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Many Seagate and LaCie drives are preformatted exFAT for compatibility with both Mac and Windows computers. If you use the drive with only one type of computer, you can optimize file copy performance by formatting the drive in the native file system for your operating system—NTFS for Windows or HFS+ for Macs. There are two ways you can optimize performance:
Toolkit Optimize | Format your drive for optimal performance with just a few simple clicks. Only available when initially setting up Toolkit for your drive. |
Manual formatting | Use Disk Management (Windows) or Disk Utility (Mac) to format your drive in non-native formats. |
NTFS—The native file system for Windows. macOS can read NTFS volumes but cannot natively write to them.
Mac OS Extended (HFS+)—The native hard drive file system for macOS. Windows cannot natively read or write to HFS+ (journaled) volumes. This is the best format if you intend to use your drive with Time Machine.
exFAT—Compatible with Mac and Windows. exFAT is not a journaled file system which means it can be more susceptible to data corruption when errors occur or the drive is not disconnected properly from the computer.
Toolkit is designed to help you initially choose the appropriate drive format for your storage needs.