which is best partition format to use with flash drive

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which is best partition format to use with flash drive, i always use NTFS, is it good, and we need more people updating on this thread, its very useful

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generally NTFS is the best but if you use your PD to test various OSes mostly linux you better use FAT32.

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lol… cowboy helping terminator , about technology …

i love TE

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Yeah I also always stick to NTFS

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Have a look at this thread. FAT32 seems faster in certain cases.

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so i will use FAT32 now, thanks

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some devices and operations will only accept FAT32… so you just can’t choose between various formats.

If you are not doing anything special (like booting off a dead PC or flashing EPROMs) then stick to NTFS (for windows). NTFS will allow you to copy big files on your flash drive. As an experiment, just try copying any big movie file to your FAT32 formatted drive :face_with_tongue:

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FAT32 does support files bigger than 4GB. Now, DVD /HD quality films comes above 4GB. So, should take that in mind.

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FAT32 does not support files bigger than 4GB. You accidentally a word.

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i know about the 4 GB file problem on FAT 32, but i want to know the complete difference between fat 32 and ntfs on flash drive usage

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for USB flash drives another good formatting option is exFAT but it has limited OS uspport so any OS prior to vista SP1 may not work.

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A detailed report worth checking (though dated):
http://blog.testfreaks.com/information/usb-flash-drive-comparison-part-2-fat32-vs-ntfs-vs-exfat/

And somewhere I read write cycles of NTFS is of higher rate that exFAT and FAT32 there by reducing lifespan of flash drives.

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FAT32 then EXT3/4 then NTFS. exFAT is a big no.

If you have Linux support, then EXT, else NTFS for files larger than 4GB. If not, then FAT is the best.

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Why exFAT is a big no ? Pls.explain.

Also experienced that once flash drive is formatted in NTFS, you cannot safe remove it quick. Even after MS Windows close the copy /move window, data will pending to be written on the drive. Removing fast, without full 'Safely Remove USB Device" will either cause drive damage or data loss.
Also, the high write cycles of NTFS which can increase wear of flash drive is a concern.

EXT3/4 can only be used with Linux, so how OP can use it with windows which is a major OS in use ?

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even I want to know why exFAT is a big no ? even for linux users it’s going to be great :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Native-exFAT-Support-Finally-Arrives-on-Linux-365770.shtml

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no exFAT, i can only use FAT32 or NTFS, somthing that dont harm the pendrive

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Still no body is explaining why exFAT is bad. Honestly wanted to know the reasons. I thought it did mature enough, is Microsoft’s own tech and should be better option. What are the cons of using exFAT ?

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i use ext4 without journal. later i’ll use F2FS. these are fastest filesystems for SSDs.
don’t know windows compatibility for these filesystems. all my computers & devices are linux based so i use ext4. once my router (wrt-based) starts supporting F2FS, I’ll switch all my pen drives to it.

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The main reason for a no to exFAT is the one off chance it may not work at a place you may want. This may sound ridiculous - but Windows XP is still popular in cyber cafes where you might need a printout - and they do not update their systems :face_with_tongue:

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now that’s a though not very good but a true reason :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes: anyway, MS has released an update for supporting exFAT file format in xp.