How to change the file system of your hard drive without losing data. How to change the format of a flash drive from FAT32 to NTFS without losing data
If you need to change the file system FAT32 on NTFS, for example, the correct way would be to use your flash drive or disk. Of course, before this you need to transfer all important data somewhere, because... When formatting, all files on the media are erased. But sometimes there are situations when you urgently need to change the FS (file system) from FAT32 to NTFS, but there is nothing at hand where you can transfer the data. Or you have an external capacity of 500 gigabytes or more/less, completely “clogged” with files. Then you definitely need to look for where to copy so many files, and then transfer them to it again and at the same time lose a lot of time on all these operations.
In general, there is a way to “reformat” FAT32 to NTFS while saving all data to the media. By the way, why FAT32? Because most standard hard drives and flash drives have this FS installed, and NTFS is better than it.
So, in order to “convert” one file system to another, we need to launch (preferably, but you can “convert” it that way) and enter the following command into it:
convert (driveletter) /fs:ntfs
where (drive_letter) is the letter of your flash drive or disk that needs to be converted. For example, you have the letter G, then the line will be like this:
convert g: /fs:ntfs
This is what it will look like on the command line:
Now press Enter.
After this, a message about the name of the flash drive/disk may appear. You can change it, you can not change it, or you can leave it blank.
By the way, some users note that it is better when the flash drive/disk does not have a label (name) at all. Then the conversion occurs without any problems or errors.
After this the conversion will begin
You can then go in and make sure that all the files are still in their places.
Now about the nuances of this method.
1) It will not be possible to reformat NTFS to FAT using this method. In order to change the FS using a similar method, the command should be “remade” and in the end it will be like this:
convert driveletter : /fs:ntfs /nosecurity /x
2) It is highly advisable to check your flash drive or disk for errors before converting. For example, using the method, but it is also suitable for other systems. Home in Properties disk to find the desired item.
This is necessary to avoid errors like SRC and others.
3) With this method, file fragmentation will be very large. This is understandable. This will primarily affect the speed of the media (reading/writing/copying, etc.), and may also be labor-intensive or even completely impossible.
4) If there are installed applications on a flash drive or disk (which is most often) that require registration or the original distribution disk, then it is likely that this registration will be lost.
I think that's all. You can reformat NTFS to FAT32 and vice versa without data loss, but I still recommend changing the FS by transferring files and normal formatting.
In the modern world, flash drives are very popular among users. You can buy a flash drive of large or small volume, strict or in the shape of a cartoon character. It can also be used for various purposes: to transfer information, store files or photos, you can record files for installing Windows or a movie on it.
An important parameter is also the file system type: FAT32 or NTFS. In this article we will talk about this. More precisely, let’s figure out how you can change the file system type of a USB drive.
Why might this be needed? For example, you want to record a 6 GB movie on a 16 GB device, but when copying, a message appears that this operation cannot be performed. This means that you have a flash drive with FAT32, but it cannot write files larger than 4 GB. Or you connect it to a TV or home theater, but it is not readable. This is due to the fact that your device cannot recognize the type of file system that is installed on the media, so it needs to be changed.
How to change to NTFS
Now let's look at how everything is done in the Windows 7 and 10 operating systems. This can be done using the standard formatting that is found in Windows, or using formatting with various programs, for example, HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool. We will use the capabilities of the operating system itself, that is, the first method.
On Windows 7
To change the file system type using the built-in capabilities of Windows, you need to format the flash drive. Considering that after formatting all files from the device will be deleted, you must first save them to your computer.
To do this, go to the “Computer” folder and open the flash drive.
Select the necessary files on it; if you want to select everything, press Ctrl+A. Then right-click on any selected file and select “Copy” from the context menu.
Now open the drive where all the files on your computer are stored, usually D:. Create a folder on it, go into it and press Ctrl+V. After this, all files will be transferred to this folder.
You can return to the flash drive and delete everything from it. Select the files - press Ctrl+A, right-click on them and select “Delete”.
When all the necessary files are safe, you can start formatting. Open the “Computer” folder, select the flash drive, right-click on it and select “Format” from the context menu.
In the next window, in the “File system” field, select NTFS from the drop-down list. In the “Volume Label” field, you can give a different name, check the “Quick (clear table of contents)” box and click “Start”.
In the next window, click “OK”, because we have already saved all the important files to the computer.
When formatting is complete, click “OK” in the appropriate window.
You can go to the “Computer” folder again. Select the flash drive and the line below will say NTFS in the corresponding field.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10, formatting is done in a similar way. Before doing this, save all your important files and documents to your computer.
Open the “This PC” folder, select the flash drive, right-click on it and select “Format”.
Confirm deleting all files from the flash drive by clicking “OK.”
After formatting is completed, click “OK” in the window that appears.
To now see the parameter we need, in the “This PC” folder, right-click on the flash drive and select “Properties”.
On the General tab, you can verify that everything was done successfully.
How to change to FAT 32
On Windows 7
Everything can also be done in the standard way in Windows. Do everything as described above, only in the “Format” window, select FAT32 in the required field.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10 everything is similar. In the "Format" window, you just need to select a different type of file system.
How to change without losing data
In order to change the file system on the device and save all the files that are written to it, you need to use the command line.
Please note that you can change the file system type using this method from FAT32 to NTFS. It won't work the other way around.
On Windows 7
First of all, go to the “Computer” folder and see which drive letter corresponds to the drive. In the example, this is M:
Next, open the command line. Click on the “Start” button and type cmd in the search bar. The corresponding line will appear in the results, click on it. To run Command Prompt as an administrator, right-click on the cmd line and select “Run as administrator” from the menu.
When the process is finished, the line “Conversion Complete” will appear at the end.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10, go to the This PC folder and look at the drive letter that corresponds to the USB device. I have G:.
Enter the command: convert G: /fs:ntfs, where instead of G: enter your drive letter, and press Enter.
FAT32 and NTFS are the most common file systems on storage media in Windows operating systems. In most cases, immediately upon purchase, the flash drive is converted to the FAT32 file system. But very often, for example, you need to change it to a more modern one - NTFS. You will learn how to do this in this article.
Change with complete cleaning of the flash drive
There are two ways. The first - with the complete deletion of all content and the second - with the preservation of all data on the flash drive.
Looking ahead, we immediately note that, if possible, it is better to use the first method, which will be described below. Since during conversion without deleting data, errors and even complete deterioration of all content are possible.
Attention! This method will delete everything that is on the flash drive and in the end it will be clean. Take this into account and, if necessary, copy all the contents to your hard drive and return it back after conversion.
- Insert the flash drive into the USB port of your computer or laptop;
- In the “My Computer” window, where all local and removable drives are displayed, find your flash drive, right-click on it and select “Format”.
Start formatting the flash drive
- In the window that opens, opposite the “File system” line, select NTFS;
Changing FAT32 to NTFS via formatting
- Please note that the “Quick (Clearing table of contents)” checkbox is checked;
- Click on the "Start" button.
The formatting process will start and will be completed in just a few seconds. As a result, your flash drive will be completely cleaned and converted to the NTFS file system.
Changing the file system on a flash drive without deleting data
As already described above, it is recommended to resort to this method only when there is no time and nowhere to copy data from a flash drive.
Also, before using the method described below, it is better to check the flash drive for errors. To do this, in the “Computer” window, right-click on the flash drive and select “Properties”.
Flash drive properties
Then go to the "Tools" tab and click "Run check" (Check).
Running a flash drive check for errors
Once completed, follow the steps below.
- Insert the flash drive into the USB port of your computer or laptop;
- Open ;
- Recruiting a team convert (drive letter) /fs:ntfs,where you need to indicate the letter of your flash drive, under which it is identified in the computer. For example, this is the letter F. Then the command to change the file system on a flash drive without losing data will look like this: convert f: /fs:ntfs
Command to convert from FAT32 to NTFS without data loss
- Press Enter on your keyboard. Next you will be prompted to set a volume label. Here it is better not to enter anything and leave the input field empty. Press Enter again.
The conversion process and its completion
The conversion process will start and end with a corresponding message.
The FAT32 file system was used before the advent of high-capacity disks. But with this system you cannot create a disk partition larger than 4 GB, and you cannot copy a good quality movie to it. The rapid growth of this parameter led to the change from the FAT32 file system to NTFS, which allows you to work with large disks and files. This is not its only advantage.
The FAT32 file storage system is currently practically not used. If necessary, changing the system is not difficult. To do this, you can use internal Windows capabilities or special programs. The easiest way is formatting. Open "My Computer", right-click on the disk, select "Format...", select the desired file system, then "Start". Using this method, you will delete all files, folders, and change the file system on any drive that does not have an operating system, usually the “C:” drive.<буква_диска:>/FS:NTFS." Instead of the “NTFS” parameter, you can set the format that you need. Wait for the conversion process to complete.
Changing the system on a flash drive can be done in the same way as converting a hard drive partition. If you use the “converter.exe” command for this, then in the command line write “convert disk:/fs:ntfs/nosecurity/x”, here “drive:” is the letter under which the flash drive is registered in the system. Check it in the “My Computer” folder. Details in the article “” on our website.
The described methods do not use all the possibilities of changing the disk file system. To expand these capabilities, install one of the special programs that allow you to change the format of even the system disk with the operating system you are using. To do this, you should search the Internet and install one of the popular programs with a wide range of actions: Norton Partition Magic or Acronis DiskDirector.
Why might this be needed? For example, you want to record a 6 GB movie on a 16 GB device, but when copying, a message appears that this operation cannot be performed. This means that you have a flash drive with FAT32, but it cannot write files larger than 4 GB. Or you connect it to a TV or home theater, but it is not readable. This is due to the fact that your device cannot recognize the type of file system that is installed on the media, so it needs to be changed.
Install the selected program. Launch it. Browse all partitions of your computer's hard drive. Select any section for conversion, set the desired format. You will need to restart your computer for the file system conversion to complete. Before starting it, check that you have selected the correct disk and system. If you change your mind, you can still cancel. Otherwise, restart the operating system.
Now let's look at how everything is done in the Windows 7 and 10 operating systems. This can be done using standard formatting, which is found in Windows, or using formatting with various programs, for example. We will use the capabilities of the operating system itself, that is, the first method.
On Windows 7
To change the file system type using the built-in capabilities of Windows, you need to format the flash drive. Considering that after formatting all files from the device will be deleted, you must first save them to your computer.
To do this, go to the “Computer” folder and open the flash drive.
Select the necessary files on it; if you want to select everything, press Ctrl+A. Then right-click on any selected file and select “Copy” from the context menu.
Now open the drive where all the files on your computer are stored, usually D:. Create a folder on it, go into it and press Ctrl+V. After this, all files will be transferred to this folder.
You can return to the flash drive and delete everything from it. Select the files - press Ctrl+A, right-click on them and select “Delete”.
When all the necessary files are safe, you can start formatting. Open the “Computer” folder, select the flash drive, right-click on it and select “Format” from the context menu.
In the next window, in the “File system” field, select NTFS from the drop-down list. In the “Volume Label” field, you can give a different name, check the “Quick (clear table of contents)” box and click “Start”.
In the next window, click “OK”, because we have already saved all the important files to the computer.
When formatting is complete, click “OK” in the appropriate window.
You can go to the “Computer” folder again. Select the flash drive and the line below will say NTFS in the corresponding field.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10, formatting is done in a similar way. Before doing this, save all your important files and documents to your computer.
Open the “This PC” folder, select the flash drive, right-click on it and select “Format”.
Confirm deleting all files from the flash drive by clicking “OK.”
After formatting is completed, click “OK” in the window that appears.
To now see the parameter we need, in the “This PC” folder, right-click on the flash drive and select “Properties”.
On the General tab, you can verify that everything was done successfully.
How to change to FAT 32
On Windows 7
Everything can also be done in the standard way in Windows. Do everything as described above, only in the “Format” window, select FAT32 in the required field.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10 everything is similar. In the "Format" window, you just need to select a different type of file system.
How to change without losing data
In order to change the file system on the device and save all the files that are written to it, you need to use the command line.
Please note that you can change the file system type using this method from FAT32 to NTFS. It won't work the other way around.
On Windows 7
First of all, go to the “Computer” folder and see which drive letter corresponds to the drive. In the example, this is M:
Next, open the command line. Click on the “Start” button and type cmd in the search bar. The corresponding line will appear in the results, click on it. To run Command Prompt as an administrator, right-click on the cmd line and select “Run as administrator” from the menu.
When the process is finished, the line “Conversion Complete” will appear at the end.
On Windows 10
In Windows 10, go to the This PC folder and look at the drive letter that corresponds to the USB device. I have G:.
Enter the command: convert G: /fs:ntfs, where instead of G: enter your drive letter, and press Enter.
When everything is done, the corresponding inscription will appear at the very bottom in the command line window.
Go to the This PC folder. As you can see, by opening “Properties” you can make sure that the file system of the flash drive is NTFS, and all the data stored on it remains in place.
Changing the file system type of a USB drive is quite easy. Just choose the method that is more suitable for you.
Many personal computer users encounter problems when working with USB devices. For example, when transferring a large file, it refuses to transfer. This means that you need to change the FS (file system).
The easiest way to convert a flash drive from FAT32 to NTFS is regular formatting, choosing a FS convenient for a person. Before performing the operation, you must save all the necessary data to your PC’s hard drive, since formatting from USB will delete any information.
There are times when you need to instantly change the system, however, you do not have a hard drive or other storage device at hand to reset important data. How to convert a flash drive from FAT32 to NTFS without losing data? Fortunately, there is a solution in this case. According to the standard, the FAT32 file system is installed on a USB drive, but NTFS is better in comparison with it in many respects.
First way
To successfully complete the task, you need to use the built-in program that is designed for this purpose - Convert.exe. Detailed steps:
How to make a FAT32 flash drive? In the same way, only instead of /fs:ntfs enter /fs:fat32, then everything is the same.
Second way
There are still options on how to convert a flash drive to NTFS. Do the following:
Many people are interested in how to convert a flash drive to FAT32? This can be done in exactly the same way, only in the file system partition you need to select the required FAT32 instead of NTFS and perform the action.
Third way
Let's move on to the last option, how to make an NTFS flash drive. To begin with, on e hard drive to save all data , available on the device.
There is nothing difficult in carrying out such manipulations, but some people get confused when choosing and very often empty their drives, which in many cases is very deplorable. Before carrying out any actions on USB drives, you must first
Very often there are situations when you need to move or copy a large file from your hard drive to an external drive.
With the standard file system for external devices FAT32, transferring files over 2GB is often impossible. There are two ways to solve this problem:
- Format the flash drive by changing the final file system.
- Change file system via command line.
Changing the file system with formatting the device
In the first case, you should transfer all the data from the flash drive to your hard drive to save it. This method is suitable for small devices. To change the file system you need to do several operations:
After the procedure, you will receive a completely cleaned disk with a new file system. You can record a file of any size onto such a device.
Video instructions for changing the file system by formatting
Conversion via command line
In order to start the conversion you need to launch the command line. To do this, open the Start menu and enter cmd in the search bar. There is one file that should be run.
Now you have the command line running. It is advisable to carry out the process as an administrator. The next operation will be to call the convert function indicating the desired file system.
You need to type convert g / fs:ntfs and press Enter to start the conversion process.
G – drive whose file system needs to be changed.
The entry in the command prompt window looks like this.
In some operating systems, a message about changing the device name may pop up. If there is no storage device name, there may be fewer problems with conversion.
The conversion process takes no more than a minute for a 16 GB device.
After the conversion is complete, you can make sure that all files are saved in their places.
Video instructions for changing the file system via the command line
How to convert system from NTFS to FAT32
In the case of formatting a flash drive, the process is absolutely identical, you just need to select the appropriate file system.
When converting back through the command line, the user needs to enter at the command line
convert g: /fs:ntfs /nosecurity /x
To successfully complete the conversion process, it is better to check the disk for errors. To do this, in the “Properties” of the disk you need to find the “Error checking” item.
With this method, file fragmentation will affect the speed of the device. It will go down a little. If your device has apps that require registration, your registration information will most likely disappear.
Conversion using HP USB Disk Format Tool
A small program will help you format a flash drive and also help restore it. You can use it to create bootable flash drives. You can download it here: http://www.besplatnoprogrammy.ru/hp-usb-disk-storage-format-tool. After downloading, you need to unpack the archive and run the program as an administrator.
Then you need to insert the USB flash drive and select the appropriate file system. The conversion process is almost identical to the first method using Windows. Just click start and the program will begin changing the file system format.
Despite the convenience of the command line conversion method, it is increasingly better to carry out normal formatting and transfer files. This way you can avoid errors and accidental data loss.
It has a number of serious limitations that do not allow it to be fully used in modern conditions. For example, the maximum file size that can be written to a disk with this file system is 4 GB. However, all new flash drives, memory cards and other similar drives are formatted by the manufacturer in FAT32.
Because of this, users often find themselves in a situation where they need a drive, but there are already a lot of files on it that have nowhere to copy. Fortunately, this problem can be solved quite easily by converting the file system from FAT32 to NTFS. Conversion does not require formatting and is performed without data loss. In this material we will talk about how to convert FAT32 to NTFS.
In order to convert FAT32 to NTFS we need. If you are using Windows 8 or Windows 10, then press the Windows-X key combination and select “Command Prompt (Admin)” from the menu that appears.
If you are using Windows 7, then in order to launch the command line with administrator rights, you need to open the Start menu and enter the “CMD” command into the search. After this, you need to right-click on the found program and select the “Run as administrator” menu item.
After this you should have administrator rights. We will perform all further actions in it.
To convert the FAT32 file system to NTFS you need to use the “convert” command. This command can take a large number of parameters. To view the list of available parameters, enter the command “convert/?”.
From this list of parameters, we only need /FS:NTFS. This parameter indicates that we want to convert the file system to NTFS. So, the complete command to convert FAT32 to NTFS will look like this:
- convert E: /FS:NTFS
- E:– drive letter that you want to convert from FAT32 to NTFS;
- /FS:NTFS– the file system we want to receive;
Enter this command into the command line and wait until the message “Conversion complete” appears.
This completes the conversion from FAT32 to NTFS, you can continue to use your disk.
The FAT32 (FAT) file system is a bit outdated, although it has some advantages, especially when it comes to small files.
If you want to work with directories larger than 4 GB, then you have only one thing left to do - change fat32 to ntfs. This can be done for free and quickly on all operating systems (XP, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8).
If you haven’t yet decided whether you should convert fat32 to the ntfs file system of a disk or flash drive, then I’ll give you its advantages.
The ntfs file system differs from fat32 in stability, data compression, quotas, security and other useful properties.
The most important argument in support of NTFS is a much lower number of failures and the ability to store (download) files larger than 4GB.
You can change the file system of a fat32 hard drive or flash drive to ntfs in different ways: convert (reformat) or redo it without losing data using built-in Windows tools.
Convert fat32 to ntfs - the easiest way
You can convert the fat32 file system to ntfs immediately when installing the operating system.
When you get to the point where you select the installation drive, you will have to format it. Here you can immediately choose ntfs instead of fat32. In the picture below you can see how this happens on Windows XP.
If you want to format just a partition, for example the “D” drive, click, then on the right side click on the computer, and hovering over the “D” drive that appears, right-click on it.
A menu will appear. In it, click convert, having previously specified the ntfs file system - if it is fat32, and click start. That's it, in a minute or two she will change. See the picture below.
How to change fat32 to ntfs without formatting and data loss
It may happen that you want to download/install a large file, but due to the fact that you have a fat32 file system, this maneuver cannot be done.
At the same time, standard formatting is absolutely not suitable for you when the data is not saved.
You can convert the file storage system on a disk or flash drive without formatting or data loss.
To do this, you just need to run - paste the command that is located below and press the "enter" key. convert D: /fs:ntfs /nosecurity /x
When doing this, pay attention to the letter “D”. This is the partition of the disk that will be converted. Yours may be completely different. It is also not necessary to enter “nosecurity /x”.
That's all. As you can see, there is no need to resort to additional applications - Windows has all the tools. Good luck.
