To free up space, move large personal files—such as videos, photos, music, and documents—from your computer to a compatible USB drive or SD card. Check that the files arrived and open correctly before deleting any originals, then eject the drive before unplugging it. The exact steps and drive-format support differ on Windows, Mac, and Chromebook.
Before you move anything
- Find files that are safe to move. Start with personal files you do not need available all the time, such as old videos, photos, music, and documents. Avoid moving system or application files; this guide is for your own files.
- Check how much space is available. Make sure the external drive has enough free capacity for the files you selected. Apple lists insufficient destination space as a reason a Mac may not be able to save a file to an external drive.
- Confirm the drive works with your computer. File-system compatibility varies, especially if you plan to use the same drive with both a Mac and a Windows PC. Check before formatting: formatting erases the drive’s contents.
Find and move files on Windows
Microsoft’s guidance applies to Windows 10 and Windows 11. It recommends checking large personal files and common storage-heavy folders such as Videos, Music, Pictures, and Downloads.
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- Connect the USB drive or SD card to the computer.
- Open File Explorer and go to a folder containing files you want to move. To identify large files, use Details view and sort by size.
- Select the files or folders. Use Cut and then open the destination folder on the external drive and choose Paste. Where available, you can instead use File Explorer’s Move to controls.
- Open the destination folder and check that the files are present. Open a few files to confirm they work before removing anything else.
- When finished, use Windows’ safe-removal option and wait for the safe-to-remove notification before unplugging the drive.
To send future personal files to another drive, Microsoft documents this path: Settings > System > Storage > Advanced storage settings > Where new content is saved. This changes the save location for future content; it does not move files already stored on the computer. See Microsoft’s Windows storage guidance and safe-removal instructions.
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If dragging an item to an external drive does not move it, Apple recommends copying it to the destination and deleting the original afterward. Treat deletion as a separate step: first verify the external copy.
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- Easily store and access 2TB to content on the go with the Seagate Portable Drive, a USB external hard drive
- Designed to work with Windows or Mac computers, this external hard drive makes backup a snap just drag and drop
- To get set up, connect the portable hard drive to a computer for automatic recognition no software required
- This USB drive provides plug and play simplicity with the included 18 inch USB 3.0 cable
- The available storage capacity may vary.
- Connect the external drive and open it in Finder.
- Copy the selected files to the drive. Apple’s documented keyboard method is Command-C to copy and Command-V to paste into the destination.
- Browse the destination and open a sample of the copied files.
- Only after confirming the copies are usable, delete the original files from the Mac if your goal is to reclaim internal storage.
- Eject the drive in Finder before disconnecting it.
Check the Mac drive format
Apple lists APFS and Mac OS Extended as Mac formats, and MS-DOS (FAT) and exFAT as formats compatible with Windows. In the cited Apple guidance, a Mac can read from an NTFS drive but cannot write to it using Disk Utility support. A drive dedicated to Time Machine may also be restricted to backups instead of general file storage. Check the format and intended use before copying; see Apple’s pages on moving or copying items when it does not work and saving files to an external drive.
Use external storage on a Chromebook
Chromebooks can work with supported external storage, including USB drives and SD cards, through the Files app. Device support can depend on the Chromebook and its current software.
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- Easily store and access 5TB of content on the go with the Seagate portable drive, a USB external hard Drive
- Designed to work with Windows or Mac computers, this external hard drive makes backup a snap just drag and drop
- To get set up, connect the portable hard drive to a computer for automatic recognition software required
- This USB drive provides plug and play simplicity with the included 18 inch USB 3.0 cable
- The available storage capacity may vary.
- Connect the USB drive or SD card and open the Files app.
- Locate the personal files, then copy or move them to the external device using the available Files controls.
- Open the destination and check that the files are there and usable before removing local copies.
- Select Eject for the external device before unplugging it.
If ChromeOS does not recognize a device and asks to format it, do not proceed until you have backed up any files on it elsewhere. Google warns that reformatting erases the device’s files. Check Google’s guidance on opening, saving, or deleting files on a Chromebook and supported file types and external devices.
Verify the transfer before deleting originals
Moving files can remove the source copy as part of the operation, while copying leaves it in place until you delete it. Either way, check the external destination before treating the transfer as complete. Browse the folders and open a sample of the transferred files. For valuable files, keeping another backup is safer than relying on a single external drive.
Quick Recap
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- Easily store and access 4TB of content on the go with the Seagate Portable Drive, a USB external hard drive.Specific uses: Personal
- Designed to work with Windows or Mac computers, this external hard drive makes backup a snap just drag and drop
- To get set up, connect the portable hard drive to a computer for automatic recognition no software required
- This USB drive provides plug and play simplicity with the included 18 inch USB 3.0 cable
- The available storage capacity may vary.
Rank #3
- Easily store and access 1TB to content on the go with the Seagate Portable Drive, a USB external hard drive.Specific uses: Personal
- Designed to work with Windows or Mac computers, this external hard drive makes backup a snap just drag and drop. Reformatting may be required for Mac
- To get set up, connect the portable hard drive to a computer for automatic recognition no software required
- This USB drive provides plug and play simplicity with the included 18 inch USB 3.0 cable
- The available storage capacity may vary.
If a transfer does not work
- The drive is full: Check its available space and choose fewer files or a drive with enough capacity.
- You can read files but cannot save them: On a Mac, an NTFS-formatted drive may be readable but not writable under Apple’s cited guidance. Check the file system and permissions before considering a format change; formatting erases existing contents.
- The Mac cannot save to the drive: Apple identifies destination capacity, permissions, and drive format as checks. A Time Machine disk may be limited to backups.
- The Chromebook does not recognize the device: External-device support varies. Back up any contents elsewhere before agreeing to a format prompt, because formatting erases them.
- The transfer appears incomplete: Do not delete the source files yet. Recheck the destination and copy again if needed.
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