Linux Quick Help:
How to Convert MAC Iomega Disks to Other Formats

I managed to run into a supply of Iomega 100Meg disks, however they were formatted for Macintosh.

Here's how to convert the disk to a new format.

These instructions assume that you have your ZIP drive connected to /dev/sda. Furthermore, you must have root privileges.

DO NOT use a degauser and try to low-level format a ZIP disk. Once the low-level formatting is gone, the disk is useless. I tried this once, hoping it would undo the passwording mechanism. It does not work. For the curious, the low-level formatting has to be written with a device that is far more accurate than your drive is.

Nuke the Partition

Using # fdisk /dev/sda delete all the partitions:

Command (m for help): d
Partition number (1-4): 1
Command (m for help): d
Partition number (1-4): 2
Command (m for help): d
Partition number (1-4): 3
Command (m for help): d
Partition number (1-4): 4

When you are done, your partition table should be empty:

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/hda: 16 heads, 63 sectors, 2100 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 1008 * 512 bytes

Device Boot Begin Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hda1 * 1 1 2100 1058368+ 83 Linux native

Making a DOS / NTFS Diskette

The IBM Formatted Iomega Disks, for some unknown reason, have their primary partition as 4 by default. In theory, it can be elsewhere. These instructions recreate a default blank disk.

Create a new partition:

Command (m for help): n
Command action
e extended
p primary partition (1-4)
p
Partition number (1-4): 4
First cylinder (1-96): 1
Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK ([1]-96): 96

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/sda: 64 heads, 32 sectors, 96 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 2048 * 512 bytes

Device Boot Begin Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda4 1 1 96 98288 83 Linux native

Now we need to change the parition type to FAT.

Command (m for help): t
Partition number (1-4): 4
Hex code (type L to list codes): l

0 Empty a OS/2 Boot Manag 64 Novell Netware a5 BSD/386
1 DOS 12-bit FAT b Win95 FAT32 65 Novell Netware b7 BSDI fs
2 XENIX root c Win95 FAT32 (LB 75 PC/IX b8 BSDI swap
3 XENIX usr e Win95 FAT16 (LB 80 Old MINIX c7 Syrinx
4 DOS 16-bit <32M f Win95 Extended 81 Linux/MINIX db CP/M
5 Extended 40 Venix 80286 82 Linux swap e1 DOS access
6 DOS 16-bit >=32 51 Novell? 83 Linux native e3 DOS R/O
7 OS/2 HPFS 52 Microport 93 Amoeba f2 DOS secondary
8 AIX 63 GNU HURD 94 Amoeba BBT ff BBT
9 AIX bootable
Hex code (type L to list codes): c
Changed system type of partition 4 to c (Win95 FAT32 (LBA))

Finally, we write the partition to the disk.

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered!

Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

WARNING: If you have created or modified any DOS 6.x
partitions, please see the fdisk manual page for additional
information.

You now have a unformatted Iomega MS-DOS disk in your ZIP drive.

Now we need to format a FAT filesystem on the disk.

# mkdosfs /dev/sda4
mkdosfs 0.4, 27th February 1997 for MS-DOS/FAT/FAT32 FS

Sync your disk, eject it, and stick it in your NT box.
# sync

If you were to stop now, you'd have a DOS disk.

C:\>dir e:
Volume in drive E has no label.
Volume Serial Number is 374B-2419

Directory of E:\

File Not Found

Turning the IBM Formatted Iomega Disk into NTFS

Fire up cmd and enter this command:
C:\>convert /FS:NTFS /V E:
The type of the file system is FAT.
Determining disk space required for filesystem conversion
Total disk space: 98288 kilobytes.
Free space on volume: 98078 kilobytes.
Space required for conversion: 2362 kilobytes.
Converting file system
Conversion complete

Now you got a NTFS disk!

Making a Linux Partition

It starts the same way, but I like to put the Linux in partition 1.

Create a new partition:

Command (m for help): n
Command action
e extended
p primary partition (1-4)
p
Partition number (1-4): 1
First cylinder (1-96): 1
Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK ([1]-96): 96

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/sda: 64 heads, 32 sectors, 96 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 2048 * 512 bytes

Device Boot Begin Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 1 1 96 98288 83 Linux native

Write the partition to the disk.

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered!

Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

Next, format the disk:
# mke2fs /dev/sda1

All that's left is to mount the disk and use it:

# mount /dev/sda1 /mnt
# cd /mnt

This page last updated 25-May-1999 19:18:13.
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