How Are SD Cards Formatted?

Background

SD cards are "secure digital cards." They are memory cards that are non-volatile, meaning that they can maintain stored data even when they are not being powered. SD cards were created for portable device use. They are very commonly used nowadays for digital cameras, cellular phones, global positioning system (GPS) receivers, personal digital assistant and consoles for video games.

Process

There are several ways in which you can format SD cards. If you have a PC, you can use an SD card reading application. With card reader devices, you simply select the option "Format" and the process will begin instantly. If you want to format SD cards using a handheld device through the SD slot, that is possible as well. However, it might be necessary to install some sort of application, like SD Formatter or Pocket Mechanic. Then, you simply run the application via the handheld device. You can also format SD cards with a PC that has an SD slot. Just select "Run" from your "Start" menu and then select the "Format" command. Then you have to enter in the syntax code to start the formatting process.

File Systems

In most cases, SD cards are formatted using FAT 16. However, though it is usually formatted with that file system, it can also support the majority of other file systems that have general purposes. Both exFAT and UFS2 are examples of file systems that SD cards can support.