Most external hard drives are designed to work for Windows computers. So if you're trying to connect an external hard drive to a Mac, you might have to format the drive before you can use it. Here's how to do that:
You can format APFS drive in macOS Sierra by following these steps: To start with, simply launch Terminal on your Mac. You can go to Utilities and launch Terminal from there. After launching Terminal, provide the command 'diskutil list'. Make sure format is 'Mac OS Extended Journaled' and ensure that the scheme is set to 'GUID Partition Map' 6. Click on erase button. Right click on that partition of the drive 'untitled' or 'No Name' 8. Select 'convert to APFS' 9. Please wait during conversion process. Once done click 'done' 10. Right click on drive 'untitled' from desktop. You can see disk2s2 in the screenshot below, the partition on my external hard drive hosting the APFS Container. Below that, /dev/disk3 is the APFS container, and /dev/disk3s1 is the APFS volume.
How to Format a Hard Drive for Mac
Note: If you already used your external hard drive on a PC, be sure to back up any files on it. Formatting your drive will wipe out all the data in it.
- Connect an external hard drive to your Mac. Some external hard drives need to be plugged into an outlet to work.
- Go to Spotlight Search, type in Disk Utility, and click the first option. This will open the Disk Utility app, where you will find all the internal and external drives that are connected to your Mac.
- Then click View in the top-left corner of the window and select Show All Devices.
- Click the external hard drive you want to format. You can find this on the left-hand side of the screen under External Hard Drives. For the best result, select the disk (the highest option in the external tree).
- On the top menu, click Erase. This will open a small pop-up window with a warning that erasing the drive will delete all data stored on it and that it can't be undone.
- Choose a name, format, and scheme for your drive. You can choose whatever name you want, and you should choose GUID Partition Map for the Scheme in most cases. However, you can choose between the following formats:
- Mac OS Extended (Journaled) is the best option for most Mac users since it is compatible with all Macs.
- APFS (Apple File System) is only for newer Macs running macOS 10.13 or later.
- exFAT is compatible with both PC and Mac.
- MS-DOS (FAT) is also compatible with Mac and PC, but you can only transfer files smaller than 4GB.
- When you're done with providing the setup details, click Erase. This will immediately wipe the entire drive.
If you get an error message that states, 'Erase process has failed. Click done tocontinue,' don't freak out about it. This is an issue caused by Time Machine running on your externaldrive.
You will need to turn off Time Machine. You can do this by opening System Preferences and unchecking the boxnext to 'Back Up Automatically'.Then click Options beside 'ShowTime Machine in menu bar.' This will open another window. Click Cancel and it will turn off the Time Machine.
After you turn off the Time Machine, redo steps 4 to 6.
How to Partition anExternal Hard Drive on Mac
Adobe reader pro mac full. If you have formattedyour drive, you can then partition the drive, which will splitthe drive into two formats. This is perfect for anyone who uses Macs and PCsand wants to transfer files between the different operating systems with anexternal drive. Here's how to do that:
- Open Disk Utility and select the drive that you want to partition. It is best to click View > Show All Devices so you can selectthe disk rather than a container.
- In the top menu, select Partition.
- Then click the plus sign at the bottom of the pie chart. Every time you click this plus sign, a new partition will becreated.
- Choose a name, format and size for each partition. You can also change the size of each of the partitions bydragging the white dots at the edge of the circle.
- Finally click Apply.
Why Partition a Hard Drive?
- Connect an external hard drive to your Mac. Some external hard drives need to be plugged into an outlet to work.
- Go to Spotlight Search, type in Disk Utility, and click the first option. This will open the Disk Utility app, where you will find all the internal and external drives that are connected to your Mac.
- Then click View in the top-left corner of the window and select Show All Devices.
- Click the external hard drive you want to format. You can find this on the left-hand side of the screen under External Hard Drives. For the best result, select the disk (the highest option in the external tree).
- On the top menu, click Erase. This will open a small pop-up window with a warning that erasing the drive will delete all data stored on it and that it can't be undone.
- Choose a name, format, and scheme for your drive. You can choose whatever name you want, and you should choose GUID Partition Map for the Scheme in most cases. However, you can choose between the following formats:
- Mac OS Extended (Journaled) is the best option for most Mac users since it is compatible with all Macs.
- APFS (Apple File System) is only for newer Macs running macOS 10.13 or later.
- exFAT is compatible with both PC and Mac.
- MS-DOS (FAT) is also compatible with Mac and PC, but you can only transfer files smaller than 4GB.
- When you're done with providing the setup details, click Erase. This will immediately wipe the entire drive.
If you get an error message that states, 'Erase process has failed. Click done tocontinue,' don't freak out about it. This is an issue caused by Time Machine running on your externaldrive.
You will need to turn off Time Machine. You can do this by opening System Preferences and unchecking the boxnext to 'Back Up Automatically'.Then click Options beside 'ShowTime Machine in menu bar.' This will open another window. Click Cancel and it will turn off the Time Machine.
After you turn off the Time Machine, redo steps 4 to 6.
How to Partition anExternal Hard Drive on Mac
Adobe reader pro mac full. If you have formattedyour drive, you can then partition the drive, which will splitthe drive into two formats. This is perfect for anyone who uses Macs and PCsand wants to transfer files between the different operating systems with anexternal drive. Here's how to do that:
- Open Disk Utility and select the drive that you want to partition. It is best to click View > Show All Devices so you can selectthe disk rather than a container.
- In the top menu, select Partition.
- Then click the plus sign at the bottom of the pie chart. Every time you click this plus sign, a new partition will becreated.
- Choose a name, format and size for each partition. You can also change the size of each of the partitions bydragging the white dots at the edge of the circle.
- Finally click Apply.
Why Partition a Hard Drive?
Partitioning an external hard drive allows youto have separate drives for Mac, PC, and any other operating system. Now youdon't have to go out and buy hard drives for every computer you use.
A partition also gives you a dedicated space foryour Time Machine back-up files or a bootable backup of your operating system.It also helps protect your data if your drive gets infected with malware, as itwould be contained within one of the partitions.
Now that you know how to format an external drive for Mac, check out our blog on the difference between an HDD and an SDD.
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APFS is a new file system developed for Mac OS High Sierra and later. It is designed with a primary focus on encryption and also to provide better performance. It is made compatible across all devices for Mac OS, iOS, watch OS and TV OS.
Since APFS is developed for High Sierra and later, there are some drawbacks of using this file system with Sierra. Some of the drawbacks are discussed below.
- Cannot be used with Time Machine
APFS file system cannot be used with Time Machine backup drives. The drives are required to be in the HFS+ format to be able to support time machine backups.
- Limited access from Sierra systems
If you are using an unencrypted APFS storage device such as external hard drive or USB flash, you may be able to mount and access the drive from Sierra systems. However, if you are using an encrypted APFS, it may be difficult to mount and access files on it.
- Cannot be used on start-up volumes
This version of APFS cannot be used with start-up volumes. It can be used only with external hard drives, USB flash etc.
- Case sensitive
This is a case-sensitive version of APFS. It means the words ‘WORK' and ‘work' are treated as different files. This may be confusing and difficult to use.
Now that we have understood the uses and disadvantages of APFS, let us learn how to format a drive with APFS file system in Sierra.
Steps to format a drive with APFS in Sierra
You can format an external hard drive, USB flash drive or a secondary hard drive using APFS on Sierra. To do this, you will need to use the ‘Terminal' and follow the steps below.
Hard Drive Format For Mac
- To open the ‘Terminal', go to ‘Finder' and select ‘Applications'
- In ‘Applications', select ‘Terminal' to open the Terminal window
- Type ‘diskutil list'
This command lists all the drives associated with your Mac. Have a look at the size of the drives to help you identify the drive you wish to format
- Type ‘diskutil apfs createContainer /dev/disk#'
This command will create a new APFS container. Replace ‘disk#' with the correct identifier for your drive. Selecting a wrong drive may format that drive and cause unintentional data loss.
- Type ‘diskutil apfs addVolume disk# APFS '
In this command, replace ‘disk#' with the correct disk identifier noted in step 1 and replace ‘APFSname' by a new name for the drive
After following these steps, your drive will be formatted using ‘APFS' file system. It will be mounted as any other drive in ‘Finder'.
Can you convert APFS back to another file system? Could my mac support adobe premiere.
Format Hard Drive Mac Os
However, if you don't want to use the APFS system, you can always change it back to ‘HFS+' or any other file system of your choice using ‘Disk Utility'. Just right click on the drive in ‘Disk Utility' and select ‘Erase'. Then follow the steps in the wizard and choose any required ‘file system' to format the drive.
If you find that you have lost data after formatting and no backup is available, Remo Recover is a great choice to restore data from external hard drives. The software can not only be used with formatted drives, but also from corrupt or damaged drives. In addition to this, you can also use the tool to recover files from a crashed Mac.
