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How to Format a Seagate GoFlex for a PS3

The PlayStation 3 video game console contains the ability to store game data, music, pictures and video clips to the system's internal hard drive. When the internal drive becomes full, you can either erase old data or add an external hard drive to the system. The Seagate GoFlex is one such external hard drive option. PlayStation 3 requires hard drives to be formatted in the FAT32 file system. Fortunately, you can format the Seagate GoFlex in this format using your computer. After the format process is complete, the PlayStation 3 will recognize the external hard drive automatically.

Instructions

- 1
  Connect the Seagate GoFlex to your computer using the hard drive's USB cable.
- 2
  Click "Start," "Control Panel," "Systems and Security" and "Administrative Tools."
- 3
  Double-click on "Computer Management" and enter your computer's administrator password, if prompted. Select "Disk Management," located under the "Storage" pane to the left.
- 4
  Right-click on the Seagate Hard drive partition and select "Format." Select "FAT32" as the hard drive's file system. Click "OK" twice. Windows will format the drive in the FAT32 system.
- 5
  Create the four folders to match the folders on the PS3. Double-click on "My Computer" and then double-click on the external hard drive. Right-click on an empty space and select "New" and "Folder." Enter "Game." Create folders named "Photo," "Music" and "Video" following this same procedure.
- 6
  Close the hard drive window by clicking the "X" button at the top-right corner of the screen. Right-click on the icon in the system tray which contains a green arrow. Select "Safely Remove Hardware." The drive is now formatted to work on your PS3.
- 7
  Backup data on the new drive. Connect the drive's USB cable to the port on the PS3. The port is located on the rear of the system. Power on the PS3 by clicking the "Power" button. Select "Settings" and "Back Up" on the main menu. Select the "external hard drive" icon. The icon displays as a rectangular box with a white dot in the upper-right corner of the box. The system will backup your data automatically.

PlayStation 3