Redmond, Washington, April 14, 2026, 06:05 PDT
Microsoft is getting ready to lift one of Windows’ longest-standing storage limits. Insider Beta and Dev builds now let testers format FAT32 drives up to 2TB straight from the command line—a big jump from the 32GB maximum that’s been in place for ages. The change applies to FAT32, that aging file system still found on plenty of devices.
Last week, Alec Oot from the Windows Insider Program said Beta builds are now giving users an early look at what Microsoft expects to roll out “in the coming weeks,” ending the practice of holding back new features for just a portion of the channel. The FAT32 change first surfaced in Canary testing back in August 2024. Now that it’s in Beta, it’s one step closer for mainstream Windows 11 users. Windows Blog
April 10’s updates aren’t just about removing the cap. Microsoft says Beta build 26220.8165 and Dev build 26300.8170 bring a faster path to Disks & Volumes in Settings—noticeable on bigger drives—hold off the User Account Control prompt until temporary files are accessed, and patch a glitch that had Network & Internet > Data Usage showing implausible numbers.
FAT32 isn’t gone yet. According to PC Gamer, anyone dealing with drives over 32GB has typically relied on third-party tools, handy for BIOS flash drives or vintage hardware. Windows Latest points out that FAT32 remains the go-to for certain game consoles, media boxes, and embedded devices—even though most of today’s storage uses updated formats.
Most of the storage world has shifted in another direction. Microsoft lays out exFAT as the replacement for FAT32 in its exFAT specification, while Apple’s Disk Utility nudges Mac users toward FAT formatting for Windows drives up to 32GB, switching to exFAT for anything larger. So by default, bigger removable drives don’t stick with FAT32.
Back in 2024, former Microsoft engineer Dave Plummer recalled that the 32GB cap came from “an arbitrary choice that morning.” At the time, Plummer figured the limit wouldn’t last—he picked 32GB in the mid-1990s assuming it was just a stopgap, according to Engadget’s reporting on his earlier remarks. The Verge
There’s a hitch: the expanded limit isn’t universal. According to PCWorld, the higher cap is only available through Command Prompt or Terminal—using the legacy graphical formatter won’t get you there. Microsoft’s own installation documentation, too, continues to warn that FAT32 volumes can’t store single files over 4GB.
Windows Latest ran the new builds across multiple drives and reported that, before the update, opening disk properties on one machine took roughly 15 seconds. Post-update, the process was nearly immediate. While Microsoft hasn’t specified exact speed increases, its build notes mention a boost in performance when checking storage on large volumes.
Here’s the catch: just bumping up FAT32 volume size doesn’t turn it into a modern file system. FAT32 is still missing features like journaling—a crash-recovery tool standard in newer formats. And with its 4GB file size cap, it’s basically unusable for hefty video files, disc images, or backups. That’s where NTFS, the default for Windows, or exFAT step in for larger drives.
But shifting the feature to Beta alters the outlook. Windows users clinging to FAT32—for flashing firmware, firing up old gear, or wrangling with legacy hardware quirks—might see one fewer excuse to install third-party format utilities. Microsoft is edging closer to closing that gap.
