FAT32 to NTFS

Machin3

Machin3

New Member
Hello everyone, I am having a problem with converting fat32 to ntfs on a hard drive. i have done it manually through cmd and through partitionmagic and it still doesnt work. Basically i have a Western Digital Passport which is 250gb and has fat32 set on it. I recently wanted to download a file which was 4.01gb but cant because fat32 restricts it to 4gb.

this is what i get when i try to convert:

convert lost chains to file? Y/N--->no matter which one i choose it always get the following statement:

Windows found problems with the file system
Run CHKDSK......to correct these problems
The volume may have inconsisstencies. Run CHKDSK.......the conversion was not completed.

I've already ran CHKDSK and everthing was patched up. Can some one please help me??

Thanks,
 
Run thought this and see if you have any luck.

Quote From: www.wilderssecurity.com/archive/index.php/t-56200.html

Disk Director 9 certainly should allow you to change partition types in the manner you'd like. It sounds to me that there may be some integrity issues with the data on your drive, or more specifically in the partition table.

It is of course possible that you are experiencing some issues with the current build that will be rectified in builds to come.

The PC is such a lovely and controlled platform with so few players...... NOT!

But it is nonetheless a frustrating thing when software has issues.

A few things you can try to help you eliminate possibilities.

A. Verify the integrity or your restored partitions using: chkdsk with the /r option. This will check data and media integrity. A bad sector in the partition table may get in the way of conversion.

Syntax: chkdsk <drive letter> /r

B. If you still have the source HDD which you imaged initially, perhaps running scandisk would be another way of ensuring the source data and drive are O.K.

You know computers -- garbage in -- garbage out..... :-)

Syntax: scandisk <drive letter> /autofix /surface

Lastly if all this checks out O.K. then try using the convert tool in Win2k and XP. It can change NTFS to FAT / FAT32 and vice versa. Of course if you change from NTFS to FAT / FAT32 then you'll lose any permissions on files in the drive.

For what you're seeking to do I think this is what you'd type.

Syntax: convert <drive Letter> /fs:NTFS /v

For each partition or logical drive requiring conversion

If the above works then it shows Acronis Disk Director has compatibility issues with your system or data structure. While not ideal as you've paid the money to Acronis for a tool that should work; it will convert the drive to the format you desire.

Hope this helps you some.

Regards

GeeeAus
Australia

(end quote)
 
Need some working instructions? First go to the WD support site and have the serial number ready since that will be required in order to download a zip file containing the replacement software for that model drive. You will want that onhand later.

Once you have that saved to a folder on your main internal drive go to the Disk Management tool and select the format option there. That will see the external model see an NTFS partition ready for use where you then simply unpack the contents of the download onto the drive. The WD support information to see this done goes as follows:

To partition and format the external hard drive with Disk Management, follow these steps:


  1. Access Disk Management in Windows XP or Vista. From the Start Menu, Left click on the Start button, Right-click on My Computer or Computer, left-click on Manage, and then left-click on Disk Management.
  2. In the lower window pane, you will see a list of available IDE devices. Locate the desired hard drive to partition and format. You should see a black bar indicating unallocated space for the drive.

    Important: If there is no black bar shown (if the bar is blue), the hard drive currently has a partition. Please verify that there is no important data on the hard drive before continuing with the directions below. Right-click on the blue bar and choose the option to Delete Partition. The bar should then turn black indicating unallocated space.
  3. Right-click on the black bar (unallocated space) to see a menu of available options. Select New Partition or New Simple Volume from the menu of available options.
  4. The Welcome to the New Partition Wizard or New Simple Volume Wizard appears. Windows Vista users, please proceed to step #5. For Windows XP users, Left-click on Next to continue and select Primary. Left-click on Next.
  5. Select the size of the partition you wish to create and left-click on Next.
  6. At the next screen, select a drive letter to assign to the partition and left-click on Next.
  7. The Format Partition screen appears. On this screen you can select the file system, allocation unit size, and volume label you wish to create on the drive.

    Note: In almost all cases, it is best to leave the allocation unit size at default. If you are not dual-booting and do not need to use this drive on a Windows 98 SE or Windows ME computer, it is also recommended that you use NTFS as the file system (you can also select FAT16 or FAT32). Dynamic partitions cannot be created on an external hard drive. The Windows 2000 and Windows XP Disk Management utility cannot support the format of a FAT32 partition larger than 32GB. Please refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 184006 for additional information.
  8. Left -click on Next to verify the process and the choices you selected.
  9. Left -click on Finish to complete the process. http://wdc.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wdc...nZlcnRpbmcgZmF0IHRvIG50ZnM*&p_li=&p_topview=1
For downloads for all WD models go to http://support.wdc.com/product/download.asp?lang=en first where you then select the series of drives followed by the model selected from a list as you go along. You can also simply enter the model number to bring you to a first page of that line.
 
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