7. Tech Tips
page 45
LaCie Biggest F800
User’s Manual
7. Tech Tips
7.1. File System Formats
7.1.1. Mac Users
Mac OS 10.x Users:
You may customize the drive by reformatting and/or partitioning the
drive with separate file system formats. For optimal performance in Mac
OS environments, format and partition the drive as one large Mac OS
Extended volume.
Mac OS Extended (HFS+)
Mac OS Extended refers to the file system used by Mac OS 8.1 and
later. HFS+ represents an optimization of the older HFS file system by
using hard disk space more efficiently. With HFS+, you are no longer
limited by block size.
MS-DOS File System (FAT 32)
This is the Microsoft file system, more typically known as FAT 32. This is
the file system to use if you are going to be using your LaCie Hard Drive
between Macs and Windows operating systems.
UNIX File System
This is the file system based on UNIX, and is preferable for users
developing UNIX-based applications within Mac OS 10.x. Unless you
have a specific reason to use the UNIX File System, you should instead
format your drive using Mac OS Extended (HFS+), because it provides
Mac users with a more familiar operating experience.
Important Info:
If you will be sharing the
hard drive between Mac and Windows
operating environments, you will want to
follow these guidelines:
Mac OS X prefers that all partitions be the
same format, therefore only the first FAT 32
partition is guaranteed to mount.
Mac OS 10.1.x -
• Works reliably with FAT 32 partitions less
than 32GB
Mac OS 10.2.x -
• Works reliably with FAT 32 partitions less
than 128GB
• Does not mount FAT 32 partitions greater
than 128GB
Mac OS 10.3.x -
• Mounts any FAT 32 drive of any size
• Mounts NTFS volumes as READ-only
Tech Note:
Mac OS 10.3.x Users - Mac OS Extended (Journaled) Under Panther, Apple introduced journaling to the
Mac OS Extended file system, which helps protect the file systems on Mac OS volumes. When journaling is enabled,
file system transactions are maintained and recorded continuously in a separate file, called a journal. In the event of
an unplanned shutdown, the OS uses the journal to restore the file system. Journaling is also backward compatible,
and all volumes with journaling enabled can be fully used by computers not running Mac OS 10.3.x. For more
information, please visit Apple’s Web site.
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