220-1102 Question 244
Single answerFilesystem managementA technician is preparing a 128 GB USB flash drive that will be used to move large 20 GB video files between Windows 11 workstations and macOS laptops. Users previously reported that some files could not be copied to the drive even though free space was available. The technician needs the drive to support files larger than 4 GB and be readable and writable by both operating systems without installing third-party software. Which filesystem should the technician choose?
- A
FAT32
- B
NTFS
- C
exFAT
- D
ext4
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The best answer is exFAT. In real-world filesystem management, the technician must match the filesystem to the use case rather than simply choosing the most familiar format. FAT32 is often selected for compatibility, but its 4 GB maximum file-size limit makes it unsuitable for large video files. NTFS is excellent for Windows systems and supports permissions, compression, and large files, but it is not the best choice when native write compatibility with macOS is required. exFAT is the recommended option for removable media that must handle large files across Windows and macOS. This aligns with vendor documentation and common best practices for formatting USB flash drives intended for cross-platform file transfer.
- A. Incorrect.
FAT32 is incorrect because it has a maximum individual file size of 4 GB minus 1 byte. This is a common reason users cannot copy large video, backup, or ISO files to a flash drive even when plenty of free space remains. Although FAT32 is broadly compatible across operating systems, it does not meet the requirement to store 20 GB files.
- B. Incorrect.
NTFS is incorrect for this scenario because while it supports files much larger than 4 GB and is fully supported in Windows, macOS does not provide the same level of native write support for NTFS volumes in standard configurations. A technician choosing NTFS here would likely solve the file-size problem on Windows but create cross-platform write-access issues for macOS users.
- C. Correct.
exFAT is correct because it is designed for flash storage, supports files larger than 4 GB, and is natively supported for read and write access by both modern Windows and macOS systems. This makes it the most practical choice for a removable USB drive used to transfer large files between those platforms.
- D. Incorrect.
ext4 is incorrect because it is a Linux filesystem and is not natively supported for normal read/write use in Windows or macOS. Someone might choose it because it supports large files and is a modern journaling filesystem, but it does not satisfy the cross-platform compatibility requirement in this environment.