Format 64gb Thumb Drive

[R.M. Klippstein]

How do I Format a Scandisk 64gb Cruzer Blade Thumb Drive for jfs? I need it to backup a 63gb OS2 Partition (also jfs). I thought the eCS install CD would do it but no luck there.
Thanks for any ideas

klipp

[Dave Yeo]

Use DFsee to try to create a FAT32 system on it and then format it to JFS. Hope that it is not hardwired to use exFAT which I've heard some are.

[R.M. Klippstein]

Hi Dave, Well looks like this one is probably hard wired, I bought this because I have several other's like it only 32gb and they formatted JFS with out problems. Guess I'll try chopping it into two 32gb partitions but that probably won't work either. Any other ideas?

thanks klipp

[ivan]

Sandisk say that you can format the stick as NTFS (they are only interested in windows users) but we have formatted other versions of their USB sticks (64GB and 128GB) as jfs using DFSee.

All we do is delete the existing partition then create a new jfs partition with lvm information and give it a drive letter.  That is usually sufficient for OS/2 to be able to see it, then you can format it as JFS.

Be prepared to have a very long session when copying your 63GB partition. 

[R.M. Klippstein]

Thanks ivan, I'll give that a try, I sure hope it works as I've got to get this monster partition backed up before I loose it by inadvertantly screwing something up.

klipp

[Neil Waldhauer]

I'm using USB external hard disks in a 2.5 inch format, and I always have to use DFSee to wipe at least the first part of the drive. Big drives need their geometry set, but 64GB is small. After that MiniLVM has no problem creating a JFS partition. The advantage to using an external instead of a thumb drive is that it copies about 10 times faster.

That said, network backup is preferable.

[Eugene Gorbunoff]

Reformat utility is created specially to format USB flash disks to FAT32
http://en.os2.guru/projects/disktools/?action=desc

[Doug Bissett]

I'm using USB external hard disks in a 2.5 inch format, and I always have to use DFSee to wipe at least the first part of the drive. Big drives need their geometry set, but 64GB is small. After that MiniLVM has no problem creating a JFS partition. The advantage to using an external instead of a thumb drive is that it copies about 10 times faster.

I agree that external drives (including 3.5 inch ones) are generally a little faster, but certainly not 10x (USB 3.0 is 10x faster, but we have no driver, yet).

I do find that some thumb drives are much slower than others. Newer ones seem to be faster, especially if they are USB 3.0 devices (running as USB 2.0, of course). I have also  had one 64 GB thumb drive that had the windows large drive geometry that wasn't compatible with OS/2. It was necessary to wipe it with DFSEE, then I used MiniLVM to add the partition. Then I formatted it JFS, and it works well. If I want to use FAT32, for compatibility with windows, I format it with the canned routine in DFSEE.

That said, network backup is preferable.

True, but only if you have a gigabit LAN.

[ivan]

I have seen several people mention a MiniLVM, is that another name for the java based Logical Volume Manager or something else?  If it is something else where can it be found (a search of hobbes comes up blank) and what advantages does it have over the java based LVM?

[Pete]

Hi Ivan

MiniLVM - aka Maintenance & Installation Volume Manager - is supplied with eCS; possibly in 1.2, definitely in 2.0 and later, installed in [bootdrive]:\ecs\bin. It is a graphical interface to LVM.

The advantage over the java based LVM app is: It does not require java  :-)


Regards

Pete

[Doug Bissett]

I have seen several people mention a MiniLVM, is that another name for the java based Logical Volume Manager or something else?  If it is something else where can it be found (a search of hobbes comes up blank) and what advantages does it have over the java based LVM?

The easy way to get to it, is to RMB on either the Drives object, or the Drives folder, and select "Manage volumes..." from the menu. The main advantage, IMO, is that it masks a few stupid messages that LVM itself produces (like a whole list of non existing USB drives), and allows a few things that makes it work on larger disks.

FWIW, I haven't even thought about that really stupid JAVA version, for years. I am not even sure if it still exists in later versions of eCS. (it shouldn't, if it does). FWIW, both MiniLVM and the JAVA thing, are simply front ends for the actual LVM engine, but MiniLVM is a lot newer, and works a lot better.

[ivan]

Thanks guys, since we don't have eCS here (all ACP2 or Warp Server updated) I will have to stick with the java version.

[Doug Bissett]

I would just use LVM.EXE. The JAVA version has too many problems, IMO.