NTFS vs FAT32

  • Thread starter Thread starter Russ
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Russ

Is there a problem with two machines communicating with each other on
a home network one with XP NTFS and the other iwth W98 FAT32? How
about XP NTFS and XP FAT32?

Russ
 
Is there a problem with two machines communicating with each other on
a home network one with XP NTFS and the other iwth W98 FAT32? How
about XP NTFS and XP FAT32?
Click to expand...
No problem. The communication will be via network protocols so the file
system won't come into play.
--
Tom Porterfield
MS-MVP Smart Display
http://home.comcast.net/~tp.porterfield

Please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup only.
 
There's no problem with them seeing each other's file system if that's what
you mean. However, the NTFS system will by default have much stronger
security, assigning user permissions and file ownership and these things can
interfere with access. That said, for the most part the problem is one of
how the network is set up.

First, it's a good idea to use the XP Network Setup Wizard and to run it all
machines on the network. Second, when running the wizard, you need to be
sure that any firewalls or other security is turned off on all machines as
this will interfere with network setup.

Third, many home networks connect through a hub. During the wizard, the
user is asked how this computer connects to the Internet and very often they
will select the response "Through a Network Hub." An incorrect answer at
this point will stop all communications between computers after setup is
complete. Usually, the correct answer is "Gateway."

The above addresses the major issues that can cause communication problems
on home networks.
 
Greetings --

The file systems on the various computers communicating over
a network are completely irrelevant, as none of the individual
computers' operating systems ever directly access the other computers'
hard drives. Instead, a computer sends a "request," if you will, for
the desired data, and the operating system of the host ("receiving")
computer accesses its own hard drive (whose file system it obviously
can read) and then sends that data back to the requesting computer as
neutral packets of information that are completely independent of the
file systems on the respective computers. After all, don't you use a
Windows-based PC (whether it's FAT32 or NTFS) to access data stored on
the Internet's mostly Unix servers, which use a completely different
file system?


Bruce Chambers

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In
Russ said:
Is there a problem with two machines communicating with each other on
a home network one with XP NTFS and the other iwth W98 FAT32? How
about XP NTFS and XP FAT32?
Click to expand...



No and no. It's data that's transferred over networks, not file
systems. There is no incompatibility of file system possible.
 
Thanks for the answers guys. My machines would be connected with a
router but I never would've guessed accessing the internet would
require me to answer "Gateway".

Russ
 
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