NTFS write support?

[98Guy]

I do find it necessary to use NTFS for a few jobs. I recently had to write some video files to a Video DVD for someone without a PC. Whilst it can be done in Win98 (with some difficulty in preparing the files), the simplest programs to use seem to be written for Win2K upwards, and they insist on NTFS for the freedom of creating large files. I initially ran one such program on a Win2K box with only FAT32 formatted disks, and it reliably fell over every time.

Close to 3 years ago I built a win-XP-pro system for a relative who dabbles in video editing. The system had a couple 250 gb hard drives which I first prepared as FAT-32 (with 4 kb cluster size) and then installed XP (which complained and wanted to reformat the drives as NTFS which I declined).

Various Adobe video editing software was installed, and he had no problems acquiring video from several sources (digital video cameras, off-air from TV tuner built into video card, etc) and was able to generate DVD's with several hours of content. The fact that the system had a FAT32 file system didn't seem to be any sort of limitation and all installed software worked seamlessly as far as that was concerned.

[jaclaz]

Perhaps it should adopt the Ext2/3 as native? Could it be done? Does someone have the technical understanding to do so?

Undoubtedly.

The real question is: would anyone with these abilities be willing to do that?

Current things (NOT prone to become "native" anything):

http://www.it.fht-esslingen.de/~zimmerma/s...are/ltools.html

http://www.it.fht-esslingen.de/~zimmerma/s...ols/ltools.html

http://www.chrysocome.net/explore2fs

http://www.chrysocome.net/virtualvolumes

This:

http://win2fs.sourceforge.net/index.shtml

claims that "somewhere" he has a 9x/Me version - EXPERIMENTAL - not fully working:

http://win2fs.sourceforge.net/faq.shtml#SD1

maybe he needs just some support/motivation to go on

or you could try to convince the Author of this:

http://ext2fsd.sourceforge.net/projects/projects.htm

to port the thingie to Win9x/Me

The old project:

http://ashedel.chat.ru/ext2fsnt/

was the one that was sold to Paragon

Another oldish project (read only):

http://www.yipton.net/content.html#FSDEXT2

and it's "evolution" (abandoned as well) courtesy of the Wayback Machine:

http://web.archive.org/web/20020404073442/...de/fsdext2.html

The "bases" are all available.

jaclaz

[Multibooter]

Is there any free software that gives Windows 9x systems read/write support of NTFS volumes?

With my setup, there is not much need for NTFS read/write support under Win98:

1) I am running WinXP on a FAT32 partition (initially installed onto an NTFS partition, then converted under Win98 with PartitionMagic to FAT32), so all WinXP stuff is accessible under Win98

2) I have an NTFS partition exclusively for files >2GB, which cannot be properly accessed anyway under pure Win98. eMule can create files up to 4GB on FAT32 under Win98, but I manipulate/extract these files under WinXP.

3) NTFS is a black box, protected by Microsoft's trade secrets etc. NO software producer, except for Microsoft, has access to the full documentation and details of NTFS, so any non-Microsoft software converting the black box NTFS is inheritantly problematic and probably a nightmare to support. Maybe that's why Paragon made NTFS4WIN98 freeware. PartitionMagic by PowerQuest (I used v8.01 Build 1312) does expressly not guarantee a successful conversion from NTFS-> FAT32, but it worked for me, after fixing the freshly converted partition with ScanDisk, Norton Disk Doctor and then a final check with Partition Table Doctor. Paragon Partition Manager v9.0, on the other hand, did NOT succeed in converting my NTSF partition to FAT32; Paragon Partition Manager v9.0 however CAN export files from an NTFS partition to a FAT/FAT32 partition.

4) I would be afraid to write to an NTFS partition from Win98 with buggy software, eventually the NTFS partition could become corrupted.

5) NTFS is probably past its peak: The manufacturers of SDHC cards have rejected NTFS; the standard file system for SDHC cards is FAT/FAT32

6) I am in the process of upgrading from Win98, not to Vista, but to Linux. And under Linux I don't need NTFS.

Edited January 7, 2009 by Multibooter

[Multibooter]

NTFS is not "better" than FAT, no filesystem is "better" than another, each has it's own advantages/drawbacks

I disagree, NTFS is better: better for Microsoft $$$ since it's proprietary and locks in corporate clients. Edited January 7, 2009 by Multibooter