Merge 2 partitions of an external hard drive on Mac
Patshak31
Posted messages
4
Status
Membre
-
Chris -
Chris -
Hello, Good evening… I found several topics but none provided me with my answer. Many ask if they can do it without losing data… For me, it's both simpler and more complex. Let me explain. I have an empty disk! a WD 3TB. When I connect it… a 2.2TB partition and another 800GB one appear. Given that the disk is empty, it should be simple… but it’s not! It's impossible to reformat the disk to see a single 3TB drive with "Disk Utility". I specify that this disk was previously used in a NAS which apparently partitioned it in its own way.
I’ve tried everything… erased each partition… deleted one or the other hoping to stretch the remaining one as I read here and there… Nothing works… I also tried using tools like iPartition… Still nothing… I think I need to do this through the terminal… if anyone has an idea… THANK YOU
I’ve tried everything… erased each partition… deleted one or the other hoping to stretch the remaining one as I read here and there… Nothing works… I also tried using tools like iPartition… Still nothing… I think I need to do this through the terminal… if anyone has an idea… THANK YOU
5 réponses
Welcome to the Forum, Patshak31 :)
If you've ever thought about using diskutil commands to completely erase the hard drive (which is empty of contents), I'm sending you the steps to follow :). Note: this tool (diskutil) is very powerful, so you need to be careful with the actions you initiate through it.
@Patshak31, will you use this HDD only on MACs? I'm asking because of the appropriate file system (format) to select. The following action will assign it the native format for MAC, which Windows cannot handle.
To do this: Application > Utilities > Terminal. Then: diskutil list to see the list of disks connected to the MAC (mounted and unmounted) and all their respective partitions. Your HDD will appear there. From this list, you will take the identifier of the HDD in question: disk3, for example. Then, if the HDD is disk3, you enter the command to erase-format the entire hard drive:
diskutil eraseDisk [the file system] [the name to use] [hard drive identifier]
If you will be using the HDD only under MAC OS, the HFS+ (MAC OS extended journaled) format would be better suited for your use. In this specific case, the command to enter would be:
diskutil erasedisk JHFS+ [the name to use] disk3
Keep me updated, @Patshak31! See you later
--
-----
If you found the answer to your question, don't hesitate to click on Resolved to help others who have the same issue ;)
If you've ever thought about using diskutil commands to completely erase the hard drive (which is empty of contents), I'm sending you the steps to follow :). Note: this tool (diskutil) is very powerful, so you need to be careful with the actions you initiate through it.
@Patshak31, will you use this HDD only on MACs? I'm asking because of the appropriate file system (format) to select. The following action will assign it the native format for MAC, which Windows cannot handle.
To do this: Application > Utilities > Terminal. Then: diskutil list to see the list of disks connected to the MAC (mounted and unmounted) and all their respective partitions. Your HDD will appear there. From this list, you will take the identifier of the HDD in question: disk3, for example. Then, if the HDD is disk3, you enter the command to erase-format the entire hard drive:
diskutil eraseDisk [the file system] [the name to use] [hard drive identifier]
If you will be using the HDD only under MAC OS, the HFS+ (MAC OS extended journaled) format would be better suited for your use. In this specific case, the command to enter would be:
diskutil erasedisk JHFS+ [the name to use] disk3
Keep me updated, @Patshak31! See you later
--
-----
If you found the answer to your question, don't hesitate to click on Resolved to help others who have the same issue ;)
I used the disk utility to help me, in addition to the terminal. To have admin rights, you type before the command:
you enter the code, then (in my case)
I took out an old 2.5-inch 500GB hard drive that was "really slowing down" my setup. It will be replaced by an SSD that is 300 times faster. The old one will be my external HDD for backup (or other) connected with its USB 3.0 cable.