Hack 45 Convert FAT to NTFS 
Use NT/2000/XP/2003's CONVERT
program to change a FAT partition to NTFS.
CONVERT is a
command-line program
with one simple function: to change a FAT
partition to NTFS. Normally CONVERT applies user and system security
settings to all of the files in the partition, but the command-line
option /NoSecurity leaves the access rights to all
files open to everyone, as if the partition were an unsecured FAT
partition.
To use CONVERT to make your C: drive NTFS:
Click Start, then Run. Type in CMD or open a
Command Prompt window. At the command prompt type: convert c:\ /fs:ntfs
If the partition has a volume label, you will be prompted to type it
in. Press Y to proceed. If this partition is also the system root, you
will see a message telling you the partition will be converted at the
next reboot. Close all open programs and restart your PC. Convert will run CHKDSK
to verify the contents of the partition and then begin the
conversion. After conversion the system will restart with the new
partition.
5.7.1 Hacking the Hack
Converting
an
NTFS partition to FAT-16 or
FAT-32 is not something Microsoft ever intended and does not support
with FDISK, FORMAT, or Disk Management tools. Rarely do you need to
gain access to files in an NTFS partition from a FAT-16 or FAT-32 OS,
but it happens. To convert to FAT from NTFS, you need to use a
third-party utility like Symantec's PartitionMagic
or V-Com's Partition Commander. Since NTFS
partitions are normally secured by the operating system, you must run
the drive you are converting under the operating system that supports
NTFS, have privileged access to the drive, and have rights to access
the partition.
If you simply need to read data in an NTFS partition from a FAT-only
operating system you can use NTFSDOS, NTFSDOS Professional, or NTFS
for Windows 98, available from http://www.sysinternals.com.
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