In the left hand pane, under external, look for your SD card.Open Spotlight Search (command + space) and search for Disk Utility.Plug in your SD card reader and insert the SD card into the appropriate slot.This is quick and easy to do, especially of you know what settings to choose:
The native method of formatting an SD card on Mac is to use the built-in Disk Utility.
Format sd card for mac encrypt how to#
How to Format an SD Card on Mac Using the Disk Utility If you already have a dock with USB A ports then a standard USB SD card reader will work just fine.īe sure to get a card reader that can accept both full-size SD cards and the more common micro-SD type. So only go the more expensive route if you were in the market for a dock anyway. Card readers by themselves are pretty inexpensive, but docks can be quite pricey. If your Mac doesn’t have an SD card slot, you’ll need to buy a USB SD card reader or get a USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 dock that features one as one of its ports.
Older MacBooks have built-in SD card slots, so using an SD card on such machines is straightforward. If you have a recent MacBook, you probably know that there are no ports on your computer besides two or four USB-C Thunderbolt 3 ports. What You Need to Format an SD Card on Mac These are only appropriate for internal Mac drives and external drives that will only be used with a Mac, where data integrity is also important.
Format sd card for mac encrypt manual#
Check the manual for the device the SD card is destined for to ensure you pick the optimal format.ĭon’t choose any of the macOS journaled formats. exFAT has the advantage of supporting file sizes larger than 4GB. Most devices and computer operating systems can read either of these formats. There are various formats that you can use for SD cards, but most of the time the correct choice is either FAT32 or exFAT. So next we’ll look at which format is best for an SD card. The main consideration is whether the device you’re going to use the SD card with can read that particular format or not. There are various format types, each with their own pros and cons. You’ll also want to format an SD card when you need to use it in a device that needs a different format from the one the card currently uses. Making it a quick indicator of drive health. If the card is faulty, a format will usually fail. If the SD card is still physically fine, you can usually format it and keep using it. Such as a loss of power while writing to the card. It can also happen as a result of a glitch or accident.
Either because you’ve already backed it up, it’s become corrupted, or you don’t want it anymore.ĭata corruption on an SD card means that either the card or device has an issue. So the first situation in which you’ll format an SD card is one where you don’t care about the data that’s on the card. That’s quite a big job and also means all data on the disk is lost. It’s a bit like building the library shelves before filling them with books. Make sure you’ve selected the right drive letter! When to Format an SD Cardįormatting a disk, which includes SD cards, rewrites the structure of the disk so that devices know how to store, retrieve and delete data. So if you’re able and the data currently on the card matters, back it up somewhere.Īlso, double-check that you are in fact formatting the SD card and not another drive such as a USB thumb stick or external hard drive. In case you didn’t know, formatting will erase all of the data on your SD card.
0 kommentar(er)
