Which program for formatting flash drives is better

The process of completely clearing the flash drive is not much different from the formatting of the hard drive. Many users do not even think that there is any program for formatting flash drives, and also that you can use some parameters. Further it will be considered as a standard way of cleaning the drive from under the operating system, and with the help of utilities.

What is formatting?

Before you know what kind of program you need for formatting flash drives, you need to consider what kind of process it is. By formatting means the processing of the information carrier, which is associated with the ordering of its structure. The source can be either a hard drive, or a flash drive, an SD card, a solid state drive. During the formatting process, the structure of access to information changes.

It is important to note that different media have their own formatting features. So, on a flash drive all stored data is destroyed. Recovery can be done only with the help of special resuscitation tools, but no guarantees. That's why formatting can be called a rather unsafe procedure. More pleasantly, when cleaning the flash drive the system checks the structure and sometimes corrects errors.

How to format the drive in the operating system

Those users who do not even think that there is a program for formatting flash drives, use this method. You need to go through the browser to My Computer, select the drive and right-click on it. A shortcut menu will appear in which the desired item will be displayed. Here you will need to select the file system type. Often, users leave everything by default. At the bottom there is a "Start" button, when you click on which flash drive will be cleared.

Which file system should I choose?

What are the differences between file systems?

The NTFS system can store files larger than 4 gigabytes. The process of formatting is easier. Information shrinks better, which saves space.

FAT and FAT32 file systems work on all popular operating systems. When recording information in these systems, a much smaller number of disk operations are performed.

Thus, FAT or FAT32 systems are better suited for storage capacity up to 32 gigabytes and in the case when the stored files weigh no more than 2 and 4 gigabytes, respectively. For all other disks, it's best to choose the NTFS file system.

Selecting the cluster size

Clusters are components of a drive. The larger their size, the less efficient the space is used. The small size slows down the drive, because the files are fragmented into small parts and need more time to read them.

If you need to store large files on a flash drive, then you need to choose a larger size. Accordingly, when storing small files, the cluster size must be small.

Selecting a utility to format

The standard formatting method is not a panacea for the drive in the event that the service information is damaged. It is worth saying that with this type of damage, data recovery becomes much more difficult.

The operating system does not always correctly format the disk. Therefore, you need a proprietary program to restore, format the flash drive, which you need to look for on the manufacturer's website. But not every manufacturer has such utilities. Therefore, universal programs will be considered further.

JetFlash Recovery

This is a universal program for formatting flash drives in NTFS, FAT and other systems. It will be useful in the following situations:

• Faults or errors are detected on the drive.
• Information on the drive is not read.
• The user does not know how to format the media correctly.

This program for formatting flash drives is very easy to install. It works with most drive models, but some may not accept it. Plus is its free.

USB Disc Storage Format Tool

This program for formatting flash drives in NTFS, FAT 32, exFAT allows you to correctly and quickly clean the media. The main functions are:

• Remove any traces of malicious software that could infect the drive.
• It makes it possible not only to clear the USB flash drive, but also to remove all the service information and free up space that can not be released by the standard method.
• Creates a volume label.
• Finds errors when they are available;
• It can create a FAT32 volume larger than 32 gigabytes.
• Scan the drive for errors before formatting.

HDD Low Level Format Tool

This is a program for low-level flash drive formatting . Despite the name, it cleans not only hard disks, but also memory cards. Has a free version. Supports a huge number of manufacturers. The utility is capable of erasing all the information from the flash drive at the system level.

HP Formatting Software

Disc Storage Format Tool is a simple program that does not have many settings. It simply formats the disk in different file systems. Its advantage lies in the speed of operation, since the user can process media in a matter of seconds, without going into details. This utility has an interesting function: with its help you can create a bootable drive. Other programs do not know how. What is this function for? Using a bootable USB flash drive, you can install operating systems on your computer without using a disk drive, and also check the system for errors in recovery mode, when under normal conditions this check is impossible.