SanDisk Part 2

[M M Marty]

Greetings, Brian:

Back on May 7th, 2021, you helped me format my new SanDisk 2TB external hard drive in order to remove the vault.  I have a new one (EHD), but I'm having a time figuring out which partition to delete.  I've gotten to the third step in your instructions, but the options that I have now look entirely different than those I worked with previously.  Would you be so kind as to let me know if the Disk One, Portable SSD (D:) that I circled is the one to delete, and if not, which one should I be addressing?  Thank you.  

 

 

[Brian]

YOU DO NOT WANT TO USE EXFAT!!! 

I’m glad you asked. You should be able to right click on the exFAT and select delete partition. Then it should have a black line across. Then right click again and it should have the add simple volume (I’m on my phone and it’s been ages since I’ve done this, so if you want screenshots, I will add later.) Anyway the trick is to delete that exFAT Partition and create a NTFS Partition in its place. Then do a quick format on the new partition. 

[Brian]

Here are my instructions again...

Deleting a Windows Partition and creating a new one is pretty straightforward; it just takes a "Common Sense Approach" and few minutes to complete. No special Utility Software is needed, especially software from the Hard Drive Manufactures; all that is required is built into the Windows Operating System. Personally, the software from the Manufacturer usually just gets in the way and causes more issues. Again, all that you need is built into the Windows OS.

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If you are using an external drive, leave it disconnected for now.

Let's begin!

1. Right-Click on the Start Button and select Disk Management:
   
   
    
2. This will bring up the main Disk Management Utility Window. Make note of which hard drives are currently mounted:
   
   
    
3. Now insert the EHD into your USB port and allow it to mount/spin up. It should appear in the list. In this example, note "Disk 1" that appeared in the list. This will be the drive that I will modifying; your Disk Number might be different. There is no difference, it's just another number in the list. It could be listed as "Disk 3" or even "Disk 5," THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT WE CHOOSE THE CORRECT DRIVE!
   
   
    
4. Select the Partition that you would like to Delete. DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THE "EFI SYSTEM PARTITION." Pick the box next to it. The box will go from a plain white background to one that has slashes in it and should be highlighted. This is Windows' way of letting you know which Partition you have chosen:
   
   
    
5. Now Right-Click on that Partition and select Delete Volume. It should go without saying, that you really-really-really want to be sure that this is the correct Partition to delete.
   
   
    
6. A Warning Message will appear asking for permission to delete. If the Partition was created on another type of OS, such as a Mac, this error message will appear differently. This is completely normal, just click "Yes" and wait a few seconds.
   
   Error Warning with a Windows-Created Partition:
   
   
   
   Error Warning with a Macintosh-Created Partition:
   
   
    
7. Now your Disk Management should have your EHD as a large, solid/continuous black line:
   
   
    
8. At this point, if your HD is 2TB or smaller, we can continue with the Wizard to create a new Partition. If your EHD is 3TB or Larger, then we will need to covert the Drive from a MBR Disk to a GPT Disk. This step ONLY affects those with EHDs that are 3TB or larger. GPT is meant to create a single partition that is larger than 3TB since MBR has a 2TB maximum limit. Make sense? To convert it to a GPT Disk, right click on the Disk # in the left column you are modifying and select "Convert to GPT Disk" and follow the prompts. (Click OK, OK, etc., etc.)
   
   Note: I do not have a 3TB Drive hooked up for this document, and am using this next example as a guide. Your 3TB HD will be larger in capacity than my smaller one that I'm using in this tutorial. The important thing is to right-click on the Drive # box that you want to convert to a GPT Disk:
   
   
   
   After Right-Clicking on the Drive # square in the left column, select "Convert to GPT Disk" and follow the prompts.
    

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   --> Please Note!! <--

   IF you see "Convert to MBR Disk," it's already a GPT Disk, proceed to Step #9 to create the partition.

   IF your only option is "Convert to Dynamic Disk..." DO NOT SELECT THAT! It's already a GPT Disk. Proceed to Step #9.
    

   
   
   
   
   Again, this is only for the folks who have 3TB or larger Hard Drives!
    
9. Now for the fun part, creating a new Partition! Right click on the area that has a black stripe and select, "New Simple Volume."
   
   
    
10. The Wizard should appear, click Next: 
    
    
     
11. Specify the Volume Size. For the majority and this example, we will leave it at the default, which is the maximum capacity of the drive. If you are going to create multiple partitions on this Hard Drive at different sizes, I'd use an online calculator tool to create the size you need. For example, if you wanted to create a 6TB partition, you would enter 6,291,456. But to keep things simple for this set of instructions, leave it at the default and click Next. 
    
    
     
12. Assign a Drive Letter. This is the spot that you can assign a drive letter if you choose. For example, if this EHD is one that will contain personal files. we could change the Drive Letter to P:\ for "Personal Drive." Again, this is completely up to you to decide. There is no right or wrong answer. If you'd like all of your EHDs to be the "E Drive" (i.e. E:\ ) then change the default to E by clicking the Down Arrow next to the Drive Letter and selecting E.
    
    
    
    After making your choice, click Next. We will leave it at "D" for this example.
     
13. The next screen is very important. It's the "Format Partition" selection. For today's modern Windows Computers' hard drives that are meant for permanent storage, you want to use NTFS for the file system on a Windows HD. Some devices like Thumb Drives, you would want to use FAT32. Again, for this example we will leave it at the default of NTFS. The Allocation Size should be left at the default and it is highly recommended that you give your HD a name, to keep things organized. "Data," "Photos," "EHD #2," etc. are all examples. Keep is short and simple.
    
    
    
    Before clicking Next, be sure to click the check-box next to "Perform a quick format!" Otherwise it will take HOURS to format your HD!
    Leave the "Enable file and folder compression" UN-CHECKED.
    
    Click Next.
     
14. A Summary Window should appear with your selections. Confirm them if you'd like and click Finish.
    
    
     
15. The Hard Drive will begin the process and Windows will assign it a letter and name. This process should take less than 30 seconds, but this depends on the speed of your computer and Hard Drive. Some complete this task in as little as 5-7 seconds, others take longer. When completed, the Disk Manger should have the drive in the list, along with the name that you chose for the drive:
    
    
     
16. Exit out of the Disk Manger and either use "This PC" or the "Windows Explorer" to use the new Drive.
    
    
     
17. With any new Hard Drive, now is the time to think of a Directory Structure on how you want to organize your Hard Drive. This is completely up to you, but I would take the time and think of how you are going to store stuff, rather than it become a dumping ground for your files/images. Here is one example:
    
    
    
    You could also keep things very simple, and have folders that are just the year:
    
    
    
    The sky's the limit! So make your Directory Structure a good one!

[M M Marty]

3 hours ago, Brian said:

YOU DO NOT WANT TO USE EXFAT!!! 

I’m glad you asked. You should be able to right click on the exFAT and select delete partition. Then it should have a black line across. Then right click again and it should have the add simple volume (I’m on my phone and it’s been ages since I’ve done this, so if you want screenshots, I will add later.) Anyway the trick is to delete that exFAT Partition and create a NTFS Partition in its place. Then do a quick format on the new partition. 

Whew!  I got it done, but I feel as if I just took a test in my high school Advanced Algebra class.  I know I stress too much.  Thank you, I will stroll over to the "Donate" tab.   

[Brian]

Here is a direct link:

Buy Brian a Beer!

[Brian]

Actually, once you have done this a few times, it’s pretty straightforward. Up at 2TB is easy. 3TB or more, there is an extra step. 
 

In case you are wondering exFAT allows both Mac & Windows Users to read/write to a EHD. Sounds like a good thing, right? 

WRONG. 

exFAT can be unpredictable and unstable at times, in which case your data goes “poof.” I do not screw around when it comes to my data. Which is why I will never recommend it being used by our members here. In my humble opinion, exFAT is something that Microsoft invented in their proverbial garage while tinkering with stuff, and never put THAT much effort into making it as stable as NTFS.