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Coltenpo's avatar
Coltenpo
Tin Contributor
Jul 13, 2026

How can I format an SSD to ReFS on Windows 11?

From what's been read, ReFS is more resilient and better suited for certain workloads, but the standard format options in Windows Explorer don't seem to list it as an available choice — only NTFS and...
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DashielQuinn's avatar
DashielQuinn
Iron Contributor
Jul 13, 2026

GParted is a Linux-based open-source partition management tool that supports formatting disks to the ReFS file system. If you're looking for a way to format SSD to ReFS on Windows 10, keep in mind that it must be run from a bootable USB drive and cannot be launched directly within Windows.

It allows you to format an SSD to the ReFS file system, but the process requires creating a bootable USB drive and restarting the computer.

First, download the ISO image from the official website and use a disk imaging tool to create a bootable USB drive.

Restart your computer, enter the BIOS/UEFI settings, and boot from the USB drive.

Once the desktop loads, select the target SSD from the list of available storage devices.

Right-click the partition, choose Format as, and select ReFS from the available file systems.

Click Apply to begin the formatting process.

After the operation is complete, restart the computer and boot back into Windows.

Because the formatting process is performed outside the operating system, it requires external boot media and some familiarity with offline partitioning tools. Before you format SSD to ReFS on Windows 10, make sure any important files have been backed up, as formatting will erase all existing data on the drive.