Format Wd Hard Drive For Mac And Pc

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by Shirly Chen, updated on 2016-11-08 to Mac Data Wipe

Partition and format a hard drive. To partition and format the drive with Disk Utility, follow these steps: 1. Double left-click on the Mac HD, the internal Mac hard drive visible on the top-right corner of the desktop screen. Choose Applications from the left-side panel. While in there, open Utilities, and lastly double-click on Disk Utility. From the Drive to format drop-down menu, select the drive and click the Format Drive button. If the drive size is greater than 2TB, the Configuration option will appear on the Format your WD external drive dialog box. Select the Factory Default option in the Configuration section and then click the Format Drive option.

Most of the Windows users know how to format Western Digital external hard drive on a PC. With built-in quick format feature or third-party disk partition tool, it is very easy to format WD portable hard drive under Windows operating system. However, for some Mac users, formatting a WD portable hard drive on Mac is not as easy as formatting a hard drive on PC. Because there is no 'quick format' feature in Mac OS and there is no disk partition tool for Mac hard disk drive. There may be some complicated instructions claim that can help you format WD portable hard drive on Mac. However, it takes too much time and is not 100% safe. Now, we have found two easy and secure solutions to help you format a WD portable hard drive under Mac OS.

1. Format WD Portable Hard Drive with Mac Disk Utility

Disk Utility is a built-in application in macOS or OS X. You can click Launchpad and find it. After you launch it, you will find all the hard drives and external hard drives on your Mac. If you are going to format the WD portable hard drive, just connect it with your Mac. Then select it and click on 'Erase' button to format the WD portable hard drive under Mac OS.

Please note that Disk Utility will erase the WD portable hard drive and format it. It means all the data on WD portable hard drive will be removed. However, the erased data by Disk Utility can still be recovered by Mac data recovery software.

2. Format WD Portable Hard Drive with Super Eraser for Mac

If you want to permanently erase the data from the WD portable hard drive, the method above is not effective. It is completely possible to recover lost files after erasing hard drive with Mac disk utility. In some cases, you need to format the WD portable hard drive and permanently wipe all existing and deleted/lost data. For instance, when you are going to resell/giveaway/lend your device or just throw it into trash, you should make sure all the sensitive data into your WD portable hard drive has been permanently destroyed – at least, no room for data recovery.

In order to format the WD portable hard drive under Mac and permanently erase all data, you need this Mac data erasure software – DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac. It is able to help you format WD portable hard drive and permanently wipe all existing and history data on the portable hard drive at the meantime. Now, let's see how to use DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac to format WD portable hard drive on Mac.

External Hard Drive For Mac And Pc

Step 1: Install and launch DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac on your Mac.

Step 2: Connect your WD portable hard drive with your Mac.

Step 3: Click 'Wipe Hard Drive' -> Select your WD portable hard drive -> Click on 'Wipe Now' button.Then DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac will format the WD portable hard drive and permanently wipe all existing data and history data.


Please note that DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac will permanently destroy and erase the data. So please back up your important files before you use it to format your WD portable hard drive under Mac OS.

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac also can help you format and wipe NTFS WD portable hard drive on Mac. It is 100% safe data erasure software, will never cause any damage to your WD portable hard drive. Download and use it to format/wipe your WD hard drive under Mac OS.

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Permanently and securely erase data from hard drive or external storage device under Mac OS with certified data erasure methods.

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You can format a hard drive on a PC or Mac using utility features.
  • You may need to format a hard drive to match your computer's operating system before you can use it.
  • To format a hard drive in Windows, you'll use the Disk Management utility; on a Mac, you'll use Disk Utility.
  • Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.

If you're adding a hard drive to your computer, you probably need to format it to your computer's operating system before you can use it.

This is easy to do with built-in utilities for both Windows and Mac computers, and the process is the same whether you're formatting an internal drive installed on a desktop PC or an external drive plugged into your desktop or laptop.

Keep in mind that when you format a hard drive, it erases all the files and it can be difficult or impossible to recover them. Be careful with this command and always make sure you are choosing the right hard drive in the formatting utility.

How to format a hard drive on Windows

1. In the Start button search box, type 'Disk Management.'

2. In the search results, select 'Create and format hard disk partitions.'

Find the Disk Management utility in the Start button search results.

3. In the list of hard drives, right click the drive you want to format. In the pop-up menu, choose 'Format…'

4. In the Format window, choose the file system you want to use. Usually, you'll want NTFS, which is the default for Windows. Make sure there is a check next to 'Perform a quick format.'

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5. When you're ready to format the drive, click 'OK.'

You can format a drive with just a few clicks.

If you want to format your Windows system drive (the 'C' drive), you can't do that when Windows is running because the drive is in use. Instead, you can download Windows 10 to a USB flash drive using the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool and boot from that. Once you've booted Windows from the USB flash drive, you can format the C drive.

How to format a hard drive on a Mac

1. In the Finder menu, click 'Go' and then, in the drop-down menu, choose 'Utilities.'

2. In the Utilities folder, choose 'Disk Utility.'

3. In the pane on the left of the Disk Utility window, click the drive you want to format.

Select the drive you want to format and then choose 'Erase.'

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5. When you're ready to format the drive, click 'OK.'

You can format a drive with just a few clicks.

If you want to format your Windows system drive (the 'C' drive), you can't do that when Windows is running because the drive is in use. Instead, you can download Windows 10 to a USB flash drive using the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool and boot from that. Once you've booted Windows from the USB flash drive, you can format the C drive.

How to format a hard drive on a Mac

1. In the Finder menu, click 'Go' and then, in the drop-down menu, choose 'Utilities.'

2. In the Utilities folder, choose 'Disk Utility.'

3. In the pane on the left of the Disk Utility window, click the drive you want to format.

Select the drive you want to format and then choose 'Erase.'

4. At the top of the window, click 'Erase.'

Best Mac Hard Drive Format

5. In the pop-up window, choose the file system you want to use. Usually, you'll want ExFAT, which is the default for the MacOS.

6. When you're ready, click 'Erase.'

How To Format Wd Hard Drive For Mac And Pc

If you want to format your Mac's system drive, you can't do that when the Mac is running normally because the drive is in use by the operating system. To get around that problem, hold down the Command + R keys when you turn on your Mac and let go when the logo appears. You'll see the MacOS Utilities window; choose 'Disk Utility.' Now you can choose to erase your startup drive, and choose 'Mac OS Extended (Journaled)' as the operating system.

Format Hard Drive For Mac And Windows

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