Fat32 to NTFS conversion??

Hi there,

I have a new 200gb hdd to install and i was hoping somebody might clear up a few items. My comp presently has a 30gb hdd with xp pro sp1 on it and a 2nd 40gb hdd used for storage and backup. I want to replace the 40gb with the new 200gb. The 30gb hdd with the os on it is formatted NTFS. The 40gb that I'm taking out is Fat32. I have a second comp that I'm going to back up the 40gb drive on prior to installing and formatting the 200gb drive. If I format the new drive as NTFS, will I have a problem moving the backed up data baclk on to it if it was previously formatted as fat32? Or should I convert to NTFS before backing it up? If the second answer is yes, whats the best way to convert to NTFS? I read here earlier that using the command prompt to conert is not the best way. Thanks for any answers.

 

You shouldn't have any problem copying data from a FAT32 disk to a NTFS disk. The OS will automatically do all the work.

 

Great....thanks.

 

be aware though, that by doing a conversion you will nto gainj all the benefits of a "real" NTFS file system.

NTFS uses 4kb clusters, which provide quiker access time and better data management and security.

FAT32 uses 32kb clusters, and will not convert over to the 4kb for a true NTFS file system.

if you can, back up your data and reformat the drive so it can be a true NTFS

 

Here is a good site to see the cluster related information on FAT16, FAT32 and NTFS. Important factor is how the partitioning is done, meaning if you are using the XP's native partitioning program, a 3rd party program or the drive utility that is offered by the manufacturer of the drive (which often yields the best results for drives over 137GB). Partitions up to 10-12GB could either be Fat32 or NTFS to be used by XP there wont be a significant performance difference, however for partitions over 20GB NTFS is recommended (especially security is a concern if file sharing will occur). If using XP's integrated partitioning utility, for partitions created over 32GB, FAT32 will not even be an option during the installation process.
Back to your project. Given the fact that a 200GB drive is bigger and newer, I'd personally recommend making that drive the Primary Master and the other two as Secondary Master and Secondary Slave respectively. Also for drives over 137GB your mobo would need to have the support on its IDE ports. For drives over 137GB manufacturers advise you to use a PCI-based ATA-133 IDE controller card if your your mobo does not have a ATA-133 port. IF you will use the 30GB as your boot drive then connect the 200GB as the Primary Slave and do the necessary partitioning through the Disk Manager console within XP. Have the 40GB as Secondary Slave so once the partioning and formating process on the 200GB done you could simply copy over the files without worrying about converting anything...
Make sure you set the Drive's jumper correctly (check the BIOS settings afterwards) and also make sure your PSU will work fine with all the extra devices connected at the same time, another factor is the overheating, make sure to provide adequate cooling to the case.

 

So, I backed up my data on mys sons comp (sits adjacent), swapped out the old
drive for the new 200gb drive. Checked in the bios to make sure the drive was being
recognized and also checked in control panel/system/hardware to verify that it was
listed. Then using the "manage" feature of xp pro, I initialized and formatted the
new drive as one large partition. The new drive was now visible in windows explorer
so I moved my data back on to it. Downloaded a few files and saved them on the new drive
with no probs. A few hours later I tried to go back into windows explorer thru
start/my computer and all I get now is the flashlight icon for about 30ish seconds
then the "not responding" pop-up and do I want to notify microsoft. I click ok
and then the pop-up comes up with the "additional info" button which when clicked
is recommending me to install sp2 which "may" help. I'm not totally sure I want
sp2 yet so does anybody have any ideas as to why my windows explorer suddenly
quit? Note that the new drive is the secondary drive and NOT the primary drive
which has the os installed on it. Thanks.

Edit - The jumpers on the new drive were for cable select which I left as-is. The primary drive is on the primary ide cable and the new drive is on the same cable using the slave connector.

 

Does your motherboard support cable select and is your boot drive jumpered as cable select also?

 

Hi I'm running Windows ME with a Fat 32 file system,can I run NTFS or do I have to have XP first...

 

You need to have Windows NT4.0/ Windows 2000 / XP / 2003 in order to use NTFS

 

The primary drive is jumpered as primary. My mobo is an abit nf7-R2, I'll have to
check the literature to verify that it supports cable select. Shouldn't see why
not though.

 

I would get SP2, just to get all the updates nececarry.

You didn't say what kind of HDD it was, is it SATA, or IDE? Either way, make sure your chipset drivers are up to date

 

Sorry, I thought I had posted the drive type. Its a Seagate Barracuda, ide 200gb.
Its very strange. I can still dl to the drive or right click/save as to the drive
I just can't get windows explorer to come up.

 

Well now....it gets even better. I decided to install sp2. My comp however chose to
hard lock during the installation for reasons unknown. On reboot, I get the message
that I had an incomplete sp2 installation and that I had to uninstall and then
reinstall. Well the control panel was unaccessible (locked up) in normal mode so I tried in
safe mode which did work, however there were several warnings that needed system files
were going to be deleted, did I want to proceed. I proceeded, loool. On reboot again,
I had lost a whack of stuff, including vid card drivers, mouse drivers, printer
functionality, etc.

So I decided that this was a perfect time for a format and re-install of xp pro.
Confirmed that the cd drive was first on the list for boot-up, stuck in the disc
and re-booted. But it didn't give me the oppurtunity to format, it just re-installed.
Windows explorer is now accessible, but my c drive is filled with apps that don't work
due to missing dll's, etc. I'm not real comfy with the whole re-install thing
anyway.

So my question now would be....What is the correct way to format and re-install
xp? Am I missing something obvious here? I've read the sticky post here on the process
and followed it (I thought) and yet it didn't work. Thanks.

 

do you have a retail copy of Windows XP, or is it OEM (did you get it with the computer from a manufacturer?)

both should work fine, I am just curious because have never heard of XP reinstalling itself without user input.

anyway, with the boot order set to CD-ROM first, boot to the XP cd. Once in windows setup (dont click on anything about repairing windows) it will give you a list of your hard drives and partitions. you are going to DELETE the current partition that windows is on, and then create a new one which you will format and install windows onto.

i recommend installing SP2 onto a freshly reformatted computer to avoid conflicts, so then would be a good time to do so.

 

When I bought my comp 2ish years ago, the shop installed xp pro and gave me an envelope
of driver cd's with the sleeved xp cd in it. No other box or documentation. The xp cd has
the ms logo on it and a sticker with the cd key is on the sleeve. The comp is not a Dell or such. It was built of components which I specified.

When I tried formatting last night, I booted with the xp cd in. The comp booted right
up to the normal desk top before auto detecting the cd and then I was offered the menu
choices, install, browse cd, etc. I chose install and eventually input c as the drive.
I must have overlooked the DELETE option, dohhh. I was looking for the format option.
Well since I have a bunch of apps that won't work, I'll follow your steps and try again.
Thanks for the input.

 

Worked great. I now have a fresh clean xp install c/w sp2. Thanks again.

 

glad it worked out for you! enjoy