It's obvious that Windows PCs and Mac computers are quite different. But besides their many major differences, there are also smaller distinctions that If you choose to format, it will erase everything from the drive and you’ll end up with the empty space. This is fine if you just want a free drive to use.
A free application included with the Mac operating system, is a multipurpose, easy-to-use tool for working with hard drives, SSDs, and disk images. Among other things, Disk Utility can erase, format, repair, and partition hard drives and, as well as create.
![How to erase flash drive in mac How to erase flash drive in mac](http://www.howtoisolve.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/3-Erase-USB-Drive.jpg)
Note: This guide is for the version of Disk Utility found in OS X 10.10 Yosemite and earlier. Disk Utility underwent some changes in the version included with OS X El Capitan and the new macOS version of the operating system. If you need to format a drive using OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) or later, check out. Screen shot courtesy of Coyote Moon, Inc.
Disk Utility works with disks and volumes. The term 'disk' refers to the drive itself. A ' is a formatted section of a disk. Each disk has a minimum of one volume. You can use Disk Utility to create a single volume or multiple volumes on a disk.
It's important to understand the relationship between a disk and its volumes. You can erase a volume without affecting the rest of the disk, but if you erase the disk, then you erase every volume that it contains. Disk Utility has three main sections: a toolbar that spans the top of the Disk Utility workspace; a vertical pane on the left that displays disks and volumes; and a work area on the right, where you can perform tasks on a selected disk or volume. Disk Utility is located in Applications Utilities. If you plan to use Disk Utility for system maintenance purposes as well as for working with hard drives, add it to the. Right-click the Disk Utility icon in the Dock and select Keep in Dock from the pop-up menu.
Screen shot courtesy of Coyote Moon, Inc. Erasing a volume is an easy way to. Many multimedia applications, such as Adobe Photoshop, need a large amount of contiguous disk space to work. Erasing a volume is a faster way of creating that space than using third-party. Because this process erases all the data on a volume, many multimedia-savvy individuals create small volumes to hold a project's worth of data and then erase the volume before starting the next project. The data-erase method outlined here doesn't address any security issues that may be associated with the erased data.
In fact, most data recovery programs would be able to resurrect the data that was erased using this simple process. If you're concerned about security, consider using the secure erase procedure addressed later in this guide.
Erase a Volume To erase a volume:. Select a volume from the disks and volumes listed at the left side of the Disk Utility window. Each disk and volume is identified by the same name and icon that it displays on the Mac desktop. Click the Erase tab. The selected volume's name and current format display in the right side of the Disk Utility workspace.
Click Erase. Disk Utility unmounts the volume from the desktop, erases it, and then remounts it on the desktop. The erased volume retains the same name and format type as the original. If you need to change the format type, see how to format a Mac's hard drive using Disk Utility later in this guide.
Screen shot courtesy of Coyote Moon, Inc. Disk Utility provides four options for securely erasing the data on a volume. The options include a basic erase method, a slightly more secure erase method, and two erase methods that meet or exceed U.S. Department of Defense requirements for erasing confidential data from hard drives.
If you're concerned about someone being able to recover the data you're about to erase, use this secure erase method. Secure Erase If you're concerned about someone being able to recover the data you're about to erase, use this secure erase method. Select a volume from the disks and volumes listed on the left side of the Disk Utility window.
Each disk and volume is identified by the same name and icon that it displays on the Mac desktop. Click the Erase tab. The selected volume's name and current format display at the right side of the Disk Utility workspace. Click Security Options to display erase options that vary depending on the version of the Mac OS you are using. For OS X Snow Leopard and Earlier. Don’t Erase Data.
This method is quick, but not secure. It removes the volume's catalog directory but leaves the actual data intact. Zero Out Data. This method provides a good level of security. It erases the volume's data by writing over it with zeros. The length of time this method takes depends on the size of the volume.
7-Pass Erase. This method meets the security requirements of the standards for erasing magnetic media. This erase method can take a long time.
35-Pass Erase. This is the highest level of data erase security that Disk Utility supports. It writes over the data on a volume 35 times.
Don't expect this erase method to finish any time soon. For Through The dropdown Secure Erase Options menu presents options similar to the ones available in earlier versions of the operating system, but it now uses a slider for making choices instead of an options list. The slider options are:.
Fastest. This is the quickest erase method. It doesn't scramble the file data, which means a recovery app may be able to resurrect the erased data.
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Zero Out the Data. This erase method writes a single path of zeros to all locations on the selected volume or disk.
Advanced recovery techniques could restore the data, but it would require a great deal of time and effort. Three-Pass. This is a DOE compliant three-pass secure erase. It writes two passes of random data to the volume or disk and then writes a single pass of a known data pattern to the volume or disk. Most Secure. This method of securely erasing a volume or disk meets the requirements of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) 5220-22M standard for securely erasing magnetic media.
The erased volume is written to seven times to ensure the data can't be restored. Make your selection and click the OK button to close the Security Options.
Disk Utility unmounts the volume from the desktop, erases it and then remounts it on the desktop.
The behaviour of the trash bin is a little different in Mac OS X compared to Windows. As far as I can remember, Windows will immediately delete files from removable media (such as USB flash drives) and use the trash bin only for local drives. Mac OS X places files in the trash first, regardless of where they were before. Try the following: delete a file from your USB drive and watch the trash bin in the dock.
When you remove the drive, the trash will appear empty, even though you didn't empty it. Once you re-insert the drive, the trash will appear as full again and will show the file you just deleted. This means that Mac OS X stores deleted files in a folder named.Trashes (the '.' Hides the folder from Finder, so you don't see it) on the flash drive. Empty the trash while the flash drive is mounted, and the space will be freed. The behaviour of the trash bin is a little different in Mac OS X compared to Windows. As far as I can remember, Windows will immediately delete files from removable media (such as USB flash drives) and use the trash bin only for local drives.
Mac OS X places files in the trash first, regardless of where they were before. Try the following: delete a file from your USB drive and watch the trash bin in the dock. When you remove the drive, the trash will appear empty, even though you didn't empty it. Once you re-insert the drive, the trash will appear as full again and will show the file you just deleted. This means that Mac OS X stores deleted files in a folder named.Trashes (the '.' Hides the folder from Finder, so you don't see it) on the flash drive.
Empty the trash while the flash drive is mounted, and the space will be freed. As another new Mac user (though having desired one for years) I had the same flash drive query - reason for my visit today to the support pages. And I was interested in your comment about the delete button because it has been driving me mildly insane in the month since I got my MacBook. There is no delete button - and the backspace isn't the same thing at all, but yesterday I discovered that the shift key + end will highlight text which can then be deleted by backspacing. I gues it will take a lot of practice to find out all the subtle things that make a Mac a Mac - but I don't swear at my Mac like I have to swear at my PC Hi Have read on the forum about flash disks, I have read the Info and I have read and write permissions. I am sharing, USB 1 and 2, flash disks between PC and my new Mac Book. Fine for reading or writing.
But, problem arise when erasing files, the disk space is not released, te disk space seems to be locked? I can only really erase on the pc not on the Mac. Another stupid question, is there no 'delete ' key on the Mac keyboard?
Do I need to say that I am a new Mac user? Apple Footer. This site contains user submitted content, comments and opinions and is for informational purposes only.
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