FAT32 / NTFS

I have a hard disk (installed with Windows XP) which is formatted to FAT32.
I would like it formatted to NTFS. Is it possible to effectively change the
format without the bother of re-installing everything from scratch? I was
thinking of something like cloning the hard disk to one already formatted to
NTFS but there may be another way. I would guess the answer is no but it's
worth an ask just in case I'm wrong.

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway

Malke
Mon May 19 11:28:54 PDT 2008

Bill Ridgeway wrote:

> I have a hard disk (installed with Windows XP) which is formatted to
> FAT32.
> I would like it formatted to NTFS. Is it possible to effectively change
> the
> format without the bother of re-installing everything from scratch? I was
> thinking of something like cloning the hard disk to one already formatted
> to
> NTFS but there may be another way. I would guess the answer is no but
> it's worth an ask just in case I'm wrong.

Yes, you can convert from FAT32 to NTFS. Have your data backed up as a
normal precaution and read this article first:

http://aumha.org/win5/a/ntfscvt.htm - Converting FAT32 to NTFS by Alex
Nichol

Malke
--
MS-MVP
Elephant Boy Computers
www.elephantboycomputers.com
Don't Panic!

Bruce
Mon May 19 17:57:00 PDT 2008

Bill Ridgeway wrote:
> I have a hard disk (installed with Windows XP) which is formatted to FAT32.
> I would like it formatted to NTFS. Is it possible to effectively change the
> format without the bother of re-installing everything from scratch?


You can safely convert your current hard drive to NTFS whenever
desired, without having to format the partition and reinstall
everything. As always when performing any serious changes, back up any
important data before proceeding, just in case. A little advance
preparation is also strongly recommended, so you can avoid any
performance hits caused by the default cluster size:

Converting FAT32 to NTFS in Windows
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfscvt.htm


> I was
> thinking of something like cloning the hard disk to one already formatted to
> NTFS but there may be another way. I would guess the answer is no but it's
> worth an ask just in case I'm wrong.
>

Couldn't work. Cloning overwrites the file system of the target
partition/drive with the file system of the source partition/drive.


--

Bruce Chambers

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Bill
Tue May 20 01:11:31 PDT 2008

Thanks Malke and Bruce for replying.

I did take the precaution of first cloning the hard disk. The actual
conversion from FAT32 to NTFS was straight forward and didn't take long. I
was expecting something more complicated than it was. NTFS does (seem) to
go faster than FAT so it was well worth it and can recommend it to anyone
else using Windows XP on a FAT formatted hard disk.

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway

Bruce
Tue May 20 17:55:42 PDT 2008

Bill Ridgeway wrote:
> Thanks Malke and Bruce for replying.
>


You're welcome.

--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot