how to format a usb drive for linux from osx

Format A Usb Drive For Linux From Osx Install ExFAT Support
Format A Usb Drive For Linux From Osx Mac OS X Doesnt

But, if you plan on using an external drive with both Macs and PCs, you should format the disk with the exFAT file system instead.

Right-click or Control-click the drives icon in the Finders sidebar (or on your desktop) and select Get Info.

In the screenshot below, the drive is formatted with the exFAT file system.

Again, formatting a drive will erase it completely, so make sure you have everything backed up that you want to keep.

This file system is necessary if you plan on using the drive for Time Machine backupsotherwise, youll want to use exFAT for maximum compatibility.

Format A Usb Drive For Linux From Osx Mac OS X Doesnt

By default, Mac OS X doesnt use a case-sensitive file system.

This option exists because it matches the traditional behavior of UNIX and some people might need itdont select this unless you know you need it for some reason.

Avoid this file system unless you have a device that requires FAT32.

You should use this file system if you may share the drive with Windows PCs and other devices like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles.

Format A Usb Drive For Linux From Osx Install ExFAT Support

Its not natively supported on many Linux distributions, but you can install exFAT support on Linux.

If in doubt, just select the default GUID Partition Map (GPT) scheme.

You can do this by clicking the eject icon to the right of the disk in the Finder or Disk Utility windows.

Macs dont have an integrated way to format partitions with NTFS, either.

Use exFAT for excellent compatibility with Windows without FAT32s limitations.

Hes written about technology for nearly a decade and was a PCWorld columnist for two years.

Chris has written for The New York Times, been interviewed as a technology expert on TV stations like Miamis NBC 6, and had his work covered by news outlets like the BBC.

Since 2011, Chris has written over 2,000 articles that have been read more than 500 million times---and thats just here at How-To Geek.

Since we launched in 2006, our articles have been read more than 1 billion times.

How To Format A Usb Drive For Linux From Osx