Choose this option if you don’t need an encrypted or case-sensitive. Mac OS Extended (Journaled): Uses the Mac format (Journaled HFS Plus) to protect the integrity of the hierarchical file system. You Can Convert NTFS to exFAT in 3 Steps. Choose one of the following Mac OS Extended file system formats for compatibility with Mac computers using macOS 10.12 or earlier. Then, you can share external hard drive between Mac and PC.
If the Security Options button is not available, Disk Utility cannot perform a secure erase on the storage device. By this way, you can easily format an external hard drive for Mac and PC without losing any data. Secure erase options are available only for some types of storage devices. (Optional) If available, click Security Options, use the slider to choose how many times to write over the erased data, then click OK. If you want to permanently erase data on the hard drive, you can try the solution 3. The data formatted by AweCleaner can be recovered by data recovery software. It will still be able to read and write files on another 'up to date' Mac with an internal or external APFS drive when networked to that Mac. If the Scheme pop-up menu isn’t available, make sure you selected the storage device you want to erase-it’s at the top of the hierarchy.Ĭlick the Format pop-up menu, then choose a file system format. Launch AweCleaner for Mac > Click Disk Manager > Select the hard drive and click on 'Format' button. Compatibility with old OS versions is only a limitation if you want to attach an external APFS drive directly to a Mac running an OS older than Sierra.
Ĭlick the Scheme pop-up menu, then choose GUID Partition Map. I then formatted it into APFS using High Sierra on my MacBookpro, then reconnected it to my Mac Mini.
The drive, a Seagate, 5TB HDD was initially formatted as Windows NT, I then tried to re-format it into Mac OS Extended, which didn't work. In the sidebar, select the storage device you want to erase, then click the Erase button. I want to dedicate an external drive for time machine. If you want to erase any other type of storage device: Double-click Disk Utility in the /Applications/Utilities folder. Mac OS Extended journalled should work fine with High Sierra even if. You will find that you can format the drive in FAT format on a windows machine or you can go to an Apple store and get them to format the drive on a Mac running an earlier operating system (Sierra or before). Note: If you want to get your Mac ready to trade in, sell, or give away, and your computer is a Mac with Apple silicon or an Intel-based Mac with an Apple T2 Security Chip, use Erase Assistant. Theres just no way to format external drives anymore.