Unable to access external hard disk drive in Windows XP

Question

Note: I can access a flash disk drive formatted as exFAT. Just not my external HDD. So, you can imagine I have installed the exFAT update for winXP.

My external HDD was formatted in Mac OS X as exFAT. I'm able to access it via Windows 7 and 8, but not thru WinXP. When I go to Disk Management in WinXP, it shows the volume as a GPT Protective Partition without a logical letter.

What should I do to be able to access my external HDD via WinXP?

Solution

Windows XP 32-bit cannot access GPT-formatted drives to my knowledge, thus to be able to use it with a Windows XP computer, you would reformat it in MBR. This can be done in Mac OS with Disk Utility (Under the "partition" tab), or from Disk Management in XP (I believe called "initialize"), and will destroy all data on the drive.

If you cannot reformat the drive, some products claim to allow mounting of GPT-formatted drives in Windows XP, though due to their cost I can't test or vouch for any of them.

From Microsoft:

GPT disks are supported only by Windows XP 64-Bit Edition. You cannot move GPT disks to computers running the 32-bit versions of Windows XP.

Comments

[Karolinger]

I have updated my post to point out that I have already installed the exFAT update. And I still can't access my external HDD.

[Nicole Hamilton]

I assume you've already rebooted, so apparently the update doesn't work as advertised. That's surprising but possible, I guess. In that case, I would copy the drive, reformat it as NTFS and write it back under Win7.

[Karolinger]

If you read my edit, you would see that I can read a flash disk drive formatted as exFAT, just not my external HDD.

[Karolinger]

I remember that I was able to access it via WinXP to make a backup for my uncle. I'm not sure, but, I think the issue seems to have started after using it with Win8.

[Nicole Hamilton]

If you read my comment, I would copy the drive, reformat it and rewrite it under Win7. It's possible that Apple's implementation differs in some unexpected way from Microsoft's and that it's compatible with Win7 but not the XP update.

[Karolinger]

I guess I will have to see when I have access to a Mac.

[Karolinger]

My memory fooled me, I used my exFAT formatted USB flash drive to make the backup. So, yes, you are completely correct. I have read that Windows XP x64 edition can access GPT but only for data.

[HopelessN00b]

This is not the same scenario as the OP described.