change filesytem from fat32 without format

jasone · 05-20-2005, 08:05 AM

Hi!

I have an old windows partition with important files on it so I can't format it. I don't wave any windows OS on that computer and want to change its file system to reiserfs or ext3. Is there a way to do this without losing my files (reformatting)? It's possible to change in windows so I hope it works with linux too.

If this is possible please give me a hint how to do it.

jschiwal · 05-20-2005, 08:20 AM

Your best bet may be to backup and verify the files, and then make a reiserfs or ext3 filesystem fresh.

jasone · 05-20-2005, 08:25 AM

Yes I know but I dont want to do that... It's to many files...

J.W. · 05-20-2005, 04:54 PM

How about just mounting that partition, then copying over the files you need? -- J.W.

jasone · 05-20-2005, 07:42 PM

Well I know about those things but I just want to change the file system and leave the files on the same partition as I can do with windows. If there's no way to do this in linux I'll stay with fat32...

Thanks for showing interest btw...

J.W. · 05-20-2005, 11:26 PM

You cannot just reformat the drive with a new filesystem while simultaneously preserving all the data. To elaborate on my previous comment, I'd suggest mounting the drive under Linux, copying the files to your home directory, and then you could reformat the partition at will. To convert a FAT32 to ext3 or reiserfs though without affecting the data would not be possible, as far as I know. Good luck with it -- J.W.