How do I change my external hard drive from RAW to NTFS?
John Peck
Published May 20, 2026
Change RAW to NTFS using Disk Management. Then select “Manage” -> “Disk Management” and find your RAW storage device (SD memory card, hard disk, USB flash drive, etc.) among the volumes and right-click on it. Select the format and the file system (NTFS). Click OK.
Furthermore, how do I change my hard drive from RAW to NTFS?
After getting lost data back, you can change RAW to NTFS by formatting now.
- Go to This PC or Disk Management, and right-click on the RAW partition or drive, select "Format".
- Set Volume Label, File System (NTFS), and Allocation unit size. The default format option is Quick Format. Then, click "OK" to start the operation.
Subsequently, question is, how can I convert my raw hard drive to NTFS without losing data? How to Convert RAW to NTFS Without Losing Data
- Locate and scan the RAW hard drive.
- Find and preview found data in the RAW drive.
- Restore and save RAW drive data.
- Open "This PC" (Windows 10), righ-click the RAW disk/partition, and choose "Format".
- Select the NTFS file system and set up other necessary options.
- Click "Start" > "OK".
Moreover, how do I fix a RAW file system on my external hard drive?
How to Fix RAW External Hard Drive
- Connect your RAW external hard drive to your computer.
- Click the "search" icon in the taskbar and input cmd.
- Enter chkdsk /f G: (G is the drive letter of your RAW drive) to fix your RAW external hard drive.
- Connect your RAW external hard drive to your computer.
- Go to "This PC" > "Manage" > "Disk Management".
How can I fix my external hard drive without formatting?
Follow these steps to repair corrupt hard disk without formatting, and get back the data.
- Step 1: Run Antivirus Scan. Connect the hard drive to a Windows PC and use a reliable antivirus/malware tool to scan the drive or the system.
- Step 2: Run CHKDSK Scan.
- Step 3: Run SFC Scan.
- Step 4: Use a Data Recovery Tool.
Related Question Answers
How do I format a raw hard drive?
Connect RAW hard drive, install and launch the RAW drive formatting tool. At main interface, right click RAW drive (it will show up as Unformatted) and select Format Partition. 2. In the pop-up dialogue, choose NTFS file system and do other changes if you want to.How can I change file system without formatting?
How to change a file system without formatting in Windows 7?- Step2. Select the convert method depending on your condition. Take NTFS to FAT32 for example.
- Step3. Select the partition you want to convert from the NTFS partition list.
- Step4. Click “Proceed” after confirming.
- Note:
How do I format an SD card to NTFS?
If you plan to use SD card on Android smartphones and tablets, don't format it to NTFS as this file system might not be supported by the mobile device mentioned above.Method 1. Change SD card to NTFS via Disk Management
- Press “Windows +R” keys to open Run box, type “diskmgmt.
- Locate the SD card and right click it.
How can I recover data from a raw partition for free?
The third way: make use of the powerful tool – WINHEX.- Choose the RAW hard drive.
- Scan for lost partitions.
- Open found partitions.
- Select the files that can be and need to be recovered.
- Set a location to store files.
What is a raw partition?
The RAW partition is a partition which has not been formatted with the file system neither FAT12/FAT16/FAT32 nor NTFS/NTFS5. Besides, RAW disk it used to refer to hard disk access at a RAW, binary level, beneath the file system level, and using partition data at the MBR.Why is my hard drive in raw format?
The RAW file system can be caused by a number of reasons such as virus infection, format failure, accidentally shutdown of the operating system, power outages, etc. When a hard drive or external storage device becomes RAW, your device is unusable and you cannot access the files stored on it.How do I fix a corrupted external hard drive without formatting?
How to fix a corrupted external hard drive WITHOUT formatting- On the desktop, open This PC (My Computer) and select the desired external hard drive. Right-click it and select Properties -> Tools -> Click on Check.
- Use chkdsk.
- Use Disk Management.
- Use diskpart.
How do you fix a unformatted hard drive?
How to fix unformatted hard drives in Windows 10/8/7 easily?- Right click on the Start icon and select Device Manager.
- Find your external hard drive, right click on it and select Uninstall. Safely disconnect the drive when it's done.
- Restart your computer and connect the hard drive. The drivers will start installing automatically in most cases.
How do I run chkdsk on raw drive?
Press Win + R keys at the same time to open Run. Next, type cmd into the text box and press the Enter button to enter the Command Prompt interface. Type chkdsk G: /f /r and press the Enter button in Command Prompt. However, you will discover that CHKDSK doesn't work because The type of the files system is RAW.Why is my external hard drive not working?
Try Another USB Port and Computer The problem may not lie with your device, but the port you're using to connect it to your computer. Unplug the drive from its current USB port and try plugging it into another port on your computer. Some USB hubs don't provide enough power for your external drive to function.How do I fix my external hard drive not responding?
Reinstalling device driver- Open Start.
- Search for Device Manager.
- Click the top result to open the experience.
- Expand the Disk drives branch.
- Right-click the external drive with the problem, click the Uninstall device option.
- Click the Uninstall button.
- Disconnect the removable drive from your device.
Can a hard drive be repaired?
Short Bytes: There are many ways to repair corrupted hard drive using a Windows PC. Now, your HDD might get corrupt in two ways: the problem might occur the software level which can be fixed. But if the hardware is at the fault, you might not be able to get it back to normal and restore corrupted hard drive.Why won t my external hard drive show up?
So, verify if Disk Management tool can locate the external hard drive. Open Disk Management tool, go to Search, type diskmgmt. msc and press Enter. If the external drive is found listed in the Disk Management window, simply format it properly, so that it shows up next time you connect it to your PC.Is my external hard drive corrupted?
Press Win+R, type: cmd and click Enter; Type: diskpart and hit Enter; Type: list disk and hit Enter; Type: select disk 0 and hit Enter; (0 stands for the drive letter of your corrupted external hard drive.)What happens when you format an external hard drive?
If you format you will erase all the that is stored on this drive! Windows will as for a drive to be formatted when it cannot read/see the information it tries to access. So probably not all folders are damaged. This could happen due to file system corruption or because of too many bad sectors.How do I fix unrecognized external hard drive?
3. Turn on USB Root Hub to make WD external hard drive recognizable- Click Start > Type: devmgmt. msc and hit Enter.
- Open Device Manager > Expand Universal Serial Bus controllers.
- Right-click USB Root Hub > Click Properties > Power Management.
- Uncheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.