Step 2: From the left side panel, pick the volume or the drive that you want to format and switch to the Erase tab. Step 1: Connect the USB drive or external drive to Mac and launch the Disk Utility from Applications.

Before you erase a disk, make sure that you have a backup of the files you want to keep. Here is the step by step guide you need to follow to format the hard disk on Mac. So, whether you wish to format the internal hard drive, external drive, or a USB flash drive, the procedure is the same for all. How to Format a Hard Drive on Mac:įormatting is a very simple procedure that is operated in a similar way for all sorts of storage media. Under all these situations, formatting is most likely to fix your problems and you will be able to use the drive on Mac. In case the macOS installer says that the drive can’t be installed because it is a part of Apple RAID.If the macOS installer can’t see the disk or unable to install it.If you want to resolve a disk issue that can’t be fixed by the Repair feature of Disk Utility.If you see the message that the disk is not readable by Mac.If you want to change the format of the disk such as PC format like FAT or exFAT to Mac format.If you want to quickly erase all content from the drive permanently without leaving a trace of data on it.Take a look at the scenarios given below and you will be sure that disk formatting will help you. Whether your system has corrupted data, damaged software, impending system upgrade, storage is full, or it is running slow, formatting will fix a lot of issues. You can consider disk formatting in macOS in various circumstances. Reformatting is done to free the storage space from the previous content stored in it. It is usually done during the OS installation or adding a new disk. It is called high-level formatting as it is used to prepare the disk for different file system formats. There is another term related to disk formatting and it is called reformatting. But it leaves the track to recover the data using the recovery tool. The basic operation is termed as low-level formatting which means erasing the existing data on the disk. Basically, formatting is the process of preparing the storage devices such as hard disk drive, solid-state drive, USB flash drive, or any other for initial use. Some people confuse the term with reformatting. Situations When Formatting a Hard Drive on Mac:īefore you get deep, you must understand what is the drive formatting. Tips for Formatting a Hard Drive on Mac.Different Formats of Hard Drive for Mac.How to Perform Mac Data Recovery After Format.

Situations When Formatting a Hard Drive on Mac.

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