ArloPro FAT32 not supported Windows 10

[rhicksArlo]

This was a huge miss by Netgear. Makes external storage essentially useless for Windows 10 operating systems. FAT32 can only be partitioned in 2GB partitions. Netgear says using multiple partitions isnt currently supported. Multiple partitions wouldn't be necessary with an NTFS file system.

[TomMac]

This may be by design to operate over more platforms....

If your backup video files gets to to the FAT32 limit of 2TB, that's quite a bit of this type of video storage.

[jguerdat]

FAT has a 4GB limit, FAT32 is 2TB (both with appropriate software).  My 16GB drive has 5600+ files on it with a total of 13GB in 2.5 months.

[rhicksArlo]

Windows 10 native file system is NTFS. FAT32 hasn't been a native file system in any platform since Windows 98

[rhicksArlo]

Not surprised but Windows 7 has the largest adoption rate because it's used in the corporate space, also native NTFS filesystem . NTFS is the native filesystem for well over 75% of the market share. I shouldn't have to use Disk Manager to partition a drive to read FAT32 or install any additional software.

[jguerdat]

Windows isn't the only operating system out there. Keeping it simple expands the user capability without adding to support. Yes, Netgear could use NTFS, EXT4 or any other format and then there would be all the folks who don't know the difference between disk capacity and RAM when asked about how much memory they have asking support what the hell NTFS is and why do they need to use it.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

[ckdxxx]

FAT32 supports partitions up to 16TB and is more or less the defacto standard for external storage for a multitude of reasons. Unlike NTFS, FAT32 is natively supported by most, if not all, modern operating systems. It is absolutely the correct choice for Arlo.

[rhicksArlo]

Supported doesn't mean it's used in the common marketplace. You would have to specifically format a partition to use FAT32 if you bought a computer running Windows from any major manufacturer. I'm stating facts not rhetoric.

[ckdxxx]

Again, variants of FAT are more or less the defacto standard for external storage. It's even part of the DCF specfiication. I'm not certain why you feel having to specify a filesystem type is such a huge burden, but it seems like a pretty low barrier to overcome.

[rhicksArlo]

Maybe im missing something, so can someone offer a solution (perhaps from the Netgear Support Team) on how to view the files from an external hard drive on a Windows 7, 8.1 or 10 computer that was formatted using the Arlo Pro Base? The only solution I'm aware of is to use Disk Manager to create a Fat32 partition to view the files from the external hard drive. I'm not seeing the drive displayed as a removable device.

[jguerdat]

ANy drive that has been formatted with FAT32 should be viewable on a Windows machine (and virtually any other OS) with no problemms.  It's a native format that doesn't require any additional software or diddling.  You should be able to simply plug the drive into the computer and it should show up.  If it doesn't there's an issue with either the computer or the drive that prevents it from being seen.

My first thought is that you simply pulled the drive out of the base without using the unmount feature in Settings, My Devices, your base, Local Storage.  That could have corrupted the filesystem which makes it unmountable in the computer.  You can try different USB ports and different computers.  What does Disk Manager show you for the drive? If you right click and choose Properties you can maybe use the Tools tab to run the Error Check feature to correct this.  Other tools may be needed to recover the data if that fails.

Keep us posted and give us details.