Hi all! Today's article is about how to format a flash drive in FAT32. The FAT32 file system is outdated, but nevertheless, sometimes situations arise when it is necessary to format a flash drive in this particular file system.
The fact is that the FAT32 file system, unlike the more modern and reliable NTFS file system, can be read on almost any device with usb port(car radio, refrigerator, TV, etc.). You may also need to format the flash drive to FAT32 when BIOS firmware computer.
Formatting via Windows GUI
The easiest way to format a flash drive to FAT32 is to do it directly in the Windows interface.
Insert the USB flash drive into your computer or laptop and click “My Computer” on the desktop. After that, right-click on the disk with the flash drive and select “Format”.
A formatting window will open. Here you need to select file system FAT32. The cluster size can be chosen as standard or, in our case, 8192 bytes.
In the “Volume Label” column, you can specify the name of the flash drive (for example, My Flash) or leave the field empty.
As a rule, people check the box next to “quick formatting (cleaning table of contents)”. In this mode, the flash drive will be formatted much faster. However, full formatting (when the checkbox is unchecked) will allow you to format the flash drive more efficiently.
After selecting all the options, click “Get Started.” The formatting process will start.
When finished, you will see a message that formatting is complete.
Formatting using the command line
To enter the team room Windows string Click “Start” - “All Programs” - “Accessories” and select “Command Prompt” there. Or press the Win+R key combination, write cmd and click OK.
You should have a command prompt open.
Write the following line in it:
format /FS:FAT32 K: /q /V:My_Fleshka
In this line
/FS:FAT32 - specify formatting in FAT32
K: - letter of the flash drive (you can see it in “My Computer”)
/q - select quick formatting (to select full formatting, just do not write this command)
/V:My_Fleshka - volume name
Format a flash drive larger than 32 GB to FAT32
The FAT32 file system has a file size limit of 4 GB. If you need to write a file larger than 4 GB to a flash drive, then you should use the NTFS file system.
Also, the standard Windows formatting tools described above do not allow you to format a flash drive in FAT32 with a capacity of more than 32 GB. To do this, you should use a special program FAT32Format.
Launch the program. Select the desired flash drive and volume label.
For quick formatting Click the “quick format” checkbox to full formatting remove the head.
Click "Start".
I also suggest you watch the training video on how to format a flash drive in FAT32.
If you have any questions, ask them in the comments, I will be happy to help everyone.
To work with Windows, the ntfs and fat32 file systems are used. These are the most common systems, although in addition to them there are several dozen more disk file systems (FS).
Fat32 morally outdated, therefore, when working on modern OSes, NTFS is most often used. Flash drives, like disks, use the NTFS file system, because... FAT32 has some restrictions, including a limitation on the size of recorded files.
Formatting using standard tools
Despite the fact that fat32 is outdated, it is often used to work with flash drives. To format a flash drive is quite simple, for this:
Formatting via the command line
The same procedure can be carried out a little differently, using command line. First, we launch the console, for which we need to launch the command interpreter (press Win+
R), and enter in the line cmd. Click OK.
In the window that opens, enter the command: format /
FS:
FAT32
X: /
q 
X– this is the drive letter of the flash drive, which can be viewed on my computer. Then we will receive a warning that all data will be deleted, here you should click Y to start the process.
Attention! You must enter the drive letter carefully, otherwise you may lose important information!
Formatting a flash drive in macOS
Formatting a flash drive in MacOS is also quite simple. We need to run disk utility (Finder - Applications - Disk Utility).
Then select the drive and click on the button Erase. We select the required system and wait for the process to complete. 
Unfortunately, the latest MacOS versions do not allow you to select the FAT32 format in the utility, for this you will have to use terminal:
- Let's launch terminal and enter sudo – s to get super user rights
- Enter the command diskutil listFilesystems to view all available file systems
- We look for the necessary FS in the list. Most often, the system we are interested in is signed as MS— DOS FAT32 .
- In the terminal window, enter the command diskutil eraseVolume "MS-DOS FAT16"XXXXX yourDISK. XXXXX– this is the name of the flash drive in Latin and only in higher case. YourDISK– partition label, you can find it in disk utility.
Using Linux
The less widespread, but still widely known Linkus system also copes with the task quite easily. To change the file system of the drive is necessary.
Nowadays, formatting a flash drive is not only an excellent way to cleanse old unnecessary files, but also the choice of the desired file system or library.
Choosing a file system will allow you to easily recognize information from the media in the most different device such as radios, televisions, personal computers and gaming consoles. Therefore, first you need to figure out which file library to format the flash drive in.
In this article we will dwell in detail on the algorithms and methods of formatting popular fat32 file libraries.
What is a file system
Modern computer specialists call some options for sorting and organizing data this way. Each operating system has its own file subsystem that is compatible with it.
Thus, when formatting hard or external drive in some file subsystem, you determine which operating system will be able to read the drive in the future. Regular user personal computer believes that you can format a flash drive only in the NTFS and fat32 subsystems, however, this is a huge misconception. Nowadays there are a large number of file subsystems. But let's focus only on the main ones:
- NTFS.
- FAT32.
- exFAT.
fat32
This file processing library is the most popular and at the same time the oldest. The fat32 subsystem replaced the old fat16 file system, so many, when choosing between the NTFS and fat32 systems, choose the second option. Many experts consider fat32 the most reliable of the file libraries . The fat32 subsystem is considered a very rare format, however, it is supported by most operating systems and almost all known game consoles. Now 95% of devices equipped with USB output recognize fat32. The only drawback is the file size limitation, which should not exceed 4GB, while the size of 1 partition is no more than 8 terabytes.
On many Flash drives, which are sold in specialized stores, the old fat32 is installed by default so that these drives can be read both outdated and modern devices. For hard drive old fat32 is not suitable at all, since installing any modern Windows versions only possible on a formatted drive in the NTFS system. If you want to get a good flash drive, fat32 is undoubtedly your choice. However, please note that you will not be able to record heavy information or large files. But the drive can be used on most existing devices.
NTFS
NTFS is a product Microsoft. Only Windows, and in some cases Linux and Mac, can work with a flash drive formatted in NTFS. While devices based on iOS and Android can only read the drive, but not edit it. Game consoles like PlayStation and Xbox do not support NTFS at all. The subsystem allows large files on the media, which is fundamentally different from fat32.
The NTFS file library also includes the following features:
- Disk quotas.
- Setting access rights.
- Record changes to restore the system.
- Data encryption.
Thus, formatting a flash drive NTFS is considered impractical, since it is designed to work with Windows and for hard drives.
exfat
Modern users bypass the more modern exfat, but in vain. This file system is also the brainchild of Microsoft. The subsystem allows you to record and edit files of almost unlimited size and volume, limiting some sections to 64 trillion bytes.
Exfat goes well with Windows system and with latest versions Apple, Linux, Android. By installing additional addons and packages, modern versions of some game consoles such as PlayStation 3 and XBox One are also supported.
So, we answered that exfat is considered the most modern and efficient file system from Windows. The exfat library incorporates most of the features of fat32, as well as the widest functionality of NTFS. The only drawback of the file system is the successful combination with the latest versions operating systems and a complete lack of understanding with devices with old hardware.
How to format a flash drive to fat32
Now it's time to decide on which system to format the flash drive. Since our article is about formatting a flash drive in the fat32 system, we simply have to talk about the formatting algorithm.
Formatting a flash drive in fat32 system is a simple task, even a child can handle it. Special program or additional software It is not required to format the file system. The formatting algorithm is simple and consists of only a few points.
After a short period of time Personal Computer will notify you that the flash drive has been successfully formatted.
Now you can easily format a flash drive in fat32.
Good day!
Quite often, when working at a computer (laptop), you have to deal with the operation of formatting disks, flash drives and other storage devices. (for example, to delete all data from them, in case of various failures and errors, to change the file system, etc.) . Today's article will focus on flash drives...
I should note that it is not always possible to format a flash drive without problems using the first available method. That is why I decided to jot down a note with several formatting options (I think it will be useful to everyone who is unable to produce this operation, or who can’t decide on the file system).
Addition!
If, when formatting or trying to copy files to a flash drive, you see an error that the drive is write-protected, I recommend reading this guide:
Important! Formatting will destroy all data on the drive. If there is a flash drive necessary files- copy them in advance onto excellent media.
About choosing a file system and cluster size
When formatting a drive (by any method), you must specify the file system, cluster size and volume name. And if specifying the name does not cause any difficulties, then with the rest many people have questions...
In general, today the most commonly used file systems are:
- FAT32- the oldest file system that is supported by almost all devices (even various game consoles!). Most flash drives are formatted in this file system by default. It has one significant drawback: it cannot record files larger than 4 GB!
- NTFS- a more modern file system supported by Windows XP and higher (on Mac OS X it is read only, on Linux there are distributions that support read only, and there are those that support both writing and reading). File size - no restrictions. Concerning various consoles and devices - NTFS is not supported by everyone (for example, Xbox 360 or Sony PlayStation does not support it). In general, NTFS is more suitable for disks (than for flash drives) that will be used in Windows.
- exFAT(or FAT64) is a specially designed file system for flash drives. Supports files larger than 4 GB, disk partition size is not limited. By the way, exFAT has one key advantage: it overwrites the same sector less during operation, which affects the service life of drives (i.e. a flash drive with exFAT should last longer than with NTFS). That is why it is preferable to use exFAT for flash drives rather than NTFS.
conclusions: If you want maximum compatibility and plan to connect the flash drive to set-top boxes or older PCs, choose FAT32 (though you will be limited to a 4 GB file size). In other cases, it is preferable to choose exFAT (however, I note that some TVs, for example, cannot read this file system and it is for their sake that you have to choose NTFS).
What about the cluster size (or also called the distribution unit):
This parameter determines how much space the flash drive will allocate for one file. For example, if the standard cluster size is 64 KB, and your file weighs 50 KB, then it will take up 64 KB of space on the flash drive!
If you are going to store a lot of small files on a flash drive, choose the minimum cluster size. However, in this case the speed of the drive will be lower! Most users, in my opinion, can ignore this setting; it is optimal to leave the default value.
Method number 1 - through "This PC" (Explorer)
Method number 2 - through disk management
Not all media are always visible in “This Computer/My Computer”. This may be due to a conflict of drive letters, if the flash drive is not formatted at all, if the file system fails, and in a number of other cases. Naturally, if you don’t see it in “My Computer”, then you won’t be able to format it this way...
However, Windows has a special tool - disk management . It displays all drives connected to the system (even those with problems).
Universal way to open disk management :
- Press the key combination Win+R (a Run window should appear in the corner of the screen);
- then enter the command diskmgmt.msc and press Enter.
Also, disk management can be opened by going to the panel Windows management and use the search.
In Disk Management All disks, flash drives, and other media that your computer can see will be presented. Simply select the desired drive from the list, right-click on it and select from the menu "Format..." .
Disk management - format the drive
Method number 3 - via the command line
In some cases, for example, when Explorer freezes or the error “failed to complete formatting” appears, you have to resort to working with the command line. Using it, you can also format drives (important! Be careful, perform all steps step by step, as written below).
I'll show you everything using a personal example. First you need to run on behalf of administrator . To do this, open the task manager (key combination Ctrl+Alt+Del or Ctrl+Shift+Esc), then click "File/new task" and enter CMD command, not forgetting to check the “Create a task with administrator rights” checkbox (as in the example below).
- First you need to find out the letter of the flash drive (if you haven’t connected the flash drive to the USB port, connect it!). To do this, enter the command diskpart and press Enter.
- then enter the command list volume and press Enter (note that in the list of drives you should see the letter of your flash drive! In my case, the letter “E” is highlighted in yellow);
- then to close diskpart, type exit and press Enter;
- to format use the command format E: /FS:exFAT /Q /V:fleska (where "E" is the letter of your flash drive; FS: exFAT - file system (for NTFS - enter FS:NTFS); V:fleska - the name of the flash drive, can be anything (for example, V: mydisk).
Actually, after entering the last command, the formatting process should start. Just be careful not to mix up the drive letter - many command line operations do not require confirmation!
Method number 4 - using special utilities
If all other methods are unsuccessful, most likely there is something wrong with your flash drive: a file system failure (for example, it may be marked as RAW); infection with viruses that block work with the drive, etc.
In this case you need to use special utilities. Moreover, I want to note that in most cases Each flash drive model will need its own utility(using a third-party one may damage it permanently)! Below are some links to my articles that will help you complete this operation!
A few more tips on what you can do if the flash drive cannot be formatted are given in this article:
That's all, good luck!
Good afternoon Instructions below.
A little explanation: Standard means for formatting disks in the operating room Microsoft system Windows does not offer formatting large flash drives and memory cards in FAT32. It is believed that FAT32 is outdated, but, nevertheless, it is FAT32 that can read the radios of many cars. To format in FAT32 we will use very a simple program from third party developers.
We format a flash drive of any size in FAT32
1. Download and install the GUIFORMAT32 program( , checked for viruses and malware).
3.Select a flash drive from the list(if there is only one, it will be selected automatically).
4. Specify the desired name of the flash drive(this item is optional).
5. Click the "Start" button and wait for the process to complete.
Now your flash drive is formatted in FAT32, you can record music on it and listen to it in the car, there will be no more problems with reading such a flash drive in the radio. This method works for flash drives and memory cards of any size.
If the formatting process fails, then you need to check your flash drive or memory card for errors and actual size:
1. In order to check whether the actual size of the flash drive matches the stated one, use our instructions: .
2. In order to check a flash drive or memory card for errors, follow our instructions: .
If you have any questions or need clarification, please ask a question or leave a comment.
