FAT32 ,NTFS & exFAT. Where the difference is??

Most of us must have formatted a storage device on our computer ,and while doing so we need to select the file system according to our needs .For eg. we select fat32 if we want to use that drive with our smartphone using OTG or we select NTFS because that's what we know is the best type of file system and is mostly used with windows OS.

But have you ever bothered to know, WHY? or to know what's the difference between these file systems?

NO? No problem , bother now!!

Here's what you must know about file systems!!!

A file system is basically a set of rules used to decide how data is stored and fetched in a storage device. It provides a way of organizing a drive.

Windows is one of the most used and most popular operating systems in the world and it provides it's users with 3 types of file systems:

FAT 32 NTFS exFAT

But,what's the difference?

File Allocation Table 32 (FAT32)

The history of the computer has a significant place for FAT file system. It is the oldest file system in the world. The File Allocation Table (FAT) file system was developed with 8 bit and advanced to FAT12, FAT16 and FAT32. FAT32 allows you to store files of size only up to 4GB, which means that if you have a file larger than 4GB you will not be able to transfer or store it in a drive which is formatted to the file system 'FAT32'. So, the fatty file system can’t be used to install heavy apps or store large files.

THIS IS THE LIMITATION OF FAT32 FILE SYSTEM.

But wait ,it has advantages too.. #. All versions of Windows and Linux distributions support the FAT32 file system, even Apple’s MacOS provides complete support it. #. Because it’s so old, FAT32 is the standard file system. Flash drives you purchase will often come formatted with FAT32 for maximum compatibility across not just modern computers, but other devices like game consoles and anything with a USB port.

New Technology File System (NTFS)

The NTFS file system was introduced by Microsoft in the early 90s with its new Windows NT. With the development of this technology, a handful of upgrades has been introduced and added. Some of the additions are NTFS symbolic links, partition shrinking, and self-healing.

NTFS file system offers inexhaustible file size limits. As of now, it would be next to impossible for us to even reach somewhere near the boundary.The NTFS file system offers a theoretical file size of 16 EB – 1KB which is 18,446,744,073,709,550,592 bytes.The NTFS file system is advanced in system architecture. It keeps a journal of all the files stored and tracks the potential modifications in the file system.

However, it has limitations too..

Despite its advantages, where NTFS lacks is compatibility. Apple’s Mac operating systems provides read-only support for an NTFS-formatted drive and cannot write to it. Even, only a few Linux variants are able to provide write support for NTFS.

Extended File Allocation Table (exFAT)

The exFAT (Extended FAT) is another Microsoft proprietary file system. exFAT is an extended version of FAT file system. As it is light and more efficient as compared to NTFS and supports file size more than 4GB like NTFS ,it is useful in areas where the conventional FAT system does not work.High capacity SDXC memory cards are now pre-formatted with the exFAT file system because of the large file imit and more compatibility. It is more widely-compatible than NTFS, while Macs offers read-only support for NTFS, they offer full read-write support for exFAT. exFAT drives can be accessed on Linux also and most of the new gaming consoles like PS4 and XBOX ONE are compatible with it.

WHEN TO USE FAT32 ,NTFS and exFAT?

FAT32: You should use fat32 when you need your drive to be compatible practically with all the devices and Operating systems and you don't need to store or transfer files larger than 4GB. Thus ,it is generally suited to use with removable devices.

NTFS: NTFS file system should be generally used with the internal drives of your Windows computer as you don't need it to be compatible with all the devices because it will stick to your computer only .However you may format your flash drives to this file system if you don't need it to be compatible with a lot of devices and you have a file larger than 4 GB to transfer.

exFAT: Use this file system with your external hard drives or flash drives if you want to transfer or store files larger than 4 GB at the same time wanting your drive to be compatible with most of the devices.Always prefer this file system over FAT32 if the OS supports it.

After reading this article ,I hope you have a clear idea about all the three file systems offered by Windows and you can select which file system you need to use as per your needs.

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