Solutions for Only NTFS Volumes Can be Protected

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Overview of NTFS file system

NTFS is a proprietary journaling file system developed by Microsoft, replacing FAT and HPFS as the default file system.

The file system helps to store and manage file information, including name, size, location, and metadata, while also maintaining memory, encrypting data, regulating access, and ensuring data security. It has undergone improvements in these areas.

• A file system that supports long file names of up to 255 characters, is not case sensitive, and allows special characters, except for ?, ", /, and \.
• The storage system can hold files as large as 16 exabytes, which is equivalent to 8 petabytes, making it a highly scalable and capable storage solution. One exabyte is 1000 times larger than one petabyte, and one petabyte is equal to 1024 terabytes. This means the system can store an enormous amount of data, making it suitable for large-scale applications and data storage needs.
• The software can compress or decompress files in a drive, directory, or directory tree individually, supporting up to 4KB cluster size.
• Since Windows 8 and Server 2012 R2, NTFS partitions support BitLocker drive encryption with a Trusted Platform Module (TPM).
• Sparse files can be used to store large files on disk space, even when there isn't enough physical space available. The default value for sparse files is zero, and they can be converted into "real blocks" with null bytes, allowing them to occupy less space on disk. This makes them useful for storing files that are mostly empty or have large gaps, as they can be stored more efficiently than traditional files.
• Disk space quotas allow for the monitoring and controlling of individual user's disk space usage, making it easier to manage and regulate storage space for users on a system.

The Issue: only volumes formatted with NTFS can be protected

When you use the built-When using a backup and restore tool to backup a system or other partitions, you may encounter an error on Windows Server 2003/2008/2012 (R2)/SBS 2003/2008/2011 or Windows 10/8.1/8/7/XP/Vista.

Windows Backup can only protect volumes formatted with NTFS, not other formats.

The cause and solution for volumes specified has an invalid format

Since NTFS is the default file system for all Windows PCs and servers, the built-in backup and restore software can only backup partitions or volumes formatted with NTFS.

The error may occur if there is a volume formatted with FAT 32 or other file system, often used in earlier Windows versions and most USB flash drives, or a system reserved partition or EFI partition.

To resolve the error, the only way is to convert FAT32 to NTFS, which can be done using Disk Management or the command prompt. Alternatively, you can use third-party backup software.

Way 1: Recreate a NTFS partition with Disk Management

If the partition that can't be backed up doesn't have valuable data, you can delete it and recreate a NTFS partition using Disk Management.

1. To open Disk Management, you can either type discmgmt.msc in the start menu and press Enter, or search for "computer management" on a server computer, select it, and click on Disk Management.

2. In the Disk Management window, right-click the FAT32 partition and select Delete Volume.

3. After deleting the old partition, the disk will show as Unallocated. To create a new partition, right-click the unallocated space and select "New Simple Volume".

4. Set NTFS as the file system in the New Simple Volume Wizard.

5. Click Next and start the creation of NTFS volume.

Way 2: Directly convert FAT32 to NTFS with command prompt

If you don't want to delete the partition, you can convert it to NTFS using the Command Prompt.

1. Close all open programs running on the FAT32 partition.

2. To start the Command Prompt, click the Start button on your Windows computer, then type 'cmd' into the search box and press Enter. This will open a new window where you can type commands.

3. To convert a FAT32 partition to NTFS, type `convert f: /fs:ntfs` at the command prompt window, press Enter, and replace `f:` with the drive letter of the FAT32 partition you want to convert.

Use third-party backup software to create backup image

You may encounter various issues while using Backup and Restore or Windows Server Backup, such as the backup not completing successfully or only NTFS volumes being protected. To avoid these problems altogether, consider using a reliable third-party backup software.

Qiling Disk Master Standard is a great option for backing up data, offering support for various backup solutions such as system backup, disk backup, partition backup, and file backup. It allows users to backup files and systems across different file systems, including NTFS, FAT32, FAT16, EXT2, EXT3, and others. Additionally, it provides benefits like backup in partition or disk, and supports all file systems, making it a versatile and reliable tool for data protection.

The software is able to run backup tasks automatically on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. The premium version also supports event triggers and USB plug-ins, with the latter being recommended for those who don't want to keep their USB drive constantly connected.

This feature helps save disk space with multiple features, including incremental backup, compression, splitting, and intelligent sector backup, among others.

It is capable of making bootable rescue media to boot a computer when it fails.

Besides backup, you can use it to clone a system, disk partition, and sync files from one location to another.

If you're looking for an easier way to backup your system, disk, partition, or files, consider downloading the free version of Qiling Disk Master to give it a try. For server users, there's also a Qiling Disk Master Server available.

• Free Download
• Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7, 100% Secure

Summary

You can only convert FAT32 to NTFS using the given methods, which can help fix the "only NTFS volumes can be protected" error. Alternatively, you can create a backup image of your disk using third-party backup software, such as Qiling Disk Master Standard for Windows PCs or Qiling Disk Master Server for server users.

With this tool, you can create backups of your entire system, disk, partition, or specific files, and even set it to run automatically. It also helps to free up disk space with various features, and if you want to resolve disk space issues completely, consider using the premium feature - automatic backup cleanup, which deletes backup files regularly. Additionally, having different backups can make recovery a breeze.

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