I'm planning to transfer files from my Windows computer to a new Mac via an external hard drive. I did some digging and learned that the drive should be formatted as exFAT so that it can work on both systems. But does this wipe the data on my drive? What can I do to prevent data loss? Thanks in advance!
No, formatting a drive to exFAT will not wipe the data on it. It only removes the data, which means the data can be recovered via a professional data recovery tool. (They cannot be recovered from the recycle bin.)
You'd better back up all the files first before formatting your external drive to exFAT since the formatting process will remove all data on your drive. Fortunately, you can use Qiling Disk Master Professional to clone all your data on the external hard drive to another drive for backup.
#1. Clone data on the external drive:
Step 1. Launch Qiling Disk Master. Go to "Tools" > "Clone Data Disk".
Step 2. Choose your source and target disk for cloning.
Step 3. Choose the destination disk layout and click "Proceed" to begin the cloning. Confirm the warning message and hit "Yes."
After backing up, you can then format the external hard drive to exFAT without any concern. Still, Qiling Disk Master can help you with the formatting process in a fast and easy way.
#2. Format the external drive to exFAT:
Step 1. Launch Qiling Disk Master. Select the partition of the external hard drive and choose "Format".
Step 2. Choose "exFAT" for your drive.
Step 3. Click "Proceed" to begin.
Step 4. Hit "Yes" to confirm the warning.