How to properly setup a working FAT32 USB stick?

[David Graser]

I can no longer get newly bought USB flash drives to work under ArcaOS 5.1.  In the past, I used the reformat.exe tool from the Essentials Package.  Its license expired.  I have tried formatting with ArcaOS and DFSee to no avail. I always get unknown drive after formatting in Windows or DFSee.  I have to admit I am guessing when using DFSee to format the drives.   What I find strange is both Windows and DFSee recognize it as a fat32 drive, but ArcaOS does not.

My question is what are the proper steps to get properly formatted FAT32 working drives under ArcaOS?

[Dave Yeo]

There's directions at https://www.arcanoae.com/wiki/usb/preparing-usb-msd-disks/
DFSee also has a script to make one under Scripts-->Make FAT32  Data (USB) disk which has usually worked for me.

[Tom]

I can no longer get newly bought USB flash drives to work under ArcaOS 5.1.  In the past, I used the reformat.exe tool from the Essentials Package.  Its license expired.  I have tried formatting with ArcaOS and DFSee to no avail. I always get unknown drive after formatting in Windows or DFSee.  I have to admit I am guessing when using DFSee to format the drives.   What I find strange is both Windows and DFSee recognize it as a fat32 drive, but ArcaOS does not.

My question is what are the proper steps to get properly formatted FAT32 working drives under ArcaOS?

In DFSee: menu Scripts --> Make FAT32 Data (USB) disk
That also adds LVM information, that is needed to be usable under AOS. Just reformatting doesn't add LVM informastion.

[David Graser]

Thanks Tom!  That did the trick. 

[Martin Iturbide]

Hello

I have this article on the wiki: https://www.os2world.com/wiki/index.php?title=Prepare_the_FAT32_USB_Flash_Drive

Let me know if it is still valid, thanks for the Arca Noae link, I had added it there too.

Regards

[David Graser]

Martin, you ariticle is spot on.  Still valid.  Using the DFSee script option makes everything easy.

[ivan]

One question to add to that - how do you get a specific drive letter the the usb stick?  In days gone by, before ArcaOS, I formatted several 32 Gb usb sticks and at the end of the formatting it asked for a drive letter which I gave and they still have which makes it easy to know information on then is on the usb.

The information here does produce a fat32 formatted usb but does not allow giving a drive letter unless I am missing something.  Is there a way of giving a drive letter to usb sticks formatter this way./?

[Dave Yeo]

You can use LVM or miniLVM to give a preferred drive letter or *. The * means first available drive letter and I think is the default with removable drives. The preferred letter only gets assigned if nothing else hasn't already grabbed the letter.

[ivan]

Thanks Dave.  Why is everything so much more complicated with Arca, ,are they trying to kill off OS/2?

[Andi B.]

Thanks Dave.  Why is everything so much more complicated with Arca, ,are they trying to kill off OS/2?

Complicated compared to what? On Linux you don't have drive letters so not comparable. On Win you need to set the letter in "Datenträgerverwaltung" (English name?) too if you wanna have the same fixed one. So no difference.

What's Arca, ,? ArcaOS you mean I guess. Or does have the two commas a special meaning? I don't see any difference here compared to latest OS/2 version.

[Tom]

Thanks Dave.  Why is everything so much more complicated with Arca, ,are they trying to kill off OS/2?

Blame IBM - they introduced LVM in Warp 4 (around Fixpak 13 or so), and hence the same "complication" exists in eCS and AOS.

[ivan]

Sorry Andi,

The 2 comers were the result of my new keyboard, it is super sensitive - hold a key down a little bit longer and it repeats, the time is much shorter than the old one was.

[Lars]

Sorry Andi,

The 2 comers were the result of my new keyboard, it is super sensitive - hold a key down a little bit longer and it repeats, the time is much shorter than the old one was.

You should be able to change the delay as well as the repetition rate via the keyboard object. If that does not work and if you have a USB keyboard, then USBKBD.SYS is broken for you.

[ivan]

Thanks Lars, that did it.