November 14, 2008

Convert Windows File System to NTFS

Lot of people thinks if they convert their disks from FAT ot FAT32 to NTFS it's going to erace all the data on the disk. That is worng. With a simple dos command you all can make that change without deleting or moving a single file from your hard drive.



How to do it ?

Press start then got to the run command. Type cmd and press ok. It will open up the command prompt.

or

Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.

On the command prompt type

convert drive_letter: /fs:ntfs














Example:-


Lets say you want to convert Drive C: on your computer in to NTFS. Then the command should be,

convert C: /fs:ntfs


















What is FAT, FAT32 and NTFS ?


File Allocation Table (FAT)

A file system used by MS-DOS and other Windows-based operating systems to organize and manage files. The file allocation table (FAT) is a data structure that Windows creates when you format a volume by using the FAT or FAT32 file systems. Windows stores information about each file in the FAT so that it can retrieve the file later.

FAT32

A derivative of the file allocation table (FAT) file system. FAT32 supports smaller cluster sizes and larger volumes than FAT, which results in more efficient space allocation on FAT32 volumes.

NTFS File System

An advanced file system that provides performance, security, reliability, and advanced features that are not found in any version of FAT. For example, NTFS guarantees volume consistency by using standard transaction logging and recovery techniques. If a system fails, NTFS uses its log file and checkpoint information to restore the consistency of the file system. In Windows 2000 and Windows XP, NTFS also provides advanced features such as file and folder permissions, encryption, disk quotas, and compression.

15 comments:

  1. ive tried as you said to change the command on my external drive but it comes back saying "access denied as you do not have sufficient privilages.you have to invoke this utility running in elevated mode"...what does that mean for idiots such as myself?im having problems dragging files over from my computer to my hard drive as it says the file size is too big.ie over 3g

    ReplyDelete
  2. tricky36,
    Right now i'm checking about that error message you got. I'll post a comment here once i found a solution. Thank you for visit my Blog !

    ReplyDelete
  3. Try it This way,

    Open the command prompt by
    right-clicking the shortcut in Start Menu -> All Programs -> Acessories. Select the Run
    as administrator option.

    If you didn't put a password for administrator account (that happen most of the time) leave the password field blank and press ok.

    Then type the command once again.

    ReplyDelete
  4. can you guide me through this step by spep please cause im still getting the same message.what do you mean by "select the run as administrator option?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Go to Start Menu -> All Programs -> Accessories - then click right mouse button on command prompt and get the menu.

    You'll get "Run As" as the second option.

    Then Select the option "The following user" -> Select Administrator -> Type the password if you have one or leave it blank if not.

    It will run the command prompt as the administrator. After that you have to type the command. Make sure to change the drive letter as it's showing on your my computer window.

    ReplyDelete
  6. hi mate this is tricky32 i cant seem to make this work. now its saying"the type of the file system is fat32"
    enter current volume label for drive G(which is the volume number for the external drive i am using..HELP!!!!IF YOU SORT THIS OUT FOR ME ILL BE SO GRATEFUL.

    ReplyDelete
  7. hi me again,does it matter that ive got vista???

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi tricky32,

    When it is asking for the volume label check what it says before the drive letter on your drive.

    If it's say "Local Disk" or "New Volume" leave the volume label empty and press enter.

    If it's having some other word infront of the drive letter type that there.

    It doesn't affect because you are using windows vista.

    ReplyDelete
  9. hi friend me again now its saying"this drive is dirty and cannot be converted.you will need to clear the dirty bit on this drive by running CHKDSK/f or allowing AUTOCHK to run on it the next time you beboot.the conversion failed.G:was not converted to NTFS"

    ARRGGHHHHHHHHH!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ok then, Let's run it first.

    Right click on your drive G: and select properties -> Go to tools tab -> Under the error checking section click the "check now" button. Most of the time it will say "disk check will run on next time you boot the computer". Restart the computer. Leave the disk check run while the boot up.Otherwise let it scan and fix your drive.

    Once it came back follow my previos posts again and see if you can convert it. Make sure to run command prompt as the administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  11. ill try that but before i do will changing it to ntfs make my drive less reliable? i only ask because if the makers of these drives have them set to fat32 then for what reason?

    ReplyDelete
  12. No it's not ! It makes the Drive more reliable and gives you lot of new features. Most of the time they'll make it FAT as a standard because older operating systems doesn't recognize it. (Ex. Windows 98)

    ReplyDelete
  13. ok now im in serious help.ive managed to change the drive to ntfs but my playstation 3 of which ive been running it through does not recognise the drive,how do i change it back or enable my ps3 to recognise it?

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sony PS3 Doesn't support NTFS ! I don't know why sony do that. It only supports FAT and FAT32 File systems. If you want to see your drive on PS3 you have to reformat it back to FAT32. For that there is no converting utility. You have to backup your data and format the entire hard drive. All the data on the drive will be lost.

    ReplyDelete
  15. ok friend , can you let me know how to format the drive if i need too please and possibly your email address for future problems?youve been invaluble help my friend and i would like to keep the link.you can find me on facebook as well tim st jean

    ReplyDelete