As of 2018, Western Digital offers no shortage of external drives for Mac computers – from the My Book Essential to the My Book Pro and the My Book Studio, nearly 30 WD drives play nicely with Apple’s macOS operating system, as does the My Passport Studio model. But with more than 262.5 million PCs shipped in 2017, according to data from Statista, there’s a good chance your Passport Studio will need to play nicely with a Windows computer, too. When it comes to cross-platform flexibility, you’ve got a few options for crossing the Mac and PC streams. About eFAT and FAT32 Here’s something your My Passport for Mac Quick Install Guide might not tell you: Hard drives usually come formatted in two different ways, one catering to Windows and one catering to Mac. NTFS-formatted drives work with Windows computers, and HFS+ drives work with Mac.
WD My Passport for Mac 2TB Portable External Hard Drive Storage USB 3.0 (WDBZYL0020BSL-NESN) My Passport for Mac Portable Hard Drive – Rapid transit for your digital life. My Passport for Mac features an ultra-fast USB 3.0 interface for blazing-fast transfer rates. How to Reformat Passport External Hard Drive From Read Only to Read and Write for use with Mac computers***IMPORTANT: WHEN YOU REFORMAT YOUR HARD DRIVE YOU WIPE IT CLEAN SO MAKE SURE TO MAKE A.
However, by formatting your My Passport differently, you can ensure compatibility in a variety of different ways. Hard drives formatted to exFAT or FAT32 can read and write data on both Mac and PC operating systems, though FAT32 is limited to a 4-gigabyte-per-file size limit. Formatting your drive will erase all its data, so be sure to back it up before making the change.
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External Drive for Mac to Windows 10 If you’ve got a WD external drive for Mac platforms and you want it to work on a Windows 10 PC, exFAT format is your best bet. To start formatting, connect your WD Passport to your Mac; then open “Mac HD” and click “Applications,” “Utilities” and “Disk Utility.” From the Disk Utility window, select the Passport hard drive. Here, you’ll usually see two listings of partitions available on the drive – select the listing that is furthest left. Click the Disk Utility’s “Erase” button; assign the drive a name in the “Name” field; then hit “Erase,” and click “Done” when the erasing process is complete. Now, click the “Partition” button at the top of the Disk Utility and click “Format.” Choose “exFAT” from the drop-down menu that appears and click “Apply” to format the drive, which will take a few minutes.
Once the formatting is complete and you get a message that says “Operation successful,” click “Done.” To Windows 8 and Earlier The external drive for Mac to Windows 8 transition makes use of Window’s built-in Disk Management software rather than the macOS Disk Utility, but you’ll still want to format your WD Passport as an exFAT drive. To do so, connect the Passport to your PC, enter the Windows 8 Start menu and choose “Disk Management.” In the Disk Management app, right-click on the drive and select “New Simple Volume.” from the menu that appears. This brings up the New Simple Volume Wizard. Click the “Next” button until you get to the “Format Partition” window and choose “exFAT” under “File System” (you can also change the name of the drive under “Volume label” if you wish). Make sure the “Perform a quick format” box is checked, and click “Next” when you’re ready. Click “Partition” and then “Finish” to format the drive to a cross-platform compatible exFAT mode.
Preformatted exFAT for compatibility with Windows and Mac straight out of the box, the 2TB My Passport USB 3.1 Gen 2 External SSD from WD delivers fast read speeds of up to 540 MB/s, thanks to the USB 3.1 Gen 2 bus, which is also known as USB 3.1. While built with a USB Type-C interface and bundled with a USB Type-C cable, a USB Type-C to Type-A adapter is included for greater compatibility. WD also designed this drive to be both physically and digitally secure, as it keeps itself cool, can withstand drops from height of up to 6.5', and thanks to WD Security software, your data can be protected with both a password and built-in 256-bit AES hardware encryption. Power is provided by the USB bus, meaning that no other cables or external power supplies are required. Please be aware that some functionality, such as backing up via Apple Time Machine, as well as compatibility with other operating systems, may require a reformat. Protection is provided by a limited 3-year warranty. General Features Read Speeds up to 540 MB/s This My Passport SSD features read speeds of up to 540 MB/s using the USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port to rapidly transfer data.
Its speed gives the performance needed to help run virtual machines on your computer. Hardware Encryption Store growing content on this My Passport SSD to alleviate limited internal storage space.
You can set a password to help keep it protected with built-in 256-bit AES hardware encryption with WD Security software. Technology Built for Windows or Mac, this My Passport SSD is compatible with USB Type-C and USB Type-A ports. It's USB Type-C ready to reach read speeds up to 540 MB/s. Also, it uses USB 3.1 Gen 2 bus and is compatible USB 3.1 Gen 1 and USB 2.0, as well as the USB Type-A interface. WD Reliability Built to withstand a drop of up to 6.5', the My Passport SSD is engineered from the ground up by Western Digital to be a quality drive, inside and out, and to deliver reliable performance. Automatic Backup Included WD Backup software makes it easy to automatically back up high-capacity files to your drive or a Dropbox cloud service account. Set it and forget it!
Backups are also compatible with Apple Time Machine (requires reformatting). User-Friendly My Passport SSD portable storage is ready to use out of the box.
Whether you're backing up work docs or saving large media files, just plug it in and start transferring right away. Windows & Mac This SSD is compatible with Windows 10, 8.1, and 7, plus macOS High Sierra, Sierra or El Capitan. Reformatting may be required for other operating systems. Storage Capacity 2 TB Connection Interface 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 (USB Type-C) Maximum Read Speed 540 MB/s Pre-Format exFAT Encryption 256-Bit AES Type Solid-State Drive Form Factor M.2 Security Features Password Protection Bus Power USB Cooling System Passive Environmental Resistance Shock Operating Temperature 41 to 95°F / 5 to 35°C Storage Temperature -4 to 149°F / -20 to 65°C Dimensions (L x W x H) 3.5 x 1.8 x 0.4' / 88.9 x 45.7 x 10.2 mm Package Weight 0.3 lb Box Dimensions (LxWxH) 5.2 x 4.0 x 1.3'.