Rufus Boot Camp

Rufus is a free, portable open-source utility that you can use to create bootable USB flash drives. Rufus is small in size, but it surprisingly has everything you need as far as the above are concerned. Does Rufus Have a Mac Version? Rufus is primarily a Windows application and currently, it supports 64 or 32 bit Windows XP/7/8/10 only.

  • Rufus is an application that is used to safely boot your Mac devices. You can also check out the Microsoft office for mac free. download full version. Features of Rufus For Mac Rufus Format USB flash drives, pen drives and supports commonly used NTFS, FAT, FAT32, exFAT, ReFS, and UDF file system.
  • Nov 19, 2018 Rufus for PC Windows XP/7/8/8.1/10 and Mac Free Download. Rufus for PC Windows & Mac: Rufus is the small utility, which can format and create the bootable USB flash drives, such as the.

If you need to format a USB flash drive, HDD, SDD, or some other form of storage to FAT32, you've come to the right place.

In this article we'll go over what a file system is, the FAT32 standard, and several ways to format a storage device to FAT32 on Windows 10.

What's a file system?

A file system is a standardized way of organizing data on a computer storage device like a flash drive or HDD.

A file system divides a storage device into virtual compartments, almost like a wall of post office boxes, and keeps track of all the information that gets stored in each box.

Some of the most common file system formats for portable storage devices are FAT32, NTFS, and ExFAT.

FAT32 compared to other formats

Of those three common formats, FAT32 is the oldest and most widely supported. Every major operating system will allow you to read and write from a USB flash drive that's formatted to FAT32.

Meanwhile, macOS can only read NTFS drives, and you would need to install third-party software to write back to the drive.

However, though FAT32 is well supported, its maximum drive and file size is severely limited when compared to newer formats like NTFS and ExFAT:

Max drive sizeMax file sizeWindowsmacOSLinux
FAT3232 GB (Windows), up to 16TB (Other OSs)4 GBRead/WriteRead/WriteRead/Write
NTFS8 PB*16 EB**Read/WriteReadRead/Write
ExFAT128 PB*16 EB**Read/WriteRead/WriteRead/Write

* 1 petabyte is about 1 thousand terabytes
** 1 exabyte is about 1 million terabytes

Note that the maximum drive and file size of NTFS and ExFAT is so large that there's basically no limit. (But it would be nice to have a 128 PB USB drive, wouldn't it?)

On the other hand, FAT32's max file size of 4 GB is almost nothing now that phones can record 4K videos. Also, it's a little more difficult to format a drive larger than 32 GB to FAT32 on Windows 10.

These days, the only reason why you'd choose to format a drive to FAT32 is for compatibility. For example, if you need to boot up an old computer, maybe with a different operating system, and backup some of its files. But you'd need to be sure that none of those files are greater than 4 GB.

If you're sure you want to go with FAT32, here's how to format a storage drive on Windows 10.

Important note: Before you format a drive, make sure that you backup all of your important files. In fact, make two backups, and keep one on a remote service like Google Drive or Dropbox.

Formatting a drive will delete all of the data that's currently on it.

How to use Windows File Explorer to format a USB drive to FAT32

A quick note about this method: it only works on USB flash drives that are less that 32 GB. If your USB drive is larger than 32 GB, check out one of the later methods.

With that out of the way, plug your USB drive into your computer and open Windows File Explorer.

Next, right-click on the drive on the left hand side of the File Explorer window and click 'Format':

In the window that pops up, ensure that 'FAT32' is selected. Also, feel free to rename the USB drive whatever you'd like:

You can leave the rest of the options alone. Just click start to format your drive.

Once it's done, your USB drive should be formatted to use the FAT32 file system.

To double check this, open File Explorer, right click on your USB drive, and click 'Properties'.

A window will pop up and you should see that the file system is now FAT32:

How to use Rufus to format a USB drive to FAT32

If your USB drive is larger than 32 GB, you'll need to use a third-party program like Rufus to format it.

There are lots of other programs that can format USB drives, but Rufus is really small and portable. This means you can stick Rufus right on a USB drive, plug it into any Windows computer, and format other drives on the go.

After you download Rufus, double click on the .exe file to start the application.

Make sure your USB drive is selected. Then, click the 'Boot selection' dropdown and select 'Non bootable':

Next, click the 'File system' dropdown and select 'FAT32'.

Also, feel free to change the name of your USB drive under 'Volume label':

Then, click the 'Start' button to format your drive. After a few seconds it'll be formatted to FAT32.

Rufus Boot Camp Windows 10

How to use PowerShell to format a USB drive to FAT32

While this method works with drives larger than 32 GB, it's really slow – even formatting a 32 GB drive can take up to an hour depending on your computer.

But, if you aren't able to use the previous two methods for some reason, this will work in a pinch.

First, click on the Windows Search Bar and type in 'powershell'. Then, click 'Run as administrator' to launch PowerShell with elevated privileges:

In the PowerShell terminal, enter the following command:

format /FS:FAT32 DRIVE_LETTER:

Use the File Explorer to double check your drive letter. My drive letter was D, so I entered format /FS:FAT32 D:.

Press Enter, make sure your USB drive is plugged in, and press the Enter key again to start the process:

Then go run some errands or something – it will take awhile.

Once the format command is finished, your drive should be formatted to FAT32.

In closing

Now you should be able to format a USB drive of any size to FAT32 on Windows 10. And with just a little modification, any of these methods can be used to format your drive to another file system like NTFS or ExFAT.

Now get out there and format all your USB drives. (But only after you backup everything important!)

Was this helpful? Is there a better method that you know of? Tweet at me and let me know how you format things on Windows 10.

  • Before you begin

Before you begin

Boot

To install Windows 10 Education Edition from IUware, or if you have a Windows 8.x installation disk but do not have an optical (CD/DVD) drive on your computer, you can create a bootable flash drive for the installation.

On a Windows computer, you can use either a tool from Microsoft, or the Rufus software; using the Microsoft tool is generally simpler, while Rufus has some additional features.

What you'll need

To complete the process, you'll need:

  • A Windows or macOS computer connected to the internet.
    On a Windows computer, you must have administrator privileges.
  • A flash drive with at least 8 GB of space
    The process described below will delete any data currently on your flash drive. Make sure to back up your flash drive's data to another storage location before proceeding.
  • A valid product key that came with your Windows software. For Windows 10, this will be available on IUware. For Windows 8.x, this will be with the disc you purchased.

Insert your flash drive before beginning.

Create a bootable installation flash drive forWindows 10 Education Edition

This process will delete anything saved on your flash drive. Save anything you want to keep before following these steps.
  1. Go to Windows 10 Education on IUware, and select either the 32-bit or the 64-bit version. Review and accept the terms, and then click Get product key. Copy the product key to use later.
  2. Download and run the Academic Media Creation Tool. Accept the license terms, select Create installation (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC, and click Next.
  3. On the 'Select language, architecture, and edition' prompt, leave the default selections.
  4. To have the Microsoft tool create your bootable flash drive, make sure your flash drive is plugged in, select USB flash drive, and click Next.

    If you plan to use Rufus instead, select ISO file and click Next. This will save the .iso file to your computer; then, to use Rufus and your .iso file to create a bootable installation flash drive, follow the directions below.

Create a bootable installation flash drive forWindows 8.1

See Recommended Windows operating systems at IU.

Download Windows 8.1

  1. Go to Download Windows 8.1 Disc Image (ISO File).
  2. From the Select edition drop-down menu, select Windows 8.1, and click Confirm.
  3. Select the desired language and click Confirm.
  4. Select the 32-bit Download or the 64-bit Download (recommended, unless the machine you're installing on doesn't support it), and download the disk image.

You can now use the .iso file to create a Windows 8.1 bootable installation flash drive using either a Windows tool or Rufus.

Create a bootable drive using the Windows USB/DVD Download tool

This process will delete anything saved on your flash drive. Save anything you want to keep before following these steps.
This method formats the flash drive using the NTFS file system, which is incompatible with UEFI (secure boot). You will have to disable secure boot, if enabled, in order to boot from a USB drive made using this tool.

To create a bootable installation flash drive using the Windows tool:

  1. Download and install the Windows USB/DVD Download tool. The final four letters of each file (before .exe) represent the language and region of the installer. Download the one for your desired language/location.
  2. Open the Windows USB/DVD Download tool. The tool refers to itself as an older version tool, but works for Windows 8.1 media creation.
  3. When prompted, browse to your .iso file, select it, and click Next.
  4. When asked to select the media type for your backup, make sure your flash drive is plugged in, and then choose USB device.

    You may be prompted to insert the USB device even if the flash drive is already inserted. Ignore this, and choose the USB device you'll be writing to.

  5. Click Begin Copying. If prompted, confirm that you wish to erase the flash disk.
  6. The .iso files will start copying to the flash drive; the process can take several minutes. When it's finished, close the wizard and eject and remove the flash drive.

Create a bootable drive using Rufus

Rufus

To use Rufus to create a bootable drive that is compatible with UEFI, follow the instructions below.

Use Rufus to write an .iso file

  1. Download Rufus. Rufus is a standalone program and does not require installation.
  2. Open the Rufus program from where you downloaded it to run it.
  3. From the Device drop-down menu, select your USB drive, if it isn't automatically selected.
  4. Under 'Boot selection', select Disk or ISO image (Please select), if it isn't already chosen, and then click SELECT to choose the .iso file you downloaded.
  5. Leave 'Image option' set to Standard Windows installation.
  6. Leave 'Partition scheme' set to GPT.
  7. For 'Target system', select UEFI (non CSM).
  8. Under 'Format Options', to ensure the flash drive is compatible with UEFI, select FAT32 for 'File System'.
  9. To create the flash drive with the 'Press any key to boot from USB' prompt at startup, under the 'Advanced format' options, select Create extended label and icon files.
  10. When you are finished selecting options, click Start. When prompted, confirm that you want to erase the flash disk.
  11. The .iso files will start copying to the flash drive; the process can take several minutes. When Rufus is done, close the program and eject and remove the flash drive.

Create a bootable installation flash drive on a macOS computer

In macOS, the option to create a Windows flash drive appears only when the computer does not have an optical drive. If your Mac has an optical drive, the option will be either missing or grayed out.
  1. From the Finder, open the Applications folder, and then Utilities.
  2. Open the Boot Camp Assistant, and then click Continue. The next screen should give you a list of options.
  3. UITS recommends making the USB drive installer first. You don't need to install Windows or download the support software at this time, as it will be easier to do both later. To proceed:
    1. Verify that the USB drive you will be writing to is plugged in.
    2. Uncheck the Install Windows 7 or later version and Download the latest Windows support software from Apple options.
    3. Check Create a Windows 7 or later install disk and click Continue.
  4. Your USB drive should be listed in the 'Destination disk' area. Use choose to browse to your .iso file; after selecting it, click Continue.
  5. If prompted, confirm your action and/or provide an administrator password. The process of writing the .iso file to the USB drive can take 20 minutes or longer.

Rufus Boot Camp Reviews

Other resources

Rufus Boot Camp

WebsiteArticle
Windows 10 ForumsHow to create a bootable USB flash drive to install Windows 10
Windows Eight ForumsHow to create a bootable UEFI USB flash drive for installing Windows 8.x
How-To GeekHow to create bootable USB drives and SD cards for every operating system
TechverseHow to create a bootable Windows 7 USB flash drive