File transfer from MacBook Pro into external hard drive

podgorsek,

Format your external drive as ExFAT on the PC. Then you can share files with your Mac and PC. Don't, however, use the ExFAT format if you're going to be using the drive as a backup drive (Time Machine or clone) for your Mac.

Be sure and format it on the PC.

Clinton

i was facing the same proplem with my hard drive and i did what Matt said, but now i cant open my hard drive on my PC to do what u explaned . i need help please ?

In my last paragraph, I said

"Note that Windows PCs cannot write natively to an HFS drive, so if you need to exchange files between Mac and PC, we need to talk about different options."

Windows cannot read Mac Extended (HFS) formatted drives; the Mac cannot write to Windows (NTFS) formatted drives.

The only formats fully compatible between Mac and PC are FAT32 (largely deprecated) and exFAT. If you need full read-write compatibility between Windows and Mac, and you can erase the drive (ie, it's a new drive or you have confirmed backups), reformat to exFAT using Disk Utility.

If you have a drive with files on it and you cannot erase them at the moment:

- if the drive is formatted for the Mac, you can purchase MacDrive for the PC

- if the drive is formatted for Windows (NTFS), you can purchase Paragon NTFS for the Mac.

Matt

Sorry i messed up not reading the whole thing but i appreciate you taking the time to reply, thankfully its a new hard drive did wat you said and it worked wonderfully !!

Matt,

You da man! I'm moving from a PC to a Mac. Your guidance is exactly what I needed.

Your karma account has been credited. :-)

You know you could have mentioned the fact that it would delete previous data! -_-

Thanks so much

i just lost 500gb worth of data.

and that was my backup. SO yeah its all gone. Vanished. For good.

Movies, songs, pictures, files EVERYTHING!

THANKYOU

bowsdown*

If you'd read through the posts in this thread, you'll note that there's a warning that if you reformat a drive, you'll lose everything on it:

Yes. If you reformat/erase the drive all of your files on the drive will be lost.

Clinton

Read everything - don't jump to conclusions without reading the entire thread.

Clinton

Is there a way to recover it back now?

You could try some forensic data recovery specialists in your area - but that can be quite pricey. I'm not aware of any consumer tool that could recover the data - unless you want to, perhaps, contact the folks at Data Rescue 3 - I've had good luck with that product, but not on a reformatted drive, and it get's pretty good marks in this review.

Good luck,

Clinton

EDIT: looking at the review again, it seems that Data Recuse 3 does work in recovering files on reformatted drives. I would still contact them before buying.

Hi! Help me please! I accidentally pressed erase and all the files in my external were gone! Is there a way to recover?

You'll have to use a data retrieval software such as Data Rescue. Do not write any files to the drive until you do data recovery.

Matt

check this out...this is the most essential thing to do, for any hard-disk that is connected to a macbook..

http://www.macbreaker.com/2014/06/how-to-enable-writing-to-ntfs-hard.html

Shi did not copy

I adopted reformat the disk

I want to bring a new device

Dear Matt,

Here is a suggestion for a different option, WITHOUT reformatting. I have used Windows and backed up to a HD. Then I bought a Mac Mini and now cannot back up to the HD. But I can back up to a memory card. BUT, I have to use my old Windows Laptop to take the HD and the Memory Card and just swap the files from one to the other. As it was said elsewhere, the HD can be read by and download to the Mac Mini. Reformatting is not an option when you already have an HD full of precious back ups.