Summary
How to remove the use of master boot record from an external hard drive? Ask Question Asked 7 years, 5 months ago. Active 11 months ago. Viewed 8k times 2. I have a 1TB external hard drive and I want to slice it into different partitions. When I try to do so, I get this error: can not modify external drive because it uses master boot record. Important: If you’re partitioning your internal physical disk because you want to install Windows, use Boot Camp Assistant instead. Do not use Disk Utility to remove a partition that was created using Boot Camp Assistant. Instead, use Boot Camp Assistant to remove the partition from your Mac.
For Apple Mac users, there are two ways to format USB flash drive to FAT32, including Disk Utility and Terminal command line. Refer to detailed steps of using both tools for FAT32 format. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Otherwise, you can only use data recovery software to recover data from a formatted USB drive.
Are you looking for a secure way to format USB flash drive to FAT32 on Mac? You are at the right place. Follow here, you will find two methods that will assist you in doing so on your storage device and if you lost data due formatting, reliable Mac file recovery software is ready to help anytime:
Workable Solutions | Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
---|---|
Method 1. Use Disk Utility | Connect USB to Mac > Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility > Select USB and click 'Erase'..Full steps |
Method 2. Use Terminal Command | Connect USB to Mac > Hit cmd + space keys > Type terminal and hit Enter..Full steps |
Bonus Tip. Recover Formatted Data | If you lost data due to formatting, run EaseUS file recovery software > Scan and recover formatted data..Full steps |
How to Format a USB Flash Drive with Mac to FAT32
Many computer users who use a removable flash drive have the demand for formatting it to the FAT32 file system. Compare with the other commonly used NTFS file system on a flash drive, FAT32 has a compatibility advantage across many operating systems.
It's a universal format that is compatible with Mac OS X/macOS, Windows, Linux and DOS systems. So, if users anticipate using the flash drive with more than one operating system, they will definitely benefit from the FAT32 file system. For Apple Mac users, there are two ways to format a USB flash drive to FAT32, including Disk Utility and Terminal command line. Refer to detailed steps of using both tools for FAT32 format.
Method 1. Format FAT32 on Mac [Disk Utility]
To format USB to FAT32 with Disk Utility will erase all data on the flash drive, so before you doing so, please do remember to check whether you have saved useful data to another secure device in advance.
To format the USB drive to FAT32, follow the next steps:
Step 1. Connect the USB flash drive to your Mac computer.
Step 2.Go to Applications > Utilities > Double click and open Disk Utility.
Step 3. Select your USB flash drive on the sidebar, choose Erase.
Step 4. Rename the USB flash drive, choose the format as MS-DOS (FAT) for Format, Master Boot Record for Scheme. Then click Erase.
Wait for the process to complete, then you’ll get an empty new USB flash drive with FAT32 as the file system. You can reuse it for saving data again.
Method 2. Format FAT32 on Mac [Terminal Command Line]
The command-line behavior does the same way to erase data with the Disk Utility. Again, create a backup before taking this action.
To format FAT32 with Terminal, follow the next steps:
Master Boot Record Vs Guid For Mac
Step 1. Connect your USB flash drive to your Mac computer.
Step 2. Hit cmd + space to run Spotlight, type: terminal and hit Enter.
3. Type:diskutil list and find out which disk is your USB drive. (In the below picture, you can see that /dev/disk2 is the USB drive)
4. Type: sudo diskutil eraseDisk FAT32 MBRFormat /dev/disk2.
- sudo gives you user right.
- Diskutil calls disk utility program.
- eraseDisk commands to format.
- FAT32 sets the file system.
- MBRFormat tells disk utility to format with a Master Boot Record.
- /dev/disk2 is the location of the USB drive.
Wait for the process to complete. After this, you can type: diskutil list in command again to check if the formatting has been successful.
Complementary Data Recovery Tip
Mac torrent cinema 4d. Formatting would erase data completely, make sure that you have a data backup. Otherwise, you can only use data recovery software to recover data from a formatted USB drive.
EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard has both Windows and Mac versions, so it's the optimal choice for data recovery, no matter you're using a PC or Mac. If you're a Mac user, for example, it takes only a few clicks for the software to scan and display your formatted data. To guarantee an effective data recovery without spending money to no avail, you can install the Mac data recovery free version for the first trial. You can preview all the found data before the final recovery.
To recover data from a formatted FAT32 USB flash drive on Mac, follow the next steps:
Step 1. Correctly connect your USB flash drive to your Mac. Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. Start selecting the flash drive and click Scan to let the software search lost files on it.
Step 2. After quick scan and deep scan, all files will be presented in the left pane in the scan results.
Step 3. Select files you want to recover and click Recover Now button. Don't save the recoverable files to the USB drive itself in case of data overwriting.
Sep 09, 2020 • Filed to: Windows Computer Solutions • Proven solutions
A Master Boot Record corruption or damage can occur due to factors such as virus infection, an installed third-party partitioning software, and so on. This could lead you to receive such error messages to indicate that your MBR is corrupt or there is an error occurring while loading your Operating System or an invalid partition table. Using the steps in this article for each Operating System, you will be able to fix and restore MBR on your Windows once again. This will enable you to boot your system properly without any error message showing. Before you dive into the solutions for restoring MBR on Windows, you can recover all your data from your system with the use of the tool that will be introduced to you: The Recovery Data Recovery app.
Part 1. What is MBR?
The acronym MBR stands for Master Boot Record. It is also called the master partition table or the partition sector. The MBR is the first boot sector or region of your hard disk that holds necessary information about your hard drive’s partitions. This information shows how and where an OS (Operating System) is situated so that it can be loaded into the main storage of the computer or its RAM (Random Access Memory). The MBR is a vital part of the startup system of your PC. It is normally created upon the first installation of your Windows on the first partition created by you. It makes up your hard disk’s first 512 bytes.
Part 2. What Happens If MBR is Damaged or Corrupted?
If your Windows’ Master Boot Record is corrupted or damaged, it simply means your computer won’t function. There are some other boot errors you may encounter when your MBR is damaged; they are indicated by error messages including:
- Bootmgr is missing
- Invalid Partition table
- An Error loading operating system
- Reboot and select proper boot device
- Operating System not found
In a nutshell, the MBR is a vital part of your system booting. This means that if it suffers from one corruption or damage or the other, then it will prevent your system from booting.
Part 3. How to Restore MBR in Windows 10/8.1/8/7
To restore your Windows MBR, you will need to utilize a command prompt to run the command “bootrec.exe”. The steps for achieving this vary for different Windows versions; these are divided as follows:
1. Restore MBR in Windows 8/8.1/10 via Command Prompt
Before you can restore the MBR in Windows 8, 8.1, or 10, the original Windows installation DVD is needed. Once you have this, proceed with the instructions below:
- Use either the original installation DVD of your Windows or the recovery USB to boot your system. Depending on the instructions given, choose “Next”
- A welcome screen will appear. Here, you are to select “Repair your computer”
- Select “Troubleshoot”
- Choose the option “Command Prompt” from “Advanced options”
- In the Command prompt window, input the commands that follow below:
bootrec / FixMbr
bootrec / FixBoot
bootrec /ScanOs
bootrec /RebuildBcd
Mac Dual Boot Switch Os
- After each command, always press the “Enter” key on your keyboard, then wait for it to finish operating before moving on to the next one
- Once they are all done, remove the installation DVD from your PC’s disk tray
- Type in the command: exit. Next, tap the “Enter” key again
- You can check again if your Windows can now boot. How do you do this? By restarting your PC. If the above doesn’t work, then input the following commands in the Command Prompt field, remember to press “Enter” after each command to continue:
bcdedit / export C:bcdbackup
c:
cd boot
attrib bcd –s –h –r
ren c:bootbcd bcd.backup
bootrec /rebuildbcd
- The above commands will export, as well as erase the BCD store. After this, it will use the command “Rebuildbcd” to restore MBR in Windows 7.
- You need to confirm the addition of the installation to the boot list, as well as exiting the command line window. To do this, press “Y”
2. Rebuild MBR in Windows 7 via Command Prompt
To rebuild MBR in Windows 7 using Command Prompt, you need the original installation DVD of your Windows 7 to boot.
- Boot your system from the installation DVD of Windows 7.
- Instruction will be given to “Press any key to boot from CD or DVD…”; obey that
- Choose the language of your choice
- Choose your preferred keyboard layout and select “Next”
Master Boot Record Mac High Sierra
- Ensure you click to tick the option “Use recovery tools that can help fix problems starting Windows”. Then go on to choose your operating system and select “Next”
- You will be taken to a new window labeled “System Recovery Options”. From the list of options here, select the “Command Prompt” option.
- Here, input the following command and press the “Enter” key afterward:
bootrec / rebuildbcd - Again, type the following command and press “Enter”:
bootrec / fixmbr - Finally, type another set of commands and press the “Enter” key:
bootrec / fixboot
- Remove the installation DVD from your system’s disk tray. Restart your PC
If this set of commands doesn’t fix the problem, you can use the second method as applied to Windows 7. This is where you export and erase the BCD store while using the “RebuildBCD” command to do the rebuilding or fixing of the MBR.
Part 4. How to Recover My Data if Windows Won’t Boot Due to MBR Error
This should be your trump card. Your files are more important than anything else, so this is the point where you utilize a data recovery software to get your files back. And you’re in luck because there’s a great tool out there that fits the bill.
Recoverit Data Recovery is an excellent data recovery software that has been praised and patronized the world over for its efficiency. Its user-friendliness belies just how powerful it is, so if you lost your files via formatting, accidental deletion, virus attack, and, of course, corrupt MBR, Recoverit is what you need to rectify the problem and get your files back. Just follow the steps below.
Step 1 – Create Bootable Media
Edit Master Boot Record
First thing’s first: You’ll have to create a bootable media that will enable you to access the drive to be scanned. Think of this as a way to circumvent around the corrupt MBR to get to your files.
You’ll need a second computer and an empty thumb drive-or CD/DVD, but USB works best. Plug the thumb drive into the working computer, then install and Launch Recoverit on it. Click on “Recover from Crash Computer” and then on “Start”.
You’ll then be taken to a page where you can create the bootable media with 2 options to choose from. Select either USB or CD/DVD and hit “Create”. You’ll see a prompt asking you to format the USB. Click “Format”, then on “Create” again.
The next window you’ll see will be Recoverit downloading the firmware needed to create the bootable media. Once done, Recoverit will proceed to format the drive and create the bootable media. Unplug the USB or eject the CD/DVD once you see the prompt notifying you of the completion of the process.
Step 2 – Boot Computer with Bootable media
Master Boot Record Or Guid Partition Table For Mac
Plug the bootable thumb drive or insert the CD/DVD into the system with the damaged MBR-but before doing this, make sure you’ve changed settings in BIOS. Set it to boot from the CD/DVD or USB drive.
Restart your system and you’ll be able to boot into the faulty system. Plug in an external drive into the system too, because you’ll need it to save the files you recover.
Step 3 – Select Recovery Mode
You’ll be given two options in the subsequent window: “Hard Disk Copy” and “Data Recovery”. Select the latter and then select the drive where the files you want to recover were once stored. Click on “Start” and Recoverit will begin scanning the drive for your files.
Step 4 – Recover and Save
As Recoverit scans the drive, the list of your files will keep growing. You’ll even be able to preview them before the final stage of recovery. Even better, you can select and preview the different file types or formats too-pictures, videos, etc.
Once the scanning is done, just choose a location to save the files (the external drive you plugged in earlier) and click on “Recover”. Recoverit will handle the rest.
The Bottom Line
Master Boot Record (MBR) is a key part of your system’s booting process; this has been made quite obvious above but just for emphasis, take note. This is why you must learn how to fix it in case it gets damaged or corrupted. Now that you do know how to fix it, aren’t you glad you read this manual?
Computer Data Recovery
- Windows PE
- System problems
- PC Errors