Mac OS X: Dealing with Windows NTFS formated drives
Mac OS X can read, but not write on drives formated using Windows NTFS (NT File System). Most USB and Firewire external drives are formated in FAT32 (File Allocation Table). OS X can both read and write on drives formatted using FAT32.
For this reason it is best to leave external drives formatted as they come from the factory if they need to be used on both a Macintosh and a Windows PC. If they are only going to be used on a PC running Windows XP/NT/2000 or Vista then they can be formatted in NTFS to realize the benefits of that format in Windows. More information on converting FAT to NTFS can be found on the Microsoft TechNet site.
Current Record: 3324
Create Date: 03-22-2007
Last Reviewed: 05-21-2008
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