Sage-Tips

How do I format my Seagate external hard drive for Mac?

Mac

1. Make sure the storage device is connected to and mounted on the computer.
2. Select Go > Utilities in the Finder menu bar.
3. In the Utilities folder, double-click Disk Utility.
4. Select the Seagate drive in the left column.
5. Click the Erase tab.
6. Choose a format from the drop-down window.
7. Enter a name for the volume.

Why should I format my external hard drive for Mac?

Partitioning an external hard drive allows you to have separate drives for Mac, PC, and any other operating system. Now you don’t have to go out and buy hard drives for every computer you use. A partition also gives you a dedicated space for your Time Machine back-up files or a bootable backup of your operating system.

Is Seagate external hard drive compatible with Macbook?

Newer Seagate and LaCie branded external drives come preformatted with the exFAT file system, which allows it to be used on both Mac and Windows without reformatting the drive.

What is exFAT on Mac?

ExFAT is a cross-platform solution for use with Mac and Windows devices, now serving as a base for files shared and edited between the two platforms. If you work with Mac and Windows computers often, ExFAT may be the best option for your Mac.

How do I format a Seagate hard drive?

This feature was introduced in macOS 10.13 and is not available in 10.11 or 10.12.

1. Select Erase.
2. A dialog box opens. Enter a name for the drive.
3. For Format, select OS X Extended (Journaled).
4. For Scheme, select GUID Partition Map.
5. Click Erase.
6. Disk Utility formats the drive. When it’s finished, click Done.

Should I use Mac OS Extended Journaled or exFAT?

If you absolutely, positively will only be working with Macs and no other system, ever: Use Mac OS Extended (Journaled). If you need to transfer files larger than 4 GB between Macs and PCs: Use exFAT. In all other cases: Use MS-DOS (FAT), aka FAT32.

How do I format my external hard drive for Mac 2020?

Format External Hard Drive For Mac

1. Start Up Your Mac And Log In.
2. Plug In Your External Hard Drive.
3. Now, Open Up Disk Utility.
4. Inside Disk Utility.
5. Click Erase At The Top Of The Pop Up Window.
6. Your Settings For The Format Of Your External Hard Drive.
7. Click On Erase.
8. You’ve Formatted Your Drive On Your Mac.

How to format Seagate hard drive for Mac?

Just Before You Format Your Seagate For Mac. 1 1. Log Into Your Mac. And Plug In Your Drive. 2 2. Spotlight Search Disk Utility. 3 3. Pick Your Seagate Drive Under External. 4 4. Click On Erase At The Top. 5 5. Name Your Seagate Hard Drive And Pick Your Format. 6 6. Pick GUID Partition Map For Scheme. 7 7. Click Erase Bottom Right.

What can you do with a Seagate external hard drive?

1. You can copy your documents, photos, movies. Anything you want onto one of Seagate’s external hard drives. Freeing up space on your Mac. 2. Use your Seagate and share your documents between your Mac and a Windows PC. 3. Use Time Machine and back up your Mac’s files to your Seagate. Keeping your files safe.

Should I format Seagate hard drive to FAT32 or exFAT file system?

As mentioned in the previous part, NTFS and HFS+ are not suitable, you should format Seagate drive to another file system. Both FAT32 and exFAT are suitable for Seagate drive to be used with Mac and PC. Then, should you format the hard drive to FAT32 or exFAT file system?

How do I format a hard drive on a Mac?

You can format a drive using the Disk Utility in Mac. Before formatting any hard drive, it’s a good idea to backup any data or files you want to save before formatting. Formatting the drive will permanently erase all the data and files stored on the hard drive forever.