here is how.
Method 1: Check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system in Disk Utility
Step 1: Click on Launchpad at the dock of your Mac and choose Other in the menu.
Step 2: Choose Disk Utility among these utilities and open it.
Step 3: When it is launched, click on the external hard drive you have problem with in the left sidebar. You will see an obvious 'Windows NT File System' in the right column.
Method 2: Check if an external hard drive is NTFS file system in the Finder
You can also check this in the Finder with a few clicks.
Step 1: Open the Finder and right-click on this external hard drive.
Step 2: Choose Get info in the context menu.
Step 3: You will see 'Windows NT File System (NTFS)s' after File system if the read-only drive is formatted with Microsoft NTFS file system.
Then, after making sure that it is the Windows NTFS file system that makes your external hard drive read-only on Mac, you can go head to fix this problem. Try to repair the read-only external hard drive with or without formatting.
Solution 1: Format this external hard drive to exFAT/FAT32
Exfat For Mac And Pc
It is possible that you just recently bought a new hard drive and found it is formatted as NTFS. In this case, if you don't have anything important on this drive or you have a copy of a data backup, you can simply format this external hard drive without worrying about data loss. To formatting this read-only hard drive, you can just go to Disk Utility and Erase it.
There are several formats you can choose, and erasing this disk into which file system depends on how you intend to use the drive.
- APFS: If you plan to use the drive on macOS 10.15 Catalina, macOS 10.14 Mojave, and macOS 10.13 High Sierra, you can format it into APFS for better experience.
- HFS+: It is also known as Mac OS Extended, whose later versions added journaling to prevent corruption of the file system structure. Therefore, you can choose HFS+ if you are going to use this external hard drive on macOS Sierra and earlier Mac operating systems.
- FAT32/exFAT: If your storage device is an SD card or USB flash drive, and you'd like to read-write this portable drive both on Mac and Windows OS, you'd better erase it with exFAT or FAT32.
Solution 2: Run NTFS for Mac software on Mac
However, if you have several important files on this external hard drive, and you frequently swap your work between Windows and Mac computers, formatting this drive definitely is the last solution you would resort to. The reason is, as you may know, formatting a hard disk will wipe your data out of this drive and cause data loss.
Repair Exfat Partition
Then when external drive is NTFS-formatted, how can you fix the read-only drive without formatting?
An NTFS driver for Mac should be the most convenient tool for people who want to fix this issue without formatting, because you can work natively and seamlessly on NTFS file system external hard drives on your Mac in a few clicks. The NTFS for Mac software you can try is iBoysoft NTFS for Mac to make the NTFS drives writable on Mac.
About iBoysoft NTFS for Mac
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac can mount NTFS external hard drives in read-write mode on your Mac, granting people full access to read, write, edit, copy, and delete files on NTFS-formatted drives.
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac- Best NTFS Disk Management for Mac
- Grant full access to read, write, edit, copy, move, transfer, and delete files on NTFS file system external hard drives, SD cards, USB flash drives, etc. on Mac
- Erase disks to NTFS file system on Mac
- Unmount multiple drives with one click
- Support macOS 10.15/10.14/10.13/10.12 and OS X 10.11/10.10/10.9/10.8
Repair Exfat Drive On Mac
iBoysoft NTFS for Mac is also a wonderful tool to manage NTFS external drives on Mac. It's a menu bar app, from which users can mount, repair, erase NTFS hard drives, external hard drives, SD cards, USB flash drives, etc. with a simple click.
Tutorial to write to NTFS-formatted external hard drive on Mac with iBoysoft NTFS for Mac
Step 1: Free download, install and launch iBoysoft NTFS for Mac on your computers.
Step 2: Connect NTFS external hard drive to Mac.
Step 3: Write to NTFS external hard drive after the external hard drive is mounted successfully.
Solution 3: Fix read-only NTFS external hard drives with the command line (not recommend)
You can also try the experimental method to enable NTFS read-write support with command prompt on your Mac. However, it is not recommended as it is not stable and could result in data loss if it goes wrong. So, use the command line with caution!
Warning: Do not use this method as a long-term solution to write to NTFS drives that contain important files. Meanwhile, do not use this method if you are not familiar with the command line, in case that you input a wrong command and cause unexpected damage to your Mac and drives.
Well, if you insist…here is how to do this:
Step 1: Click Go at the upper right of your desktop and go to the Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
Step 2: Input 'sudo nano /etc/fstab' to edit the fstab file (supply your password when prompted).
Step 3: Type 'LABEL=NAME none ntfs rw,auto,nobrowse' in the editor window for the fstab file. (Be sure to change the word NAME to the name of your drive)
Step 4: Press Control + O to save the file, followed byControl + X to exit.
Step 5: Unmount your NTFS drive and attach it again.
Case 2: Disk permissions are changed as read-only
The Sharing and Permissions option is set up to determine who can delete or modify a file or program copied to the drive. Thus, if the permissions are changed by you or others, a message will pop up and inform you that the file is read-only or you don't have permission to save when you save changes to this disk.
In this case, if you right-click on the icon of your disk and choose 'Get info' to check the disk information, you will find you can only read this external hard drive or SD card even though it is not NTFS file system. That's to say, you can't write to this drive.
If this is the cause for your external hard drive being read-only, you can try the following solutions and fix this issue without formatting your drive.
Solution 1: Change the permission of this external hard drive
If your files on this external hard drive show as read-only or locked, or if you try to move some files to the Trash but get no response, you can try to change the permission of this disk.
Step 1: Open the Finder and find your external hard drive in the left sidebar.
Step 2: Right-click on this drive or volume and choose Get info, and then scroll down to Sharing & Permissions.
Step 3: Extend this column by clicking on the triangle symbol, and then click on the Lock icon.
Step 4: Input the password of your Mac, and click on Read only, then change your privilege as Read & Write in the right column.
Exfat On Mac
Step 5: Click the gear button (Action menu) at the bottom of the window, choose Apply to enclosed items, and then click OK to confirm the action.
Solution 2: Ignore Permissions on external hard drive in the Finder
To prevent such errors from happening, Mac operating system includes a setting to ignore Permissions on external drives, so all files on the drive should be fully accessible regardless of their Permissions settings. Here below are steps to ignore the permission on external hard drives:
Step 1: Select the external hard drive on your desktop or in the Finder sidebar, and then press Command + I to get information on the drive.
Step 2: Click on the arrow that is on the left side of the Sharing & Permissions tab near the bottom of the window.
Step 3: Check the box to Ignore ownership on this volume, or toggle it off and then on if it's already enabled. (Provide the password of your Mac if it is required.)
Case 3: Can't write to external hard drives on Mac due to disk errors
Some internal errors will cause a drive to be read-only as well. When this happens, your drive will be only mounted in read-only mode to prevent the data on it from corruption.
Solution: Repair read-only external hard drive with Disk Utility
Fortunately, you can take some actions to repair these minor disk errors with Disk Utility on your Mac. You can use the following guide to fix read-only external hard drive in Disk Utility without formatting.
Step 1: Click Go at the upper right of your desktop and go to Utilities, and then open Disk Utility.
Step 2: Select the read-only external hard drive on the left window.
Step 3: Click First Aid in the and choose Run.
However, it is possible that an NTFS format is not the culprit of your disk being read-only. On the contrary, some other reasons make your disk not writable. For instance, if your disk becomes read-only after a macOS update, you may be facing one of the rare glitches of a macOS. Under this circumstance, if the solutions above are unable to fix this read-only external hard drive, you may need to format this drive, and then recover your important data from the formatted external hard drive instead.
Bonus part: Fix SD card read-only on Mac
Except for external hard drives, memory cards like micro SD cards and SDHC cards could be read-only on Mac as well. It could occur when your SD card is write protected, whether you access the SD card via a card slot or connect the camera to the Mac. If you have tried the solutions mentioned above and none of them work for you, here is a bonus tip.
Solution 1: For most cases, you need to make sure that you slide the write protection switch to the unlocked positition. It's possible that some USB SD card adapters don't honor that switch, but the card reader on Mac definitely does.
Solution 2: If the SD card is read-only on Mac still, you may want to slide the read-write lock to the middle neutral position and retry. Strange though, sliding the 'lock' switch on the card halfway does help mount SD cards in read-write mode.
Conclusion
Generally speaking, external hard drives being read-only on Mac appears when they are not formatted correctly and the solutions above should be helpful. Nevertheless, if you failed to repair this hard disk even with Disk Utility, it could be a failed external hard drive which needs to be replaced, or you can try your luck by sending it to a local disk repair service.
