How to configure an external Hard drive to store files from two different OSes?

elements desktop external hard drive image

I have two computers. I have a desktop and a laptop. The desktop is Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

The laptop is a different story. My laptop is a triple boot of 3 different linux distros. I have Precise Puppy Linux, Debian 6.07 (squeeze) and Ubuntu 12.10 on my Internal 80 gig laptop hard drive. Yes, that is pretty miniscule, but this is a 5 or 6 year old laptop. I recently bought a 3 Terabyte WD elements External Hard drive. This is a lot of space, and my main plan for this was to use it to store games for my laptop. It has A LOT of space, and way more than i need for a laptop. I do not want to use this for any sort of backup. It is for storing files on, not backup, which is why i bought a hard drive without the backup software built in. It wouldn't fit all my files anyway, since the hard disks in my desktop add up to 3.5 Terabytes.

Anyway, my question is this: How would I go about making it so i could store files for two seperate computers with completely different operating systems? My thought was that i would do an NTFS partition, and an ext3 partition. Would this work if i wanted to make a steam directory for from both computers on this thing?
Forgot to say: The OS i use the most is ubuntu since steam is made for it. I have already formatted the drive to ext3 atm, and i could add an NTFS partition if needed.

Answer
Hi There,
Windows can read/write to NTFS and I know Puppy Linux can read/write to NTFS.
Puppy Slacko 5.3.3 can read/write NTFS and it is based upon Slackware.
Some other Puppys are based upon Debian and they can read/write NTFS.
I would try the external drive as it is (NTFS) and it will probably work.
If not you can always make an ext3 partition later.
Hope this helps,
Al

Should I buy an external hard drive during holiday shopping?

hellwolver

I am planning on getting a new laptop around next summer and an external, USB-powered hard drive to go along with it. But should I get the hard drive during the upcoming holiday shopping season or wait until around June? Would the price of the same hard drive be lower next summer than it would be this holiday season? Or would the price be about the same either way? Anyone know about any trends regarding the pricing of external hard drives?

Thanks

Answer
You should definately get external hard drive during holiday shopping.

I was just googling and came across this product hope it helps you

Western Digital WD Elements 1 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive
Designed with the same commitment to quality that made WD external drives the number one drives in the world, Western Digitalâs WD Elements USB 2.0 external hard drives are the right answer for simply affordable add-on storage. Just plug it in to a USB port and start saving your photos, music, video, and files. Kit contains; USB 2.0 external hard drive, USB cable, AC adapter, Quick Install Guide.
http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Elements-External-WDBAAU0010HBK-NESN/dp/B002QEBMB4/?tag=klnprk-20

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