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Which is better FAT32 or NTFS

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silentcon
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Which is better FAT32 or NTFS

(I know there are many discussions about this)

I read an old guide on how to convert FAT or FAT32 into NTFS. (http://www.computerfreetips.com/System_Tune-Up/convert_fat_ntfs.html)

Now what I'm afraid is that it is written there

"Now restart your computer and enjoy NTFS features, but keep in mind you cannot covert back it to FAT or FAT32 again."

So is it true?

And before i convert my Flash Drive into NTFS what are the real advantages of NTFS over FAT/FAT32? We have very many FAT32 flash drives that went corrupt because we forgot to use the safely remove.

Is NTFS more susceptible to being corrupted.

Final:Can you make it functional again?(a corrupted USB Flash Drive)

Bahamut
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NTFS uses a journal, which

NTFS uses a journal, which makes the filesystem very resistant to file corruption. And it is true that you cannot "convert" back to FAT32. You can always reformat the volume, though.
Can you make it functional again?
Corruption is typically a file/filesystem problem. Reformatting should give you a fresh start.

Vintage!

silentcon
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How?

A friend of mine tried to restore a corrupt usb flash drive but he was unlucky. Maybe it is hard or is there another way?

Bahamut
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The simplest way to reformat

The simplest way to reformat is to right-click the drive letter under (My) Computer, choose "Format...", and select the filesystem.
Note that reformatting gives you a fresh start so to speak. It deletes all the data and puts a new filesystem on the volume. Unless there's a hardware failure, you should be able to use it. It won't recover corrupt files or anything like that.

In any case, it's always a good idea to make regular backups.

Vintage!

silentcon
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One question

Is there something wrong? If you format a drive, you can choose what kind it will be(fat,fat32 or NTFS) but my FAT32 1 GB Flash Drive that I had last 2 years can't be converted to NTFS in that way. It only shows FAT and FAT32 so is this the case to older flash drives.

What is the difference of flash drives with usb like this (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3124/2786411734_e62cb6c1e9_o.jpg) and like this(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3207/2786411710_501828a103_o.jpg)?What do you call the first one and the second one?

For side comparison:(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3048/2786417286_7f166f5f06_o.jpg)

ottosykora
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that is probably OK

>FAT32 1 GB Flash Drive that I had last 2 years can't be converted to NTFS in that way. It only shows FAT and FAT32 so is this the case to older flash drives.

Otto Sykora
Basel, Switzerland

ottosykora
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3rd part utils

can convert it back , but not windows alone, I think it is not technical, but somekind of question of principals by MS.

Otto Sykora
Basel, Switzerland

silentcon
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What about

What is the difference of flash drives with usb like this (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3124/2786411734_e62cb6c1e9_o.jpg) and like this(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3207/2786411710_501828a103_o.jpg)?What do you call the first one and the second one?

For side comparison:(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3048/2786417286_7f166f5f06_o.jpg)

ottosykora
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have seen those

in some catalogues too, those new PCB kind of connectors. It was not anythnig different, just the connector made this way. Assume this is much simpler and cheaper to produce. But having for the same system lot of different connectors? Doubt that this is big advantage.

Otto Sykora
Basel, Switzerland

Tim Clark
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The one on the left is a standard

The one on the left is a standard connector.
It has a casing around the connector to hold it firmly in place and protect it.

The one on the right has no casing so can be made very very flat, as in you can even put it in your wallet !!! [but of course I would not Blum ]
It is just thick enough to "press" it's contacts against the contacts of your usb port but it doesn't "lock" in place.
They usually come with a separate slip on cover that you can use to protect it.

Though they look very different they are functionally the same.

I have both.

Tim

Things have got to get better, they can't get worse, or can they?

m-p-3
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NTFS can be converted back to

NTFS can be converted back to FAT/FAT32, but not within the OS. You'll need to use tools like PartitionMagic, and this is not a risk-free operation.

For example, if you have a file bigger than 4GB (ie: DVD ISO image) on an NTFS partition that you want to convert back to FAT, you might have some file corruption issue, as the FAT file allocation table cannot hold files bigger than 4GB.

RMB Fixed
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..

Yes it's true, you can not convert back from NTFS to FAT from windows ,
that requires a re-format or third-party tools .
Also, you can not format a flash-drive seen as a "removable" disk by windows
(and most UFD's are seen as "removable")
to NTFS unless you enable caching of the drive.
You will then be able to format it to NTFS by right-clicking the drive and selecting "format". Windows disk-management still wont show NTFS as an option btw ..
Enabling the disk-caching increases the risk of corruption if the drive is "unsafely" removed. Using NTFS will also increase the number of writes to the drive, likely to decrease the life-span of the drive .

ever1314
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NTFS or FAT32

As people know, NTFS support more features than the FAT32. And considering the superority it gives, many people convert FAT32 to NTFS to experience its superiorty. We know that convert FAT32 to NTFS is simple--through the disk management, but if we want to revert it back(such as we face some trouble about the NTFS file system), it is difficult to finish unless format the partition.
So, I share something useful information about the conversion between the NTFS and FAT32 I just got yesterday--there is new released software named NTFS to FAT32 Converter, it can easily convert NTFS to FAT32 without data losing. NTFS to FAT32 Converter will be a right-hand file system assistant. Your trouble to convert NTFS to FAT32 will no longer fret you.
http://aomeitech.com/n2f/convert-ntfs-to-fat32.html

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Moonbase
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Pros and Cons: NTFS vs. FAT32 vs. exFAT

If you don’t want to read a long post, here’s my recommendation first:

  • FAT32: for removable (flash) media like memory cards, USB sticks and thumb drives up to, say, 32GB (if you don’t require files >4GB)
  • NTFS: for removable hard drives — plus switch on the write cache, and always use "safely remove hardware"!
  • exFAT — if you are the adventurous type: for flash media and SSD — designed for flash drives, but only available on Windows: XP+SP2 with KB955704, Vista+SP1, Windows 7, Windows CE 6+. No third-party (and Linux) support due to closed license.

The Pros and Cons in a nutshell (from memory, maybe I forgot something):

NTFS

  • Pros
    • can handle files >4GB
    • has access control
    • is a more robust filesystem
    • can be used with write cacheing
    • handles Unicode and POSIX filenames
    • can be read/written by Linux (using ntfs-3g)
    • is really fast when using write cacheing
  • Cons
    • wasn’t designed for removable media (and won’t show up as such)
    • doesn’t support "surprise removal"
    • needs portable drive to be set up with full access rights for EVERYONE, otherwise you won’t be able to use the drive somewhere else. (Hint: With Windows XP Home, you need to boot into safe mode and log in as an Admin in order to get access to the "Security" tab in file/folder properties!)
    • will sometimes refuse to "safely remove drive" because the write cache hasn’t been emptied yet (Hint: In the worst case, try to log off the user, log back on, and retry "safely remove hardware". This will close files, unload programs and DLLs that might still be open on the drive, and flush the write cache.)
    • won’t work with older OS’es (like Win98), but who cares, really?
    • uses more write cycles on the drive (no problem for discs, bad for flash memory)
    • has a "trashbin" on hard discs which gets consolidated with the "main" trashbin, so if the drive gets removed while there is still something in the drive’s trashbin, you’ll end up with a "filled" trashbin on Windows that can’t be emptied. (Hint: Reconnect drive, empty trashbin, safely remove drive.)
    • won’t work on some flash drives (refuses to format as NTFS)

FAT32

  • Pros
    • can handle files up to 4GB
    • has no access control, thus easier to use on the occasional stick
    • can be read/written by Linux and older OS’es like Win98
    • lost data can be restored more easily
    • uses less write cycles than NTFS (good for flash drives)
    • can handle "surprise removal" more graciously (i.e., if you wait until the stick’s LED stops flashing and "unsafely" remove it, chances are good that the data isn’t corrupt)
    • can "officially" be used on removable media and will show drive removable
  • Cons
    • can’t handle files >4GB
    • isn’t as robust a filesystem as NTFS
    • won’t handle Unicode and POSIX filenames

exFAT

  • Pros
    • can handle files up to 16EB
    • high performace
    • optimized for flash drives
    • supports Unicode character set
  • Cons
    • Windows-only, requires minimum Windows XP+SP2+KB955704, Vista+SP1, Windows 7, or Windows CE 6+.
    • Absoluteley no third-party (Linux-, Mac-) support, closed license.
    • You won’t find many PCs that have it installed when moving around. Thus: No access to your data on the portable drive!

Conversion

  • FAT32 -> NTFS
    • is supported, though I’d always recommend copying stuff somewhere else, reformatting the drive, and copying stuff back — uses less write cycles and you have a defragmented drive to start with
    • cannot be undone (except by copying/reformatting/copying back)
  • NTFS -> FAT32
    • is not officially supported. There are tools for that, but I wouldn’t trust them. Files >4GB will lead to problems.
    • will use too many write cycles on flash media — better to copy stuff elsewhere, reformat, and copy back (as above)

Oh well. Maybe this sheds some light on everything and helps making the "right" decision for you!

Bahamut
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You got the "surprise

You got the "surprise removal" bit mixed up. NTFS is much more robust because of its journal and will handle being unexpectedly removed a lot more gracefully than FAT32 (something like that on FAT32 could destroy the entire filesystem).

Vintage!

mgagnonlv
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Pros and cons : dates on folders

Another small difference between both formats it the "last modified" date that appears on folders:

FAT32
– When a document that already sits in a folder is modified, the "last modified" date of the folder is not changed.
– When a new document is added into an existing folder, the "last modified" date of the folder may change.

NTFS
– When a document that already sits in a folder is modified, the "last modified" date of a folder is also updated.
– When a new document is added into an existing folder, the "last modified" date of the folder will be updated.
– The date updating process may work and extra one or two levels, but there are no guarantees.

For me, that makes a difference as I keep websites I maintain on a portable media. It is much easier to see which folders are updated if the system is NTFS. Besides, I use my portable media in 3 or 4 computers that I control.

Michel Gagnon
Montréal (Québec, Canada)

Moonbase
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Correction and thanks

Well, it was from memory, I apologize for the "surprise removal" mixup. Thanks to Bahamut for the hint, to mgagnonlv for the addition of the time stamp issue.

The "Surprise Removal" indication is actually a feature that the hardware vendor sets (can this device handle surprise removals — more or less — graciously?). It has been introduced with Windows XP. The indicator, which can be different for each removable device, sets Windows’ default write cacheing strategy: Devices like USB sticks, memory cards or the like will default to no write cacheing ("optimized for quick removal") while mass storage devices like USB or IEEE 1394 "FireWire" drives will often default to write cacheing ("optimzed for performance"). Still, in Device Manager you can set this to the strategy you prefer.

Thus, I stand corrected. Surprise removal is not a feature that has much to do with the used filesystem in itself. So actually (like Bahamut said) more "reliable" or "journaling" filesystems (like NTFS or ext4) will have an advantage in such cases. In any case, you will lose data when "unsafely" removing a drive that hasn’t had its write cache being flushed to the storage medium before! The difference is that you might not corrupt your whole disc (or a large part of it), but usually be able to get it corrected by doing a CHKDSK (or fsck on Linux).

Time stamps are another issue, and handled differently. NTFS actually keeps four of them per file ("MACE": Modified, Accessed, Created, Entry Modified). Hint: You can set the one you wish to see in Windows Explorer: Just right-click the column header in the right-side explorer window and select the one(s) you want.

I agree that the "backwards inheritance" is sometimes hard to follow … Wink Here’s a little more info.

Personally, I use FAT32-formatted USB sticks, for heavy-duty or time-critical work I have 500GB pocket drives, NTFS-formatted.

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