How To Split A Hard Drive Into Several Partitions In Windows 10
Today we will consider how to split a disk in Windows 10, without resorting to third-party software, because such a need appears in virtually all users of the new operating system.
No matter what adherents of specialized programs say, if the operating system has the appropriate functionality, it makes no sense to use them. Therefore, we will consider in detail how to split a hard disk using the integrated drive tool for Windows 10.
What is important, we will work from under the operating system itself, without even resorting to using the installation drive with the “tens” distribution kit.
What is it for?
Imagine what will happen to a 500-1000 GB hard drive if you format it during reinstallation of the operating system in order to get rid of all the files of the old OS. Installing a new system on top of the old makes little more sense than just updating it from under Windows itself: all the garbage will remain, which will soon affect the performance of the computer.
And it’s more convenient to store different types of data on different volumes (games on one, collection on another). An operating system with software must be located on the first logical drive due to the nature of the HDD.
Launching a utility to change disk layout
Work with partitions begins with the launch of the Disk Management program, which has undergone virtually no changes since the introduction of the Windows 7 operating system. The tool starts in several ways.
Control Panel
1. Open the Control Panel via Start, Win → X (holding down the appropriate key combination) or a shortcut in a convenient place.
2. Change the visualization style of the window icons to “Small Icons”.
3. Call the “Administration” applet.
4. We launch the last one in the list is the “Computer Management” utility.
5. Expand the “Storage” section in the left vertically located menu.
6. Click on “Disk Management”.
Command interpreter
The second, and more effective, method of invoking a tool to break a hard disk into volumes is to use the capabilities of the Run window.
1. Call the dialog to quickly execute system commands and open resources using the Win R keyboard shortcut.
2. Enter the command “diskmgmt.msc”.
3. Run it using the “Enter” key.
As a result, the same window will open as in the previous version, but without unnecessary interface elements.
How to use the built-in disk manager
The application window displays a list of all detected digital information storage devices, including those operating using flash memory technology (solid state drives and flash drives).
1. In the main frame or panel below, select the hard drive or its volume, which must be divided into the nth number of partitions.
The main thing is that there should be enough free space on it that at least slightly exceeds the size of the created partition / s. And if the system volume is shared, at least 10 GB of free space should be left on it. It will be needed to store temporary files and install the missing software.
2. Call the context menu of the selected object and select “Compress Volume.”.
This operation will allow you to “cut off” the specified number of gigabytes from the partition and at this point to form a new partition or several, but their total size will not exceed the amount of data allocated for this.
3. In the parametric window that opens, set the amount of compressible space.
That is how many megabytes will be freed up (turned into an unallocated area) in order to subsequently mark it in the desired way.
After specifying all the information, click “Compress” and wait. Depending on the size (and the degree of damage to the hard drive. this factor primarily affects the speed) you will have to wait from ten seconds to a couple of minutes until the application completes the task of reassigning free clusters of the unallocated area.
Upon completion of operations, the unallocated space of the indicated volume will appear on the diagram; this area is distinguished by the presence of a black bar at the top.
By default, its size will be equal to unused space, which is important for the formation of one volume in this area. If you need to create several partitions, enter the volume of the first in megabytes (taking into account the fact that 1 gigabyte equals 1024 megabytes, not 1000).
5. In the wizard for creating simple volumes, select the file system. Set the cluster size and label.
It is better to choose NTFS as the file system. Even with so many flaws, it is the best solution from Microsoft. Cluster size: if small files will be stored on the disk, it makes sense to set its value to 2096 or less kb in order to optimally use the space, and it is better to use a larger cluster size to store collections and images. Nothing depends on the volume label, and it can easily be changed through Explorer at any time.
6. Click “Next”, check the parameters and click “Finish”.
As a result, the file system of the new partition will be formed and a new volume will appear on the hard disk. When creating several partitions with an unallocated area, you will have to do the same as in paragraphs 4-6.
Volume Breakdown during Windows 10 Installation
If the computer does not yet have an operating system, you can also crash the hard disk during installation. The difference between the option is the inability to divide the drive into logical volumes without formatting, and the method will not work for hard drives with important information.
1. Boot from the installation distribution using the Boot Menu.
2. We get to the stage of selecting a disk for installing “tens”, stopping at the option “Selective”.
3. Delete unnecessary volumes to make them an unallocated area.
4. As before, select this space and create sections of the indicated sizes in it.
Next, you can install the OS on the first of them, having previously formatted it.
