betty wrote:
> hi eric ;
> WOW you are great !!! i have about 5 or 6 linux books; sams, redhat's, 
> oreilly and none of them were able to adequately explain to me how to do 
> the steps to partition, format, mkdir and mount my ext hdd. (not because 
> they were not  intrinsically adequate but because i am not at that level 
> of learning, it is a real talent to be able to come to the level of the 
> learner and explain, especially by email, how to do a given task.

You're too kind (but I appreciate the accolades).

> i partitioned my ext hdd (sda) into 3 partions. i formatted the  sda3 as 
> linux and of course, that worked fine, being linux and all....

Good for you!

> when i tried to format the other 2 partitions here is the message that i 
> got.
> 
>> [root@bigdog root]# mkfs.vfat /dev/sda1
>> mkfs.vfat 2.8 (28 Feb 2001)
>> mkfs.vfat: Attempting to create a too large file system
> 
> i also did try to use the #mkfs -t vfat -c -L name /dev/sda1
> but got the same message.
> 
> sooo, should i, 1-make them even smaller and create 4 partitions out of 
> the 2? (they are 1-5000 and 5001 -11400 right now)
> or, should i 2- physically take the drive over to the m$ machine and try 
> to see if i can format it from there???? i hate to do that because i 
> don't know dos commands anymore, it being about 25 years since i had to 
> use them. but if that is the only way, then i will have to.

Neither.
According to "man mkfs.vfat", this command (mkdosfs actually) 
automatically selects between 12 and 16 bit FATs (File Allocation 
Tables). For very large FAT filesystems, you need to have FAT32, which 
"must be selected explicitly if you want it" (I just learned this myself!)

So try:
# mkfs -t vfat -c -L <labelname> -F 32 /dev/sda1

There is a limit of 32GB for a FAT32 filesystem (the 32's don't have a 
direct relationship, but it helps with remembering the limit), so if 
your partitions are larger than that, you will want to delete and 
recreate them accordingly (you can leave your linux partition intact).
> 
> finally, whenever,  i do get the drive formatted and i want to move it 
> around, i take it that i need to umount it from it's mounted spot right? 

That's the safe way.

> or can i just unplug the usb cable, use it somewhere else and then 
> re-plug it back in??

That *might* work on newer 2.6 kernels (I honestly don't know for 
certain), but I wouldn't rely on it. Your RH9 system has a 2.4 kernel 
(unless you've updated it manually). It's always a good idea to unmount 
it first to avoid trouble. That goes for floppies too.

> you have been such a help thank you again, this was as much fun as 
> figuring out a quadratic equation the first time :))

You're more than welcome. I'm glad it's been enjoyable for you. Then 
again, maybe it wasn't. ;)

> please feel free to consult me on any dog related questions you may have 
> in the future. that is really my area of expertise.

You got it.
-- 
-Eric 'shubes'
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