Hey guys,

I got a quick question. I'm going to be getting a 1TB external hdd. My question is, do I have to format it? If so what format do I have to use, so I can access it through both Windows and Linux. I'd like to not have to partition it. I would like to have one nice big library. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.
-Ant

Welcome to LQ.

Out of curiosity what is the make/model? It sounds pretty sweet. Anyhow, Yes it probably will need to be partitioned and formatted, and if it's critical that it be accessible from both Windows and Linux, then realistically, the only option is to use FAT32. (There are utilities that attempt to write to NTFS from Linux, or access ext2 from Windows, but they should be considered in the experimental stage, and aren't appropriate for important data). I don't recall the upper limit for a FAT32 partition, but it may be smaller than 1T and if so, you'd need to set up mulitple partitions.

Of course, keep in mind that even if the files you put on the drive are visible to both Linux and Windows, that doesn't necessarily mean that you'd be able to use them under both OS's. In other words, a Windows .exe file won't be executable under Linux, and a tarball .tgz file won't be recognized by Windows. Only file formats that are common to both systems will be easily accessed, such as .txt, .mp3, .jpg, and so forth.

here is a 1tb drive. I dont know if it is the same one but i am looking to get this one once i can find the money. I also agree that fat32 is your best option because it will go up to 8 TiB according to wikipedia and will work with both linux and windows

That's the exact one that I'm getting lol. Thanks guys. I know that certain files I won't be able to use from both Microsoft and Linux. But are you saying that I can just format the whole drive with a FAT32. If I really need to partition then I will. I'd rather not though. Thanks for the feedback guys!
-Ant

you can format the entire thing as fat32 since it supports up to 8 TiB. All drives need to be formated in one way or another in order to be used. You could format half as ext3 and half ntfs but it depends on what you are using it for. Since it is removable i think you want fat32

Thanks guys! You have been a great help. I will format the whole disk at Fat32. I am very excited to get my hdd. That's so much space, I have to make sure it's protected. Thanks again guys.
-Ant

Fat 32 has a file size limit of 4 GB, which can be a real pain.