NTFS or FAT32?

[skyblue]

on customer PC's i build with XP, should i use NTFS or FAT32?

NTFS seems like it offers little for the home user. and watching all the problems people are having on the Windows XP security newsgroup with "permissions and security" when they are using NTFS makes me think i'm just asking for support trouble later on if i use NTFS.

what do you guys think? NTFS not worth the trouble on home customer PC's?

also when installing XP on a new PC, i don't get the option to format as FAT32... so i think i need to format with a win98 disk first, then install XP and "use existing format". correct?

tia...erick thanks,
eric

 

[Snakeyeskm]

Just a suggestion but if you set up your disk with two partitions with the primary CDrive at Fat32 and your DDrive as a data drive with NTFS you can get the best of both worlds while making the backup process easier later.
I am prettry sure that the install cd for WinXP has all you need in it to reformat your Hard drive.

 

[paparazi]

I guess it assumes if your are already using NTFS then why would you want to GO BACK to an older and inherently less stable platform.
Yes formatting with a windows 98 startup disk would be one way to regain the option.
NTFS is definately the way to go and I carn't see anyone disagreeing??????
Martin Replying helps further our knowledge, without comment leaves us wondering.

 

[Steve688]

I'd have to agree with the above post by Paparazi. With Win2k or XP, NTFS is the more stable, faster file system.

 

[Wirdo]

For new systems with large drives NTFS is the way to go. You shouldnt have security problems on a home pc as the home user should be a Administrator (if setup correctly) and have full access to the drive.

 

[skyblue]

take a look at the Microsoft Windows XP newsgroups,

http://communities.microsoft.com/Ne...&newsgroup=microsoft.public.windowsxp.general

especially the Security forum... a big bunch of the questions are from home users using NTFS as an administrator and they can't access this file or that folder or this program won't run because XP says they aren't an administrator when they are.

(in fact, on my own PC, i can't run the System Information App because it says i'm not an administrator.. and i am!, plus i have had some apps not install because XP said i don't have permission to modify a registry setting, all while being the only user and an administrator)

just seems like i'm going to create service call problems for myself if i install NTFS.

FAT32 isn't really unreliable in my experience... so other than the ability to set permissions by user on folders and files (which doesn't seem to be working 100% per the newsgroup postings), then NTFS seems to be more trouble than its worth.

anyway, thanks for the comments.. thanks,
eric

 

[paparazi]

skyblue
I have to wonder why you asked the question in the first place as you have obviously made up your mind already.
Sounds like you talked yourself into a FAT32 install.
Martin Replying helps further our knowledge, without comment leaves us wondering.

 

[wolluf]

I must be a minority - I've never had any serious problems with ntfs (unlike fat/fat32). Yes its more difficult to access if problems occur - but there are utilities which let you. Chkdsk has properly recovered situations (mainly with my children's PCs) that I know scandisk would at best have produced lots of numbered folders and filechk files.

Still, as Martin says, you've made up your mind.

 

[cdogg]

skyblue,
Some older apps (16-bit and pre-98 apps) don't work as well under NTFS for some reason or another. Your argument about there being lots of posts in the XP "Security" forum about problems with NTFS doesn't take the context into consideration. I mean, what kind of posts do you expect to see in there. Remember, there are hundreds of thousands of users that are on XP with NTFS. Though there appears to be a lot of problems, it is only a small fraction.

Trust me, for every user having a problem with NTFS, there are at least 20 that don't - and that's a modest figure! Also, I have to agree with paparazi that it seems you had your mind made up to begin with...



~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein

 

[skyblue]

well, yes, my mind was already made up. i was hoping someone would mention something that would be a killer reason to go with NTFS. but the only reasons seem to be that its 'new'.

being 'new' isn't a good enough reason really.

thanks for the comments.
thanks,
eric

 

[cdogg]

Well actually, out of all the posts above, I only see one that says to go for it because it's 'newer' (from paparazi). A lot of other posts also mention because it is can be faster on larger drives and tends to be more stable.

Look, there's no clear advantage to either unless you're talking about security. Yes, NTFS is newer, but it's definitely not new. It's been around for quite some time. Many system/network admins will tell you that NTFS is the preferred file system for speed on large hard drives (file servers and databases) or RAID arrays.

For home users, why bother? I agree there. This is no place for the average home user...


~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein

 

[wolluf]

Side issue - is ntfs newer than fat32 (not fat16, fat32?)

 

[cdogg]

wolluf,
Generally, no. NTFS came after FAT16 and HPFS but before FAT32. However, NTFS has many different versions and continues to be improved with each new release of Windows NT systems. The version that came with NT 4.0 was 1.2 while the version with XP is 3.1. Also, XP gives you the option to use NTFS5 which adds Encryption, Disk Quotas, Sparse Files, Reparse Points, and Volume Mount Points.

There are some links below that will help give more insight on the different file systems. Typically, FAT32 is preferred on smaller partitions (20GB or less) since NTFS's speed advantage doesn't pick up until you move above 30GB and/or using file-servers or databases.

http://www.swynk.com/friends/rice/fats.asp

(Be sure to read the "Overview" link)

http://www.ntfs.com/ntfs_vs_fat.htm

http://www.ntfs.com/faq.htm

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...oc/en/choosing_between_NTFS_FAT_and_FAT32.asp

http://www.digit-life.com/articles/ntfs/index3.html

(this one compares performance)


~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein