Have you ever tried to access Mac-formatted drive on Windows directly? If you have, then you must know that your Windows ask to format the disk before use. NEVER click format disk because it will damage your saved data in that drive.
We all know macOS and Windows are like oil and water, So it becomes impossible to mix (integrate) them. But thanks to technology, despite all the obstacles they make it possible yet easy to access Mac-formatted drive on Windows.
Why Mac drives are difficult to read on Windows
Because both of them use different file systems.
• Windows uses NTFS for its internal drives and FAT32 for its external hard disks and USB drives.
• whereas Apple is using APFS (Apple file system) in its Macs, iPhones, iPads. APFS is the recent version of the file system, before it, Apple was using HFS+.
However, Mac drives are difficult to read on Windows, on the other side the FAT32 file system is easy for most devices including Macs to read and write from external disks and hard drives of Windows.
Methods to access Mac-formatted drive on Wind
There are 6 easy ways mentioned in this article. Whether paid or free, for APFS or HFS+ everything is covered and explained clearly.
1. MacDrive (This one is a paid application)
• This app works with both APFS and HFS+ drive directly within File explorer.
• Allows easy integration with the rest of Windows operating system.
3 Easy steps to follow
• Install MacDrive on your PC
• Plug your Mac disk in your PC
• Mac disks will appear like PC disks (you don’t need to run MacDrive, it will run automatically in the background)
• And it’s done, now you can read and write your Mac disk on your Windows.
Other useful features
• Ability to create and partition Mac disks directly from your Windows system.
• An efficient disk repair feature and powerful security tools.
There are two versions of this application
• Standard Version costs 3,756 Rs ($49.99)
• Pro version (costs extra)
Pro version comes with additional features such as
• support for RAID setups,
• automatic file defragmentation
• and also easy ways to create Mac ISO files.
2. Paragon APFS for Windows (This one is a paid application)
Useful features
• Provides read and write access to APFS formatted partitions
• Read and write access to compressed and cloned files
• Read-only support for encrypted volumes.
It is very hard to choose between MacDrive and paragon because both are equally efficient applications. Still, there are certain differences you can consider while choosing between them.
• Paragon supports auto-mounting that Mac drive doesn’t
• Mac drive has partition tools that paragon doesn’t
• Mac drive supports HFS+ as well as APFS. Whereas Paragon APFS for Windows only supports APFS formatted drives.
Even though Mac drive and Paragon APFS gives cut to cut competition to each other. Still, there are certain differences, on which basis you can choose from where you want to access Mac-formatted drive on Windows
And if you have both APFS as well as HFS+ formatted files then MacDrive is the more convenient as well as an economical option for you.
3. UFS Explorer Standard Access (This one is a paid application)
• It costs around 5060 Rs.
• This one is the most flexible option available if you want one solution for different operating systems. Because this app not only reads APFS and HPF+ formats but also NTFS, FAT, FAT32, UFS/UFS2, UNIX/BSD, LINUxJFS, SGIXFS, and VMware VMFS.
In case you Still use HFS+
Then also we have free as well as paid methods to access Mac-formatted file from Windows.
1. Paragon HFS+ for Windows (This one is a paid application)
It costs 1500Rs (19.95$)
But also offers a 10 days free trial so, if you don’t need it for longer period of time then you can recover your data from the drive and uninstall it (your work can be done without money)
Although it is a paid application quality usage it provides with its additional features is worth every penny while you access your
Mac-formatted file on Windows
Useful Features
• It provides read as well as write access to Mac drives
• It integrates HFS+ file system with Windows file explorer from Mac drive.
2. Apple HFS+ Drivers ( allows only read access)
If you want only read access then why waste money on other alternatives, you can install Apple HFS+ drivers for Windows.
Note: Remove MacDrive or Paragon before using it. (In case you have installed)
After installing Windows driver package follow these steps
• Coy the Apple HFS.sys and AppleMNT.sys files to C:Windows\System32\drivers
• Merge the Add_Apple HFS.reg file with your Windows
• Restart your Windows system.
• After restarting the system, your files will show up under This PC.
In case you want to edit or delete files then don’t choose this method (as it will provide only read access, you can choose other alternatives on the list).
3. HFS Explorer (completely free)
Most simplest tool to use on the list
Note: It requires Java and you also need to run the app as administrator.
Although it has not been updated since 2015 (obviously because APFS arrived) but still you can use it on older systems HFS+ to access Mac-formatted drive on Windows.
Steps to follow
• connect your Mac-formatted drive to your Windows
• open HFS explorer > it will automatically locate connected devices with HFS+ file system
• click File > and load the file system from the Mac drive
• Now you can extract files from HFS explorer to your Windows.
Note: Files that you extract from Mac drive won’t be saved in your Windows (as HFS explorer doesn’t integrate with Windows)
It will remain in HFS Explorer, from there you can copy them elsewhere.
This article is only aimed at how to access Mac-formatted file on Windows. Hopefully, it will be helpful for you to follow through the simple steps and choose the best option among all. If free options do not work for you then don’t hesitate to go for paid options, they come with additional features and advantages. So you won’t regret even choosing them. they are worth it, provided if you choose right one.
