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Cache Drive Format FAQ

Ensure your cache drive is formatted correctly to work with Suite

Updated over 6 months ago

⚠️ Naming your cache drive anything that starts with "Suite" will lead to an error and prevent you from updating the cache location.

How do I know what my Drive's format is?

OS

How to check the format

Mac

Right-click on the drive in Finder and click "Get Info" > reference the Format field.

Windows

Right-click on the drive in File Explorer and click "Properties" > reference the File System field.

What Drive formats are recommended?

⚠️ exFAT is not a viable format for Suite's Cache.

OS

Recommended Format

Mac

APFS

Windows

NTFS

Linux

Ext3/4 and above

🤔 Why can't I use exFAT as a cache drive format?

exFAT is extremely inefficient if you produce lots of small files. Suite caches in 4MB blocks meaning, a TB of cached data would be 250K files. For this reason, we always recommend not using the exFAT format as it will significantly reduce the performance of cached data.

How do I change the format of my drive?

⚠️ IMPORTANT Formatting your drive will erase all the existing files on it. If your external hard drive contains anything of use, ensure to back it up before proceeding.

OS

Steps to change the format

Mac

  1. Open Disk Utility

  2. Click View in the upper left and select Show All Devices

  3. Select drive container

  4. Click the Erase button

  5. Provide a name for the volume

  6. Set Scheme to GUID Partition Map

  7. Set Format to APFS

  8. Click Erase

  9. Click Done

Windows

  1. Right-click on the Drive in File Explorer

  2. Click "Format"

  3. Select "NTFS" for the File system

  4. Check the "Quick Format" box

  5. Click "Start"

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