HFS+ or AFPS for basic 'drag and drop' hard drive backup

I recently upgraded from a late 2013 iMac (1TB storage) to 2024 Mac Mini (4TB storage) and have purchased new external hard drives to hold my backups.

I have an 8TB hard drive that I have been backing up Time Machine to, but would like to back up to the 4TB hard drive by simply drag-and-dropping files manually in Finder so that it is less reliant on special software or one specific computer to access the files. I would also like to encrypt the 4TB hard drive with a password. I wouldn't be saving versions of files, just overwriting old copies as Time Machine is for saving versions.

Recovery would likely involve a Mac computer as, other than a Samsung phone, I only own Mac though friends and family own PC.

Which format is better to use for the 4TB hard drive, HFS+ or AFPS?

Thanks for any advice you have!

Mac mini, macOS 15.7

Posted on Oct 19, 2025 2:40 AM

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MartinR

Level 7

24,004 points

Posted on Oct 19, 2025 2:27 PM

etresoft wrote:

Mac OS Extended (Journaled) is "aka HFS+". Encryption on HFS+ drives used the awful Core Storage technology which is no longer supported, and hasn't been for years. HFS+ encryption gone ? - Apple Community

I did notice this warning in the Disk Utility Guide. Its first appearance was for macOS Catalina, so I guess all encrypted disks are now APFS as you said earlier.

WARNING: When you encrypt a disk or other media, the disk format is converted to the APFS format and then encrypted. Macs with older versions of macOS that don’t support the APFS format will not be able to read the device’s data. Consider whether you need to connect the media to a Mac with an older version of macOS before you encrypt the data. You can also update your other Mac to the latest version of the macOS that supports the APFS format.

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17 replies

AglaVerin Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 19, 2025 6:43 AM in response to etresoft

Thank you, that's the probably with looking back at old threads; you get out of date information

den.thed

Level 10

89,956 points

Nov 2, 2025 11:32 AM in response to MartinR

👍 Those 5 clones are just for my Mac. I have 3 clones setup for the wife's Mac and 2 setup for our old 2012 Mac mini Media Server.

HFS+ or AFPS for basic 'drag and drop' hard drive backup