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or FAT32 partition as the primary (or startup) partition on the hard disk. Most earlier
versions of Windows cannot access a partition if it uses the latest version of NTFS.
The two exceptions are Windows 2000 and Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 or
later. Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 or later has access to partitions with the
latest version of NTFS, but with some limitations: It cannot access files that have
been stored using NTFS features that did not exist when Windows NT 4.0 was
released.
For anything other than a situation with multiple operating systems, however, the
recommended file system is NTFS.
Important
Once you convert a drive or partition to NTFS, you cannot simply
convert it back to FAT or FAT32. You will need to reformat the drive or
partition which will erase all data including programs and personal files
on the partition.
The following table describes the compatibility of each file system with various
operating systems.
NTFS
FAT
FAT32
A computer running Windows
Vista, XP or Windows 2000 can
access files on an NTFS partition.
A computer running Windows
NT 4.0 with Service Pack 4 or
later might be able to access
some files. Other operating
systems allow no access.
Access is available
through MS-DOS, all
versions of Windows,
Windows NT, Windows
2000, Windows XP,
Windows Vista and
OS/2.
Access is available only
through Windows 95
OSR2, Windows 98,
Windows Millennium
Edition, Windows
2000, Windows XP,
and Windows Vista.
