Windows 10: Copying files from NTFS to NTFS drive result in different size in target location

I have an external 512GB NTFS drive (which has ~450GB used) that I normally use mounted in linux.

Now, in Windows, I'm trying to copy the contents of the drive to an NTFS partition on another drive of a similar size.

I'm copying folder by folder and suddenly I get an error that there's no more space left?!

I have filled more than 450GB on the target drive already and I have about 50GB more to copy from the source.

What is going on? What has taken up this extra space and how do I remove it?

:)

 

what is the difference in fat32 and NTFS HDD formating???

NTFS is far superior when it comes to data safety, as when it comes to performance with large files. Just disconnect and connect a FAT32 USB drive a few times without using the remove button and then do the same to a NTFS drive. The FAT32 drive will be screwed while the NTFS drives requires a run of chkdsk at the most. I wouldn't safe anything I wish to keep on a FAT32 disk.

 

Fat/ntfs??

FAT= File Allocation Tables
NTFS= New Type File System or New Technology File System

FAT, as the name suggests, uses file allocation tables to tell the computer where to find specific files. This is generally a large file, outside of the partition, and cannot be seen by the user, only the OS. FAT came in 3 types: FAT, FAT16, and FAT32. FAT used 8-bit allocation tables, FAT16 used 16-bit tables, and FAT32 used 32-bit tables. The 8-bit table was extremely large, using up about 1/25 of the file system (I.E. if the partition was 100GB, the table would be about 4GB, so effectively after the FAT format of a 100GB drive you had 96GB usable). The FAT16 table was half that size (1/50), and smaller yet was the FAT32 table (1/100). Also, when using a FAT file system, you cannot create files larger than 4GB, no matter what file type it is. This creates complications when trying to install large programs, such as Photoshop or F.E.A.R.

NTFS uses no tables, only a TEMP directory and cache located within the OS itself. This makes searching and loading times faster compared to FAT, as the drive head in the HDD does not need to constantly move to the beginning of the drive to examine the table and then back to the OS sectors to find the file its searching for. NTFS's TEMP directory and cache are also significantly smaller than FAT32's tables, usually about 1/5 the size. NTFS was first implemented in Server 2000, and then mainstream in Windows XP.

I hope that answers your question.

 

NTFS File Allocation Size

i set up a 40GB partition for 7, and the rest for everything else.

To answer your question: NTFS with 64k allocation size is best. it wastes a small amount of space if you have lots of small files, but has 1/8th the chunks of a 8KB allocation, meaning you have 1/8th the chance of fragmented files, and 8x faster defragments *Stick Out Tongue