Unable to partition/format external WD1600BB

  • Thread starter Thread starter JimNSB
  • Start date Start date
J

JimNSB

I have a WD1600BB (160gb) in a no-name USB2.0 external enclosure. In my
initial attempt (using my Win2000 system) I made a 40gb primary partition
(formatted NTFS) and an extended partition split into 2 logical drives of
~53gb. When I tried to format (as FAT32 and/or NTFS) the drives in the ext
partition I would get a "volume too big" error...I noticed that during this
step the LED on the drive enclosure *did not* show any activity. I repeated
this, formatting the primary as FAT32 with the same result: the 40gb primary
was created and recognized, but I could not format the logical drives in the
extended partition.

After deleting all logical drives and partitions I tried to partition and
format (as NTFS and then FAT32) the drive with a single, primary partition
and still received a "volume too big" error.

Additional info:
-I removed the jumper, setting the drive to 'single or master'.
-The HD is a 'recertified' drive sent as an RMA replacement from WD
(original HD arrived DOA...believe it was damaged in transit).
-I'm using the USB cable that came with the enclosure.

What I'd *like* to do is create 3 partitions on the HD and format them as
FAT32 so I can also use it with my Win98SE system.

TIA for any help/comments
 
You might have to remove the drive from the enclosure and install it
temporarily in the computer to format/partition it properly. That's
been my experience.
 
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