Re: Use of FAT32 with WXP

Rod Pemberton wrote:
: Huge? AFAICT (links below), it never does. Maximum is 16KB for
: FAT32, not 64KB of FAT16. I'd guess you're thinking of FAT16.
:
: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/140365

The link above indicates:

"Note This only applies to Windows NT 3.5, 3.51, and 4.0. It does
not apply to Windows 2000 Setup, which formats the partition using
the file system you choose."

So with that in mind, reading that page can get confusing if you
do not keep your focus on what's what.

I believe Win2K and XP both partition AND format a disk as FAT32
before converting it to NTFS (during ANY Microsoft install?). For
some reason that rings a bell with me but I don't know if that's
something left over from NT4 installs or if it still applies to
all Microsoft OS.

The following link presents some rather interesting info:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314463

"You cannot format a volume larger than 32 gigabytes (GB) in
size using the FAT32 file system during the Windows XP installation
process. Windows XP can mount and support FAT32 volumes larger than
32 GB (subject to the other limits), but you cannot create a FAT32
volume larger than 32 GB by using the Format tool during Setup. If
you need to format a volume that is larger than 32 GB, use the NTFS
file system to format it. Another option is to start from a
Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me)
Startup disk and use the Format tool included on the disk."

Microsoft also provides an OEM formatting utility with most Windows
versions, maybe located in the following folder on the Windows XP CD:

\SUPPORT\TOOLS\DEPLOY.CAB

It contains an oformat.com file and some other files that could be
of use. NOTE that format holds a .com extension. So this may explain
some of the 32KB issues, as if the format.com/oformat.com file uses
uses 16-bit "signed integers" for the cluster/sector size.

I ran a format.com file from WinMe and it does NOT start up an
instance of ntvdm.exe, so perhaps the file is a 32-bit exe with
..com extension? The same is true for the oformat.com application
that came with Win98SE pre-installers (pbf) (found in perhaps the
DEPLOY.CAB file that comes with Windows 98). It also does NOT start
up an instance of ntvdm.exe, but it does look for DOS and does NOT
run if it cannot find a version of DOS.

--
Jim Carlock
Natural Cure For Pink-Eye (Conjunctivitis)
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/381336/saliva_a_natural_cure_for_conjunctivitis.html

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Top Ten Reasons to Not Wait for Vista
    ... Third-party tools have always been developed and shipped for Windows which take over the problem of Security. ... Microsoft chose from the beginning to make it's OS open-ended, rather than closed, as Apple chose to make their OS. ... Having installed Windows hundreds of times, a 15 minute install is definitely an improvement. ... However, I do not believe this will be the "normal" install, unless a "Quick" format is chosen, rather than a "Full" format, which will almost always take a minimum of 30 minutes by itself. ...
    (comp.sys.mac.advocacy)
  • Re: help to access external HD from PC and Mac
    ... format it in fat32. ... access from PC and Mac thru USB/Firewire. ... inherent benefits as there are with NTFS over Fat32. ... Creating a partition using Windows Setup booted off Windows CD can probably ...
    (comp.arch.storage)
  • Inside the Recovery dvd help please...
    ... I recently posted about converting NTFS to FAT32 ... E-machine, drivers, bundle software, Windows etc.,after looking at it ... with WinXP home on a recovery disk, recovery didn't work, so I ... message *cannot format a removable drive*. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: How do you format in Fat32?
    ... "In Windows Vista, you can format a FAT32 volume only up to 32 GB." ... ExFAT partitions can be read by ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.vista.general)
  • Re: Achieving a FAT32/NTFS partition?
    ... A friend of mine has a Win XP laptop and recently bought an external ... hard-drive which is Windows and Apple compatible. ... he ought to have FAT32 for his Apple files/external ... I am not sure if he has tried to format the hard drive previously and that ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.perform_maintain)