Search Tips4pc

Computer Basics Ebook

Recommended Download

How to shrink a partition on your hard drive

Applies to Windows XP Pro and Windows Vista

If you have your hard drive partitioned and want to change the size of the partitions or the amount of partitions you have on your computer, you can. It is still going to wipe your data but if you backup your files to the main partition just while you are shrinking the other partition then you can move it all back after.

How to shrink a partition?

In this tutorial I have 3 partitions on my hard drive. The first is C: drive, then D: drive, and finally E: drive. You can see this in the screenshot below. The first thing I am going to do is shrink E: drive. Now we must open the disk management tool in Windows XP and Windows Vista.

If I shrink a partition will the files be lost or wiped clean?

Yes. Be warned that you must backup any data or files that your partition has on it. If you leave files on there and decide to shrink the partition they will be lost. For example if I shrink partition E: everything on it will be lost.

How to open disk management to shrink a partition?

Go to the start menu.

Right click on my computer or computer for Windows Vista.

Choose manage from the menu.

Choose storage.

Then click on computer management.

Choose Disk Management in the left side menu. Then you see all your drives listed in the right side.

manage hard drives and partitions

When you open disk management you will see the partitions I have on my computer. Now to continue to shrink drive E:

Right click on Drive E: as shown in the screenshot below.
Choose Shrink Volume from the menu.

shrink volume

Now a box will appear. It will automatically choose the size to shrink the partition by.
You can change the size of the shrink by changing the amount in the box that is highlighted blue.
When you are happy with your size press Shrink.

shrink a partition

Now see the screenshot below. My E: partition was 116mb and now it is 58.27mb. The data and files that was on there is gone. And now I have 58.17gb of free space. To use this free space we need to right click on that area and choose to create a new volume. We can also extend E: back out to 116mb by using the free space.

shrinking partitions

Notes on shrinking a partition

You can experiment with any of your partitions but not C: drive.
You cannot shrink C: drive unless you use another program like partition magic.
You can shrink any other partitions but you will still loose the files on it.

How to delete a partition on a hard drive

Delete, merge, create, and rename a hard drive partition without formatting Windows

How to format your spare hard drive or flash drive

A list of the most important computer system files and folders to Backup

What are Device Drivers and why do I need them for my computer?

Recover emails, files, and data from a crashed hard drive or computer

What is the difference between a partition and a hard drive?

How to label a new hard drive or partition and assign a drive letter?

About the Author

Mitz wrote this article and others for tips4pc.com Browse for more articles that are written in an easy to understand way. Also see our very popular Video Tutorials page. Watching a video is a very easy way to learn about computers.

I hope you've found this tutorial clear and easy to understand. If you have more questions, feel free to visit our FORUM and we'll be happy to help.

Get the Tips4pc newsletter

Download Software

Main Menu

Home
About Us
Link to us
Contact Us
Favourite links
Tips4pc Newsletter
Tips4pc Youtube Channel
Freeware
PDF Articles to save
Privacy Policy
Sitemap
Forum

Shout me a coffee!!

Computer Tips Categories

Computer Basics

Computer Terms

Computer Troubleshooting

Computer Maintenance

Computer Upgrade

Computer Tip Archive

Digital Camera Tips

Networking Tips

Ebay Tips

Format Windows XP

File and Disk management

Windows Vista Tips

Windows XP Tips

Webpage Help

Outlook Express Email

Youtube Video Tips

Software Tips

Printer Tips

Videos

Word 2007 Tips

Friends

PC Tips

Windows Vista Tips

Free Wordpress Templates

Windows Reinstall

Download Windows Driver

Repair Windows Problems

Buy Computers Ohio

Photo Scanner

AskRitesh

Lenovo Coupons

Desktop Computers

POS Systems

Telecom and mobile internet

Telecommunication ideas

Remote Support

Wordpress Website Builder

Share This Website with a friend Make Tips4PC your homepage