External Hard Drive question: MacFUSE's NTFS-3G Read/Write Driver recommended?
mac newbie (and longtime windows user) here...please bear with me, i have a windows-to-mac issue and need some advice!
i have a 200 gb maxtor external hard drive that's in ntfs format, meaning that when i plug it into my macbook (running os x 10.5 leopard), the files are read-only (about 40 gb worth of documents, spreadsheets, itunes, photos, etc). i've been looking into solutions for this issue, and initially considered partitioning the external hard drive, then reformatting the empty partition into fat 32 format so that i could read/write/save files onto the hd while using the mac os.
but recently i found about about macfuse - specifically, its ntfs-3g read/write driver:
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lif...-mac-os-x.html
"[This is] a free open source program that enables Mac OS X to run file systems that OS X doesn't normally support. This includes Microsoft's NTFS, the standard file system for Windows XP and Windows Vista. Mac OS X can read NTFS-formatted drives, but cannot write to them. With MacFuse and NTFS-3G, a read/write NTFS driver, Macs gain full NTFS access."
my questions:
1) has anyone here actually tried this? does it work? can i trust this, i.e. were there any problems with data accidentally getting erased off of the external hard drive? i currently don't have a backup for all the info on my external hd and don't want to try this if it's risky.
2) even if it does work like a charm, i should probably back up my external hd, right? pretty much everything is on there (the hd was the backup for my previous computer's internal hd). what would be the best way to back up all the data - should i just get a new external hd for that purpose? or is there a better solution - online data storage? cds?
if getting a new external hd is the way to go, are any specific models of external hard drives especially recommended? i've heard seagate and hitachi are pretty good...anything else? should i be worried about my maxtor hd failing on me at some point soon (it's two years old)? a friend mentioned to me that he doesn't like maxtor's hard drives. and another friend's western digital external hd just failed on her, although she's not sure of the source of the problem (could be just a power issue).
3) if macfuse is not recommended for my issue, should i go ahead and partition the external hard drive, then reformat the empty partition to fat 32 (or some other format)? is there a free way of partitioning external hard drives (seems that boot camp doesn't work, while iPartition appears to be payware)?
thanks for taking the time to read this, and looking forward to your help, guys!
i have a 200 gb maxtor external hard drive that's in ntfs format, meaning that when i plug it into my macbook (running os x 10.5 leopard), the files are read-only (about 40 gb worth of documents, spreadsheets, itunes, photos, etc). i've been looking into solutions for this issue, and initially considered partitioning the external hard drive, then reformatting the empty partition into fat 32 format so that i could read/write/save files onto the hd while using the mac os.
but recently i found about about macfuse - specifically, its ntfs-3g read/write driver:
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lif...-mac-os-x.html
"[This is] a free open source program that enables Mac OS X to run file systems that OS X doesn't normally support. This includes Microsoft's NTFS, the standard file system for Windows XP and Windows Vista. Mac OS X can read NTFS-formatted drives, but cannot write to them. With MacFuse and NTFS-3G, a read/write NTFS driver, Macs gain full NTFS access."
my questions:
1) has anyone here actually tried this? does it work? can i trust this, i.e. were there any problems with data accidentally getting erased off of the external hard drive? i currently don't have a backup for all the info on my external hd and don't want to try this if it's risky.
2) even if it does work like a charm, i should probably back up my external hd, right? pretty much everything is on there (the hd was the backup for my previous computer's internal hd). what would be the best way to back up all the data - should i just get a new external hd for that purpose? or is there a better solution - online data storage? cds?
if getting a new external hd is the way to go, are any specific models of external hard drives especially recommended? i've heard seagate and hitachi are pretty good...anything else? should i be worried about my maxtor hd failing on me at some point soon (it's two years old)? a friend mentioned to me that he doesn't like maxtor's hard drives. and another friend's western digital external hd just failed on her, although she's not sure of the source of the problem (could be just a power issue).
3) if macfuse is not recommended for my issue, should i go ahead and partition the external hard drive, then reformat the empty partition to fat 32 (or some other format)? is there a free way of partitioning external hard drives (seems that boot camp doesn't work, while iPartition appears to be payware)?
thanks for taking the time to read this, and looking forward to your help, guys!
Comments
When the heck is Apple going to add NTFS? It's half-assed, just like read-only FTP in the Finder. I'd hoped they were going to add NTFS writing in 10.5. Perhaps in a 10.5.x point update? 10.5.2, anyone know? They should hire these folks, eh. And leave it open.
yeah, i agree. unfortunately, as a longtime windows user who recently switched to mac, i have to find a way to have full access to my ntfs-formatted external hard drive - even though i have a windows partition on hd. i mean, i can read/write/save to my external hd while using vista, of course, but i'd like the ability to do so while using mac os, as well. hence my original post.
yeah, i agree. unfortunately, as a longtime windows user who recently switched to mac, i have to find a way to have full access to my ntfs-formatted external hard drive - even though i have a windows partition on hd. i mean, i can read/write/save to my external hd while using vista, of course, but i'd like the ability to do so while using mac os, as well. hence my original post.
Try this product:
http://www.paragon-software.com/home/ntfs-mac/
It is commercial and costs money ($30 now, $40 later), but that can sometimes be a good thing (support, continued development).
I've used it and it seems to "just work". It has an easy install/uninstall, etc... I've not had any problems so far... using it to edit video in FCP and such. They have a free short trial period, so you can try it before you buy it. Give it a shot.
I agree that Apple really needs this build-in to the OS. I've been ranting on this for years. I do a fair amount of cross-platform video editing and this has always been a big problem. Up until now we've used MacDrive on our Windows machines and used HFS+ formatted disks. I think with this option out now (and seeming to work well), I'll probably switch to using this.