NTFS Converter

Hey,

I just recieved my w3v and so far it has exceeded my expectations.

I noticed that that hard drive was partitioned into two and there is an icon on the desktop that says NTFS converter.

1.) Is it a good idea to convert to NTFS. What does it mean and what does it do.

2.) Is there a way to remove the partition altogether.

Thanks Alot.

 

NTFS offers more security when you are using XP... if you are plaining to have multiple users on your system NTFS might be a good idea to keep your stuff confidential....you can delete the NTFS file...b/c it can be found somewhere else (manage...storage....)....

2=- yes possible to delete the other partition....download partion magic to merge the two of them...b/c the window's disk management will only delete the partition and not merge the space

 

the stock w3v install has a desktop icon saying 'ntfs converter'?

 

yup...file on your desktop

 

Here is a link to everything you wanted to know and more about the Windows file systems.
http://www.ntfs.com/ntfs_vs_fat.htm

 

FAT 32 is generally faster but NTFS is more secure.

You can use 3rd party program, such as Partition magic, to configure the HDD the way you want.

You can convert FAT32 to NTFS and certainly the opposite. You can also repartition your HDD.

Other wise you have to use FDISK in DOS but this is little more of work since you can only configure it to FAT32. You have to convert the partition to NTFS while installing the fresh new windows.

Not to mention, you will lose all the factory settings by performing the new installation. (You can always use recovery CD or make a ghost image before you do anything)

But ultimately, you would never notice the difference between FAT32 and NTFS in daily use.

 

doh! I already ran NFTS convertor... i wonder if i can convert it back to FAT32 just as easily

 

NO...

You can convert FAT32 to NTFS without a help of 3rd party program but the opposite would require a 3rd party program.

You can certainly download trial version of partition magic from Symantec. (wait... do they have it for trial version?? They do have most of their products in trial versions so I think they do..)

Anyway you can't convert NTFS to FAT32 without a special tool/App like partition magic.

 

i just converted to NTFS.

The entire machine seems noticeably slower now..

There have been no other changes to the computer other than this so the reduction in speed must be caused by conversion to NTFS...

 

Hmmm.... sorry to hear that the entire system is slower.

Too bad.

Why not convert it back to FAT32?? With help of free download and some mouse clicks.

Partition Magic is not difficult to use it at all.

Good luck

 

I think i will go back to fat32..

Is Partition Magic available online for free?

 

Partition Magic is NOT free.

But you can get a trial version of the program.

Or

You can ask someone??

 

don't want to promote piracy...but BT might be a good solution....

 

Well I didn't want to promote piracy either so I said trial version. But if you can get your hands on a full version, that's good.

But be careful...

I gotta admit though, SWs are expensive but they do have reasons to be expensive...

 

I'm wondering about this too. I just tried to install one of my old teaching programmes that used to work with Win98, and it wouldn't install on XP. When I emailed the support people, they said that I could download a patch that would let it work on XP, but only if I had NTFS, not FAT32. Since I don't really understand the difference, and don't want to potentially mess something up on my system, I've just not bothered.

So, if I do convert it, it'll make the whole system slower? Can I just convert part of the disk? Am I likely to run into other older programmes that will require this, or is this a one-off (in which case it may not be worth it).

I didn't get any sort of converter that came with my system, that I know of (M5N), so how would I go about doing it - and does it require total re-installation of Windows, other software, and so forth?

 

If you want to do partial conversion, you have to re-partition your HDD.

Meaning you have to convert the whole partition at least.

For instance, if you system has HDD partitions of C: and D:, and if you want to do conversion, you have to convert the whole C: or D:. But you can leave the other partition as FAT32.

But you CAN NOT have 2 files systems, FAT32 and NTFS, in one partition.

If your computer has the converter, it is easy and straight forward. Just run it.

Please note that if you decided to go back to FAT32, you will need to use 3rd party tools.

Your system would be slower but then most of new computers are NTFS anyway. Not only the laptops but even desktops. Asus is one of the rare company that ships their partitions in FAT32.

NTFS is just common now and there is nothing new. Of course there's nothing wrong with it and MS even recommends NTFS.

Also from what I experience, the reduction of speed is minimal. If you are not sensitive, you'd not know.

 

OK, thanks, that makes a bit more sense now.

My hard disk came already partitioned into C: and D: , so I suppose I could convert just one of those. Would that cause problems if I was using both drives? e.g. one of the drives seems to have more of the programmes, and the other one has saved documents and stuff. Could I partition it into smaller partitions and just change one of those?

Would I lose everything on the one that I converted, and need to re-install it all? What about Windows - does that need to be reinstalled?

I don't think mine shipped with a converter tool, at least not on the desktop, but perhaps it's part of Windows that I don't know about? (I have the Home edition, came pre-installed by Asus).

What is the reason Asus ships them as FAT32 instead? Is there some other advantage to this (other than perhaps minimal speed increase) that I'd be losing by converting? It seems that there must be some other reason that they wouldn't do something like this, and I like to know both sides before doing something potentially drastic...

 

That would be the advantage of Partition Magic.

You don't lose anything on the HDD.

But if re-partition your HDD using the XP's default disk manager, you will lose everything.

I don't know why Asus used FAT32 instead of NTFS. But it's very common that a lot of MFGs are using NTFS as the default file system.

 

I'm not sure if this is still true, but back when win2k was out or early in winxp's history (they both use the same NTFS version) I remember reading that Microsoft's NTFS conversion utility did not convert to NTFS using it's optimal cluster size rendering it slower than if it was originally formatted in NTFS. 3rd party utilities such as Partition Magic were/are able to give more control over the process and use the optimal cluster size. I don't remember the details about the optimal cluster size, but if this is still an issue it may be contributing to slower speeds people in this thread noticed after converting with the MS utility. Although NTFS is reported to be slightly slower, it really should not be that noticeable. Just a thought. If I get time, I can try and do some research into this.

 

The main reason to convert to NTFS is that it is in general a much better file system, it is less prone to errors, rarely needs to be defragmented and does not have the problems with corruption that FAT32 has. This is why most new systems I have seen come with NTFS rather than FAT32 partitions, simply because it is more stable and holds up better over time. You may take a performance hit, but you don't have to worry about losing data or having to reinstall windows 6 mo. down the road.

 

There are a few good reasons to convert to NTFS.
1. As your drive fills up, it'll be faster with NTFS.

2. You'll get "more drive". You'll actually get more space because of less defragmentation.

3. For me, since I do a LOT of video editing this is the clincher: With Fat32, you're limited to files sizes of 4gb or less. With video editing, I have plenty of files that are larger than 4gb. I have to use NTFS for this reason alone.

As mentioned earlier - you can hop right back from a crash with ntfs. With fat 32, who knows what could have happened.

 

I too just picked up a W3V, and wanted to switch to NTFS. do have access to Partion Magic, I just had a few questions. Will i lose any of the software if i were to merge both partions then use the NTFS file on my desktop, or should i do everything with Partition Magic?

If need be I have no problem formating the whole notebook, if need be asus supplies all the drivers.

Hope to hear from someone! This forum is great by the way guys.