I want to reformat my NI samples 500GB drive from NTFS to FAT32 so I can use it on my Mac as well. I Robocopy'd the files and folders to a backup drive. If I reformat my samples drive, is it simply a matter of copying back the original samples to the newly-formatted FAT32 drive, or will there be some sort of permissions structure that I will lose from the NTFS file format?

In other words, will all my NI samples still work if I just copy, reformat, replace them?

Thanks!

Yes but on FAT32 there is a 2GB single file size limit. Anything larger wont copy across.

Screw that, here, this is the ticket...
http://www.paragon-software.com/home/ntfs-mac/

there's also a HFS for windows, MUCH better option, I've been in the same shoes, this software works flawlessly

...there's a 50% off bundle sale at the mo also.

User space file systems work OK, but are not needed in your case. Reformat the disk in Windows Disk Manager and choose the exFat option. There is no 2GB limit and exFat is supported natively on Mac.

Things to watch out for:
1) Make sure the newly formatted drive has the same drive letter as before or you will have to relocate all your samples / sounds.

2) Make sure the volume name is the same as before on Mac.

Changing the volume name on Mac won't affect the drive letter on Windows, and changing the driver letter on Windows won't affect Mac. This is an easy and logical thing you are attempting. You don not need any special software to make this work.

Good luck, but you won't need it.

Thanks for your help, everyone. Yeah, ExFAT is what I want, if it's supported on Lion, and if I can simply restore my NI files and folders to that drive. I will make the volume and drive letter the same as before.

Is it still advised to format using 64KB block sizes if the primary purpose is disk reads for samples? That was the old wisdom, but I haven't read the forums in a while.

you don't NEED any special software, but it beats the fudge out of even worrying about the reformat option, and means you can read and write ANY format. In my 15 years worth of sample hauling experience, this is a much better option.

User space file systems (those not integrated into the operating system) can be a real pain in the back side. If the files hadn't been already backed up to another drive, the user space file system option might be an acceptable approach, but in this case I disagree.

There are also performance issues with these file systems as opposed to native file systems, especially when reading many small files, i.e. loading sample libraries. I'm not saying don't use them ever, but don't use them if there is a native file system alternative.

performance issues?
what, are you using a 5400rpm drive?
I stream MULTI channels of 24/96 with the paragon NTFS for mac, NO problems, I've never encountered a performance issue, i forget it's even there.

...also on sale here for a tad over $15 for anyone interested...
http://www.bitsdujour.com/software/paragon-ntfs-for-mac-os-x -80

It's not a pain in the backside at all. The transfers speeds aren't much different from the native HFS format. It's damn handy and when you're dealing with GB! of samples etc - it's a godsend.

just get ntfs-3g and install it on the mac.

then you probably WILL have performance issues

none of the staff we have who are using it, who are doing video editing and the like, have complained about it

Actually, I am using an 10MB MFM 5.25 inch hard drive. Levels of acceptable performance are different for everyone. Please notice that I said performance is worse "especially when reading many small files". Streaming as you describe is the opposite of what I described.

I can drive a nail with a rock, but why would I if I had a hammer? My point is, if the native tools work, why install more software, and pay more money? For your situation, user space file systems may have been the best solution. But they are not the best solution for all scenarios.

Yes, you will get (very small and incremental) performance improvements using larger cluster sizes (not block sizes), though I tend to stick with 32k as some dos-based stuff and other older stuff freaks out over 64kb clusters.
And if you are predominantly using the partition for large files such as samples then you won't lose any significant space from doing so.