NTFS vs FAT32

[mrman]

I am running FAT right now but am considering converting to NTFS, and since you cannot convert back to FAT, I wanted some opinions on each before I jump.

What do you run and what are the advantages/disadvantages to each?


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ATHLON 750, GA-71XE, 256 SDRAM, 20 GB 7200 Maxtor, 32 MB G400, 52X Creative, 16X VeloCD, SB Live, WinXP Pro, Centurytel DSL

[Strawberry]

My computer had to be converted to NTFS from FAT because it just would not defrag properly. Once that was done- it defrags great. That was the only problem I had, but it was a biggie, my puter was getting crankier by the minute but it's back up to speed now.
So go for it. XP prefers NTFS for sure.

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>>Asendtechnologies.com<<

[whitebomber]

In a home environment I guess I don't see a big advantage to NTFS. Just remember too that if you are dual booting that Win95/98/ME won't be able to see the NTFS partition should you want or need to.

Also if you do get into a big bind after converting you could always buy some partition software (.ie Partition Commander) and revert back to FAT. Actually for the money it's a great tool to have around anyway.

[mrman]

Will Partition Magic 7 revert back to FAT32? I have that program.

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ATHLON 750, GA-71XE, 256 SDRAM, 20 GB 7200 Maxtor, 32 MB G400, 52X Creative, 16X VeloCD, SB Live, WinXP Pro, Centurytel DSL

[mpc]

Originally posted by mrman:
Will Partition Magic 7 revert back to FAT32? I have that program.

NTFS has greater performance, is more powerful and has much greater security than FAT 32, but requires more overhead. If I were you I'd go with NTFS. And yes, Partition Magic 7 can revert an NTFS volume back to FAT 32.

[MiseryQ]

For the Home Fat32 is all you need... You won't get any speed benefit or anything else... All you'd get is is increased security options not available for fat32... Not needed unless your running a server, and nfts takes up more room due to the needed master file table...

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DON'T CLICK HERE!!!

[OLEerror]

MiseryQ, there are several more benefits to NTFS than just security. First, it is a lot more efficient than FAT32. Second, file integrity is much greater in NTFS. Third, because of file-indexing, NTFS does offer increased performance. Fourth, it provides file-level security. This isn't just for servers. If you plan on sharing the computer with someone else, this can be a very important feature. Especially if you want to keep the kids out of certain things.

I'd say the only reason to use FAT32 is if you are planning on dual-booting with another OS.

[MiseryQ]

OH...

I've been using it since Win2k was first released I don't honestly see much difference, from using nfts, in the performance of efficiency compared to fat32, that why I posted that...

does anyoneknow a site that has a comparison between the two? I wonder exactly how much more NFTS it...

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NOW WHAT?!?

[dancin_homer]

i read somewhere that the file-indexing thing has to do with ntfs being consistent with bigger partitions, while fat increases the size. don't know what it means, but it equated out to ntfs being faster with partitions bigger than 2 gigs. but that's just what i heard...