How to format a USB flash drive in Windows or macOS

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Even if you have formatted flash drives more than once, there are details that you may not know about. For example, how to remove write protection, which file system and cluster size to choose, how to recover data. The life hacker figured out all the nuances.

Formatting not only deletes all files from the USB drive, but it can also put it in order if it suddenly refuses to work on any of the devices. This instruction will help you to properly clean the USB flash drive and will be useful for both experienced users and beginners.

How to format a USB flash drive in Windows

Step 1. Run the system formatter

Having connected a USB flash drive, open "My Computer". When the drive icon appears here, right-click on it and click "Format".

Step 2. Specify the desired parameters and format the USB flash drive

A file system is a way of organizing data on a USB flash drive. Choose the one that suits you best.

1. FAT32 … The flash drive will be fully compatible with Windows, macOS, as well as with most USB devices such as game consoles, radio tape recorders and media players. But you will not be able to write files larger than 4 GB to it.
2. exFAT … The drive will be fully compatible with Windows starting from XP SP2 and Mac OS X Snow Leopard and newer. But many USB devices will not be able to work with it. On the other hand, it will be possible to write files of any size to the USB flash drive.
3. NTFS … The drive will be fully compatible with Windows. However, in macOS, you can only view files on a flash drive without the ability to write to it. Many USB devices will not see the drive. On the other hand, you can save files of any size on it.

Once you have made your selection, specify the cluster size (allocation unit size). This parameter determines the minimum amount of memory that a flash drive can allocate for one file. For example, if the cluster size is 64 KB, and the size of the recorded file is 12 KB, then the latter will take up at least 64 KB of memory.

Choose a small cluster size if you are going to store many small files on a USB flash drive. This will help to effectively use free space, but the speed of the flash drive will be slower.

If you want to store large files, then it is reasonable to specify a larger value to speed up the drive. If you cannot find the optimal value, it is easiest to leave the default cluster size.

Enter the desired drive name in the Volume Label field.

Make sure "Quick (clear table of contents)" is ticked. This will save you cleaning time. But if you want the system to check the flash drive for errors during formatting, then uncheck the box - then the process will last much longer. Click "Start" and wait for the procedure to complete.

You can change the file system again if necessary. To do this, simply reformat the drive.

How to format a protected USB flash drive

Sometimes the computer refuses to format the drive due to the fact that write protection is set in the Windows settings. You can disable it in the registry editor.

Open the registry editor: use the Windows + R key combination, paste regedit in the line that appears and press Enter.

In the folder tree, select the following path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → SYSTEM → CurrentControlSet → Control → StorageDevicePolicies (the last directory may not be in the list).

Inside the StorageDevicePolicies folder, double-click the WriteProtect parameter, change its value from 1 to 0, and save the result. Close Registry Editor, unplug your drive and restart your PC.

If your flash drive has a switch, it can be physically protected. To enable recording, move it to a different position.

If the StorageDevicePolicies directory is missing, right-click on the Control directory, then select New → Section and name it StorageDevicePolicies.

Right-click on the StorageDevicePolicies section, then "New" → "DWORD Parameter" or "QWORD Parameter" (depending on the bitness of your OS: 32 or 64 bits). Name the new parameter WriteProtect, double-click it and check that its value is 0.

Close Registry Editor, unplug your USB drive and restart your PC.

After these steps, most likely, protection will be removed, and you can format the drive.

What to do if you cannot format the USB flash drive

Windows may report that it is unable to format the drive. It means that an error occurs somewhere. And sometimes the flash drive itself asks to format it, but a failure in the operation of the drive or PC does not allow this to be done.

In this case, instead of the standard Windows tools, try special programs that restore the correct operation of the drives and format them. Such software can usually be found on the USB flash drive manufacturer's website. For example, JetFlash Online Recovery is for Transcend drives. Or USB Flash Drive Online Recovery - for ADATA flash drives.

But there are also universal utilities that can force formatting almost any drive. For example, the free USB Disk Storage Format Tool. It is very easy to use, it will not be difficult to understand it.

If you cannot correct the errors with the help of third-party programs, the drive may be damaged and needs to be repaired.

How to format a USB flash drive in macOS

Step 1. Run "Disk Utility"

With your drive connected, open Finder → Applications → Utilities → Disk Utility.

In the left pane, highlight your USB drive. Then click on the Erase tab at the top of the window.

Step 2. Format the flash drive by selecting the options you want

In the window that appears, select one of the following file systems for the flash drive.

1. OS X Extended (Journal) … The drive will be fully compatible with macOS. But on Windows, you won't even open it. Not all media players and other USB devices will see the USB stick. But it will be able to store files of any size.
2. MS-DOS(FAT / FAT32), exFAT- the features of these file systems are given above.

After selecting the desired one of the listed options, click on the "Erase" (Erase) and wait for the formatting to complete.

Again, you can change the filesystem every time you format the USB stick.

What to do if you cannot format the USB flash drive

Formatting problems in macOS can occur if the flash drive is damaged or there is a physical switch on its case. In the first case, it remains only to take the drive to the service center. In the second, it is enough to remove the protection by pressing the switch.

How to recover a formatted USB flash drive

As mentioned above, formatting a drive will erase all of its contents. If you forget about this, you can lose important files. In addition, information recorded on a USB flash drive may not be available due to software malfunctions. Fortunately, in many cases, such problems are not difficult to solve with the help of special data recovery software.