Swati Mishra

Updated last year

Free data converter

FAT32 Format is a free program that enables people to configure any hard drive, micro SD card, SD card, and USB drive that is more than 32 GB to the FAT32 file system. Microsoft Windows operating systems are notorious for not being able to structure a drive that is higher than 32 GB. This utility app enables the FAT32 Format community to achieve this feat.

What is FAT32?

This tool is available on Apple Mac, iOS, Linux, Microsoft Windows PC, XP, and various media players and Nas boxes as well as Norton Ghost 2003 devices. While configuring data that is larger than 32 GB on any OS can create issues, the Windows PC machines are specifically inept at formatting the file system.

Consider having a camera device or a game console that will not allow users to add more than 32 GB of data. Open up the document or file directory and locate the title of the archive. Right-click on the piece and select ‘Properties’. Next to the ‘File system’ in the window that appears will be the description: ‘exFAT’. This needs to be modified to FAT32.

What is the FAT32 Format?

Download and run the FAT32 Format software that is developed by Ridgecrop Consultants, LTD. The program is offered for free; on the official website, the developer encourages people to provide donations to continue the progression of this important application. If people want to support the creation of this utility tool, then they can donate through PayPal payments.

Ridgecrop Consultants offers a Windows PC GUI version of the FAT32Format app. The variant is known to expedite the process; this can be used if the FAT32 platform is not functioning properly. The FAT32 Format framework is lightweight and processes information in a prompt manner. Additionally, the software provides a ‘Quick Format’ procedure that can be completed in seconds after the command is given.

How do I format in FAT32?

The freeware’s user interface is clean and user-friendly. The program shows all of the commands directly within the application, which allows the community to quickly complete the process in a few clicks. When the tool has been downloaded, open the application. Ensure that the software is labeled as ‘FAT32 Format’ in the upper left corner.

The user interface will appear to be little, although the size is adjustable. Users can manipulate whether they want the UI to be minimized, full screen, or closed in the upper right corner alongside the platform’s title.

The external drive will be the first section. There is a dropdown menu below ‘Drive’ along with the archive’s information: the capacity, file type, and name. The contents within the expandable list need to match with the letter of the article that is being configured: C, E, and F.

Beneath the ‘Drive’ category, people will find the ‘Allocation unit size’ area. This can be altered to the community members' preferences: 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192, 16384, 32768, and 65536.

The numbers range from the lowest capacity to the highest; the small numbers equate to fewer data and the large numbers mean more. If the storage on the machine can handle an increase in the amount of the space taken up, then raise the capacity number. The recommendation is to keep the unit size at the default suggestion.

Below ‘Volume label’ and in the encased space, people can choose a name to give to the restructured document. Under the label, there are ‘Format options’. Either select or deselect the ‘Quick Format’ feature, which does what the title implies; the selection rapidly completes the scan and configuration procedure.

How do I format my USB to FAT32?

Locate the flash drive or disk that is larger than 32 GB that needs to be formatted. Open the application and enter the letter in the dropdown menu that correlates with the specific partition: C, E, etc. Within the next section, perhaps maintain the suggested unit size to avoid any potential problems. Within the command line, write the name of the archive.

While not required, marking the ‘Quick Format’ option will perform the configuration faster. The machine will read the file and start to translate the format into FAT32. Users will know that the method is complete when the text ‘Done’ appears followed by the proposal that if the code worked, then consider donating within the provided link.

The ‘Quick Format’ method can cause issues on a corrupt drive; since recognizing whether the partition is malicious or not can be complicated, the use of the prompt execution option is not recommended. Alternatively, run full format; while this performance does take longer, the assurance that the community will receive that their information is safe is worth the two-minute time span.

Which is faster NTFS or FAT32?

exFAT, EXT4, NTFS, and ReFS are alternatives to the FAT32 file system. Microsoft developed exFAT, NTFS, and ReFS while Linux created EXT4. Given that these developers introduced these programs, the quality of other operating systems is not yet perfected. Ridgecrop Consultants recognized the limits that the Microsoft community faces and created their freeware to help facilitate productive performance with files above 32 GB.

Enhancements and resolved issues

In the latest round of updates, FAT32 Format boasts significant improvements, particularly in handling larger partitions. The third major update addresses concerns related to creating partitions exceeding 137GB on ATA (IDE) disks. To ensure seamless operation, you must have SP1 installed on your device and ensure BIOS compatibility with LBA48. Most notable among the improvements in the present version is the GUID Partition Table (GPT) support, which enables seamless integration with modern systems. Other changes include support for varied bytes per sector and boot sector fixes.

Meanwhile, the FAT32 Format Windows GUI version gets a much-needed refresh, too. The latest version brings new life to the classic format, offering wider compatibility with GPT drives and a fix for creating bootable media. It even addresses a potential bug that renders your formatting ineffective with a workaround using FSCTL_ALLOW_EXTENDED_DASD_IO. Still, its size limitations can be a hurdle for larger drives despite its broad device compatibility. For modern use cases, you can consider exFAT or NTFS for smoother performance and handling larger files.

Enhancing data functionality

Configure archives that won’t function above a certain capacity into FAT32 systems to increase the file capabilities with this user-friendly application for Linux, Mac, and Windows operating systems. While there are alternative options to this program, the FAT32 Format is a third party perspective on the tech companies’ native software. Ridgecrop Consultants analyze the service of each corporation and blend the requirements together to create a balanced application to use.

Updates are performed consistently within the FAT32 Format system. While the app collaborates with iPod systems, the update for Android and iPhone devices has not been released. If there are issues with the program’s performance, then the developers offer for people to email them with FAT32 in the subject line.

Swati Mishra

Swati is a freelance content strategist and writer who has been working with leading brands like Softonic, MakeMyTrip, NewsCred, Tripoto, and ICN Media. She has rich experience in content writing, SEO, content curation, online marketing, content tagging, structuring, and editing. She has travelled to several countries and has received her Masters in English Literature from the University of Nottingham. When free, she likes exploring different cities around the world and reading classics and fantasy fiction. Currently, she's working with Softonic and writing technical reviews in different categories while also enriching her skills in the product content domain. She’s also planning to travel shotgun to see the world alongside her partner.

  • Pros

    • Rapid formatting
    • Supports large drives
    • Is ran instead of installed
    • Contact with admin is possible
    • Compatible with a multitude of operating systems
  • Cons

    • ‘Quick Format’ can cause corruption
 0/3

App specs

  • License

    Free

  • Version

    1.07
  • Latest update

  • Platform

    Windows

  • OS

    Windows 2003

  • Language

    English

  • Downloads

    1.7M

    Last month's downloads

    • 8.4K
  • Size

    23.50 KB

  • Developer

Program available in other languages



User reviews about FAT32 Format

3.5

8 reviews

Main reviews for you

  • Anonymous user

    App does not work. I extracted it from the zip file, but cannot open it. I think it has to do with only working on older Windows versions (W7-8-XP). If you have a newer version, it wont work

  • Anonymous user

    This app is garbage. It won't even open.\

  • Anonymous user

    Only four stars because for some reason the program would try to load and exit immediately on my HP Windows10 laptop. I'm not sure why.But I could run it from cmd (the command prompt) remembering to put the whole path and .exe file name in quotes so that the spaces didn't confuse the command line interpreter. The drive is then referred to by its letter with a colon after.For me, after putting fat32format.exe in its own folder called (what else?) fat32format, the command line was, after the >c:\Users\myname> "c:\program files\fat32format\fat32format.exe" E::If you want to use the options, simply leave out the drive letter and you will get a list of them and how to use them.If you have the same problem, consider putting this as a readme.txt file in the same folder as the .exe.

  • Anonymous user

    Thanks sooo much!. thanks sooo much. This made my life easier specifically for the seagate hard drive.

  • Anonymous user

    Good free tool. Overall the tool is good but if the card is already formatted in FAT32, the "FAT32 tool" will not reformat it again. Pros: Simplicity Cons: If the card is already formatted in FAT32, the "FAT32 tool" will not reformat it again.

  • Anonymous user

    Get it. I tried this, it`s a piece of cake, did a 64gb card in a couple of minutes

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fat32format.zip
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