Video editors will often find that they need to share files between a PC and a Mac. Use these steps to format external hard drives for both operating systems. Top Image via As a video editor or, you will often need to share files with others. Eventually you will find out that you may not be working on the same operating system (OS) as others. If you work solely on a Mac, but need to send files to someone working on a PC, your external hard drive needs to be set up for both operating systems. Let’s take a look at the different types of formats, and which are best for video production.

As you have mentioned that the external hard drive is recognizing in the Windows 7 but not accessible. So, the possible reason could be that the external hard drive is formatted in Macintosh File System. Hence, if you want to access the external hard drive then you may try to format it through Windows 7.

Formatting the Hard Drive A vast majority of video production will be done on a Mac or Windows operating system, so we aren’t going to cover Linux. Hard drives set up for use on Windows machines only will often use, while Macs will use. That said, if you are using both a PC and Mac in the workflow, you’ll need to use a different format. Image from You may be using only Macs or PCs in your own office, but you will also need to take into account what type of machines your client is using.

If you need to send them RAW files or an edited sequence, you will need to make sure the external hard drive is set up for both operating systems. To do this, you will need to use either or formats. This will allow you to use the hard drive on both a Mac and PC. FAT32 is often used among general users, but FAT32 has limitations that can affect filmmakers. FAT32 has a maximum file size of 4 GB per file.

The limitation affects both Mac and PC users. A single high resolution file can easily go over 4 GB, so Fat32 may not the best format.

The best format for video production is exFAT. The maximum individual file size for exFAT is 16 EB. 1 EB, or exabyte, is 1 billion GB. That said, if you are using smaller file sizes — FAT32 can suffice. Format Hard Drive (Mac) 1. Connect the external hard drive to the computer. Click Go on the top tool bar, and select Utilities.

Open Disk Utility. Select the external hard drive on the left-hand side. Click the Partition tab. Change the Partition Layout from Current to 1 Partition. Click Options, Select Master Boot Record, and click OK. Name the hard drive with a name of your choice. How to get xbox one controller to work for minecraft on mac. Click the Format drop-down menu.

Select exFat (or MS-DOS FAT for a FAT32 format). Hit Apply, then click on Partition. Formatting Hard Drive (Windows) Image from 1. Right-Click on the Windows icon in the lower left-hand corner.

Select Disk Management. Right-Click on the external hard drive in the Volume tab. Click Format.

Name the hard drive. Select exFAT (or FAT for FAT32). Naming and Labelling Hard Drives If you will be using multiple external hard drives on a project, you’ll want to make sure to keep them organized.

We'll also describe some of the basic issues you may encounter along the way. In ‘File Sharing With OS X 10.5: Share Mac Files with Windows XP’ we will take you through the entire process of configuring your Mac to share files with a PC. Windows Vista Network displaying shared Mac folders.