How To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10

How To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10

How To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10
Reformatting External Hard Drive For Windows 10 ...
How To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10 Bootable
How To Format A Drive Windows 10
Format external hard drive by using quick format tool Connect the external hard drive to your computer, then open My Computer and find the connected external hard drive, right click the external hard drive. It shows a menu of all operations and tools. Just click Quick Format. Finally, if your drive is online and formatted, but doesn't show a drive letter next to its name, right-click the volume and choose Change Drive Letter and Paths to add a drive letter.
© Provided by Windows CentralIf you have a new drive, it's essential to format it to prepare the store for use, and in this guide, we'll show you how to complete this task on Windows 10.
On Windows 10, when connecting a new internal or external hard drive, it's important to spend the time to format it before storing files. You want to do this to make sure that the drive is empty, working as expected, and free of malware that might otherwise harm the current setup and files. It's also important to format the storage to ensure that it's using the proper settings to avoid compatibility problems.
Whenever you format a hard drive, the data will be deleted, since part of the process includes purging the file system table that tracks the locations of the files written on disk. The process will then define the area where files will be stored, and a compatible file system (such as NTFS, FAT32, or exFAT) will be applied to organize the new content. The system will continue to detect the previous data, but it'll identify that information as available space to store new data.
Windows 10 includes many methods to format a hard drive, but using Disk Management is perhaps one of the best options for most users.
In this Windows 10 guide, we'll walk you through the steps to properly format a traditional hard drive or Solid-State Drive (SSD), whether it already has a partition or was never initialized.
How to format existing partition using Disk Management
How to create and format partition using Disk Management
How to format existing partition using Disk ManagementWhen you're dealing with a drive that already has a partition, you can format the existing partition to delete its files and start with a clean storage.
To format a partition using Disk Management, use these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Create and format hard disk partitions and click the top result to open the Disk Management console.
Right-click the new hard drive and select the Format option.
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In the 'Value label' field, confirm a new name for the storage.
Use the 'File system' drop-down menu, and select the NTFS option (recommended for Windows 10).
Use the 'Allocation unit size' drop-down menu, and select the Default option.
Check the Perform a quick format option.
© Provided by Windows CentralQuick tip: The quick format option wipes the drive fast, but it doesn't check for problems. On the other hand, when clearing the option, a full format will be performed, which not only wipes the drive clean, but it'll also check for bad sectors. It's an option that could take many hours depending on the size, but it's a good practice to make sure the drive is in working conditions.
Clear the Enable file and folder compression option.
Click the OK button.
Click the OK button again.
Once you complete the steps, the tool will format the selected partition on the drive, and then you can begin storing files.
How to create and format partition using Disk ManagementIn the case that you have a hard drive that was never partitioned and formatted, it will not appear in File Explorer, and you'll have to initialize, create a new partition, and then format it before you can use it.
Usually, you can tell a hard drive doesn't have a partition, because it will not appear in File Explorer, and on Disk Management, it'll show up as unallocated space.
To set up a new hard drive with raw space on Windows 10, use these steps:
Open Start.
Search for Create and format hard disk partitions and click the top result to open the Disk Management console.
Right-click the hard drive marked as 'Unknown' and 'Not Initialized' and select the Initialize Disk option.
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Under the 'Select disks' section, check the disk to initialize. 
Select the partition style:
Master Boot Record (MBR) for hard drives smaller than 2TB in size.
GUID Partition Table (GPT) for hard drives larger than 2TB in size.
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Click the OK button.
Right-click the Unallocated space part of the storage, and select the New Simply Value option.
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Click the Next button.
Under the 'Simple volume size in MB' section, leave the default size if you're planning to use the entire hard drive to store files. Otherwise, specify the amount of space in megabytes you want to allocate for the partition.
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Click the Next button.
Use the 'Assign the following drive letter' drop-down menu to select a new drive letter.
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Click the Next button.
Use the 'File system' drop-down menu, and select the NTFS option (recommended for Windows 10).
Use the 'Allocation unit size' drop-down menu, and select the Default option.
In the 'Value label' field, type a descriptive name for the storage.
Check the Perform a quick format option.
© Provided by Windows CentralQuick tip: To perform a full format that includes a disk check, clear the quick format option. If you use the full format option, remember that it can take many hours to complete depending on the size.
Clear the Enable file and folder compression option.
Click the Next button.
Click the Finish button.
After you complete the steps, the new hard drive will be initialized, partitioned, and properly formatted.
If the drive is exhibiting problems using the Disk Management tool, as a result of data corruption or another issue, you can use the DiskPart command-line tool to resolve the problem.
We're focusing this guide on Windows 10, but these instructions should also work on Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.
More Windows 10 resourcesFor more helpful articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows 10, visit the following resources:
If you newly bought an external hard drive or SSD, you must initialize the disk before Logical Disk Manager can access it. Or you may want to initialize or reformat hard a disk for reuse or when the hard drive not working. This post will guide you to initialize, create new partition, and format external hard drive on Windows computers.
Note:Also work for hard drives, USB flash drives, SD card, and other mainstream storage devices.
Tips: Make sure you have backed up files (if any) on the external drive as the following operations will wipe your data off the drive. If you can't access your data for disk corruption, using iBoysoft Data Recovery for Windows to get files off first.
There are two ways to initialize, format, or reformat external hard drives.
Method 1: Initialize and Format External Hard Drive with Disk ManagementHow To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10How to initialize an external hard drive on Windows?1. Right-click This PC/My Computer and choose Manage in the context menu to enter Computer Management.
2. Select Disk Management on the left sidebar and open this utility.
3. Connect your external hard drive to your PC. New SSD or hard drive will prompt to initialize.
4. Right-click on the external hard drive marked as 'Unknown' and 'Not Initialized', then choose Initialize Disk. If the external hard drive is listed as Offline, you need to first right-click it and set it back to Online.
Tips: Some USB drives may not have the option 'Initialize Disk', then you just need to jump to get the disk formatted for work.
5. Click OK to accept the default partition style or change the partition style as you like.
For partition styles, you have two options on Windows computers.
Most PCs use the GUID Partition Table (GPT) disk type for hard drives and SSDs. It's more robust and allows for volumes bigger than 2 TB.
Master Boot Record (MBR) is used by 32-bit PCs, older PCs, and removable drives such as memory cards that have a size smaller than 2TB.
How to create new simple volume for external hard drives in Disk Management?After choosing the partition style for the drive you want to format, you can now partition this external hard drive.
1. Right-click on the external hard drive (often marked Unallocated space) and select the New Simply Value option.
2. Click Next and follow the wizard to specify the volume size, assign the drive letter, and choose the File System you want.
For the disk file system, three types are available in Windows.
Choose FAT32 if your external hard drive is less than 1 TB. And if each file of yours is less than 4 GB ( like photos, songs, documents), FAT32 is fine to use.
You can choose exFAT if your external hard drive is relatively large and you want to use the external hard drive for Mac and Windows.
Choose NTFS if your external drive is an SSD or a large-capacity hard drive. Also, for Windows installation and file backups, NTFS is a more ideal option.
3. Click Finish to complete this process.
How to format external hard drives on Windows?If the external hard drive is initialized and you need to reformat it for reasons like disk corruption, you need to:
Reformatting External Hard Drive For Windows 10 ...

Open Start.
Search for Create and format hard disk partitions and click the top result to open the Disk Management console.
Right-click the new hard drive and select the Format option.
© Provided by Windows Central
In the 'Value label' field, confirm a new name for the storage.
Use the 'File system' drop-down menu, and select the NTFS option (recommended for Windows 10).
Use the 'Allocation unit size' drop-down menu, and select the Default option.
Check the Perform a quick format option.
© Provided by Windows CentralQuick tip: The quick format option wipes the drive fast, but it doesn't check for problems. On the other hand, when clearing the option, a full format will be performed, which not only wipes the drive clean, but it'll also check for bad sectors. It's an option that could take many hours depending on the size, but it's a good practice to make sure the drive is in working conditions.
Clear the Enable file and folder compression option.
Click the OK button.
Click the OK button again.
Once you complete the steps, the tool will format the selected partition on the drive, and then you can begin storing files.
How to create and format partition using Disk ManagementIn the case that you have a hard drive that was never partitioned and formatted, it will not appear in File Explorer, and you'll have to initialize, create a new partition, and then format it before you can use it.
Usually, you can tell a hard drive doesn't have a partition, because it will not appear in File Explorer, and on Disk Management, it'll show up as unallocated space.
To set up a new hard drive with raw space on Windows 10, use these steps:
Open Start.
Search for Create and format hard disk partitions and click the top result to open the Disk Management console.
Right-click the hard drive marked as 'Unknown' and 'Not Initialized' and select the Initialize Disk option.
© Provided by Windows Central
Under the 'Select disks' section, check the disk to initialize. 
Select the partition style:
Master Boot Record (MBR) for hard drives smaller than 2TB in size.
GUID Partition Table (GPT) for hard drives larger than 2TB in size.
© Provided by Windows Central
Click the OK button.
Right-click the Unallocated space part of the storage, and select the New Simply Value option.
© Provided by Windows Central
Click the Next button.
Under the 'Simple volume size in MB' section, leave the default size if you're planning to use the entire hard drive to store files. Otherwise, specify the amount of space in megabytes you want to allocate for the partition.
© Provided by Windows Central
Click the Next button.
Use the 'Assign the following drive letter' drop-down menu to select a new drive letter.
© Provided by Windows Central
Click the Next button.
Use the 'File system' drop-down menu, and select the NTFS option (recommended for Windows 10).
Use the 'Allocation unit size' drop-down menu, and select the Default option.
In the 'Value label' field, type a descriptive name for the storage.
Check the Perform a quick format option.
© Provided by Windows CentralQuick tip: To perform a full format that includes a disk check, clear the quick format option. If you use the full format option, remember that it can take many hours to complete depending on the size.
Clear the Enable file and folder compression option.
Click the Next button.
Click the Finish button.
After you complete the steps, the new hard drive will be initialized, partitioned, and properly formatted.
If the drive is exhibiting problems using the Disk Management tool, as a result of data corruption or another issue, you can use the DiskPart command-line tool to resolve the problem.
We're focusing this guide on Windows 10, but these instructions should also work on Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.
More Windows 10 resourcesFor more helpful articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows 10, visit the following resources:
If you newly bought an external hard drive or SSD, you must initialize the disk before Logical Disk Manager can access it. Or you may want to initialize or reformat hard a disk for reuse or when the hard drive not working. This post will guide you to initialize, create new partition, and format external hard drive on Windows computers.
Note:Also work for hard drives, USB flash drives, SD card, and other mainstream storage devices.
Tips: Make sure you have backed up files (if any) on the external drive as the following operations will wipe your data off the drive. If you can't access your data for disk corruption, using iBoysoft Data Recovery for Windows to get files off first.
There are two ways to initialize, format, or reformat external hard drives.
Method 1: Initialize and Format External Hard Drive with Disk ManagementHow To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10How to initialize an external hard drive on Windows?1. Right-click This PC/My Computer and choose Manage in the context menu to enter Computer Management.
2. Select Disk Management on the left sidebar and open this utility.
3. Connect your external hard drive to your PC. New SSD or hard drive will prompt to initialize.
4. Right-click on the external hard drive marked as 'Unknown' and 'Not Initialized', then choose Initialize Disk. If the external hard drive is listed as Offline, you need to first right-click it and set it back to Online.
Tips: Some USB drives may not have the option 'Initialize Disk', then you just need to jump to get the disk formatted for work.
5. Click OK to accept the default partition style or change the partition style as you like.
For partition styles, you have two options on Windows computers.
Most PCs use the GUID Partition Table (GPT) disk type for hard drives and SSDs. It's more robust and allows for volumes bigger than 2 TB.
Master Boot Record (MBR) is used by 32-bit PCs, older PCs, and removable drives such as memory cards that have a size smaller than 2TB.
How to create new simple volume for external hard drives in Disk Management?After choosing the partition style for the drive you want to format, you can now partition this external hard drive.
1. Right-click on the external hard drive (often marked Unallocated space) and select the New Simply Value option.
2. Click Next and follow the wizard to specify the volume size, assign the drive letter, and choose the File System you want.
For the disk file system, three types are available in Windows.
Choose FAT32 if your external hard drive is less than 1 TB. And if each file of yours is less than 4 GB ( like photos, songs, documents), FAT32 is fine to use.
You can choose exFAT if your external hard drive is relatively large and you want to use the external hard drive for Mac and Windows.
Choose NTFS if your external drive is an SSD or a large-capacity hard drive. Also, for Windows installation and file backups, NTFS is a more ideal option.
3. Click Finish to complete this process.
How to format external hard drives on Windows?If the external hard drive is initialized and you need to reformat it for reasons like disk corruption, you need to:
Reformatting External Hard Drive For Windows 10 ...1. Find the external hard drive in Disk Management, right-click on it, and choose Format from the contextual menu.
2. Then set the disk information, including allocation unit size, volume label and file system.
3. Check Perform a quick format and click OK to format the external hard drive.
Method 2: Initialize and Format External Hard Drive with DiskpartAnother way to do this is through the command prompt with diskpart command line. To initialize a new disk or wipe an existing disk, using Windows snap-in tool - Diskpart with the following steps.
1. Click Start, type 'cmd' in the search bar, press Enter, and then run the Command Prompt as an administrator.
2. In the pop-up window, type 'diskpart' in the prompt and press Enter and then type 'list disk' to list all the disks detected by your computer.
3. Type 'select disk' and the external hard drive that you want to initialize and press Enter. For example, 'select disk 2'.
4. Type 'attributes disk clear readonly' and press Enter if you don't want other to make changes to your hard drive, or else, skip this step.
5. Type 'online disk' and press Enter so that Diskpart can access it in online condition.
6. Type 'convert mbr' or 'convert gpt' and press Enter to change the selected disk to MBR or GPT partition table.
How To Format External Hard Drive Windows 10 BootableNow you have initialized the disk with Diskpart, you can create partition and format the external hard drive for file saving.
7. Type 'list disk' again and press Enter to list all disks so that you know the disk number on which you want to create a partition.
8. Type 'select disk 2 ' and press Enter. You need to replace 2 with the number of your external hard drive.
9. Type 'create partition primary size=61440'and press Enter. Replace 61440 with the free space that you want to allocate for the partition.
10. Assign a drive letter by typing assign letter=H and press Enter. You can replace H with other available drive letters.
Now, a new partition is created on the external hard drive. But to save files on the disk, a partition needs to be formatted.
11. Type 'list volume' and press Enter to list all the volumes under this disk. 
12. Find the target volume and then type ' select volume * ' and press Enter. Replace * with your volume number.
13. Type 'format fs=ntfs quick label=test' and press Enter. You can replace ntfs with the file system you want (like exfat and fat32) and label it with a different name.
How To Format A Drive Windows 10After the external hard drive is initialized, partitioned, and formatted, you'll be able to save photos, videos, documents, or whatever you want on the hard drive.