Fat 32 to Ntfs

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Kass45

I upgraded from win98se to xp home. The files are still fat 32. Is there
any advantage to converting to ntfs? Will it cause more problems than
it's worth?
Thanks
 
The biggest advantage, by far, is increased security. The ability to create
partitions larger than 32GB also comes in handy.
 
In
Kass45 said:
I upgraded from win98se to xp home. The files are still fat 32.
Click to expand...


Yes, upgrading doesn't change any file systems.

Is
there any advantage to converting to ntfs?
Click to expand...


Sure. For example, read here:
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prkc_fil_duwx.asp

or http://tinyurl.com/7l95n


Will it cause more
problems than it's worth?
Click to expand...


No, but note that conversion is a big step, affecting everything
on your drive. When you take such a big step, no matter how
unlikely, it is always possible that something could go wrong.
For that reason, it's prudent to make sure you have a backup of
anything you can't afford to lose before beginning.
To convert to NTFS, you use the CONVERT command. But first read
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfscvt.htm because there's an issue
regarding cluster size that isn't obvious.
 
NTFS is far better at securing your data than FAT32 so, i should say, that
this option alone is worth the coversion to NTFS. You are also not
restricted to 32GB partitions like you are with a FAT32 file system.
Details on converting are available on my website
http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org Click the Win XP Faq button and take a look
at question 23
Although conversion should be relatively easy, it is worth backing up and
important files, just in case.

--
John Barnett MVP
Associate Expert
http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org

The information in this post is supplied "as is". No warranty of any kind,
either expressed or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy,
reliability or content of this post. The Author shall not be liable for any
direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use
of, or inability to use, information or opinions expressed in this post..
 
Kass45 said:
I upgraded from win98se to xp home. The files are still fat 32. Is there
any advantage to converting to ntfs? Will it cause more problems than
it's worth?
Click to expand...

NTFS is more secure than FAT32 and more robust. Converting should not
cause any problems. See the following article for a complete list of
steps that should be followed to have the best possible experience with
conversion:

http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/ntfscvt.htm
--
Tom Porterfield
MS-MVP Windows
http://support.telop.org

Please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup only.
 
Kass45 said:
I upgraded from win98se to xp home. The files are still fat 32. Is there
any advantage to converting to ntfs? Will it cause more problems than
it's worth?
Thanks
Click to expand...


Personally, I wouldn't even consider using FAT32 when NTFS is an
option. FAT32 has no security capabilities, no compression
capabilities, no fault tolerance, and a lot of wasted hard drive space
on volumes larger than 8 Gb in size. But your computing needs may
vary, and there is no hard and fast answer.

To answer your questions without getting too technical is
difficult, but has been handled quite well by Alex Nichol in the
article here:

FAT & NTFS File Systems in Windows XP
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfs.htm

Somewhat more technical information is here:

Limitations of the FAT32 File System in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=kb;en-us;Q314463

Choosing Between File Systems
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tr...prodtechnol/winntas/tips/techrep/filesyst.asp

NTFS file system
http://www.digit-life.com/articles/ntfs/

You can safely convert your current hard drive to NTFS whenever
desired, without having to format the partition and reinstall
everything. As always when performing any serious changes, back up any
important data before proceeding, just in case. A little advance
preparation is also strongly recommended, so you can avoid any
performance hits caused by the default cluster size:

Converting FAT32 to NTFS in Windows
http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfscvt.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
both at once. - RAH
 
Tom, Partition Magic costs about $18.99, are you made of money or
did someone give it to you? But you are correct it will reverse it. Most
people will not buy Partition Magic just to reverse from NTFS back to FAT32,
only to repartition their harddrives.
 
If 19 bucks is money to you, you can't afford to operate a computer in the
first place.

BTW: Wait for the right deal from one of the big retailers and you'll pay
zero for PM. After rebates, naturally.
 
Byte said:
Tom, Partition Magic costs about $18.99, are you made of money or
did someone give it to you? But you are correct it will reverse it. Most
people will not buy Partition Magic just to reverse from NTFS back to FAT32,
only to repartition their harddrives.
Click to expand...

I don't have it at all as I find no use for it. I was simply pointing
out that a conversion from FAT32 to NTFS is not irreversible. If the
need is important enough, the cost is worth it. I have never found a
need to reverse a conversion to NTFS, and there are better and less
expensive tools for doing everything else that Partition Magic is
capable of doing.
--
Tom Porterfield
MS-MVP Windows
http://support.telop.org

Please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup only.
 
In
Byte said:
Tom, Partition Magic costs about $18.99, are you made of money
or
did someone give it to you? But you are correct it will
reverse it.
Most people will not buy Partition Magic just to reverse from
NTFS
back to FAT32, only to repartition their harddrives.
Click to expand...


Saying that paying for Partition Magic just to convert from NTFS
to FAT32 isn't worth the money is a *very* different statement
from saying that "converting to NTFS is a ONE-WAY street. You
cannot go back."

What you said in the first message was simply wrong, and Tom
corrected it, gently. No big deal; we all make mistakes
sometimes. Accept it and move on. Trying to weasel out of it by
saying something different now and asking Tom whether he's made
out of money just makes you look foolish.

--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup

 
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