Changing Hard Disk Partition Size

Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

You need a third party tool, Partition Magic being one, you can only do it
destructively with win, or the win cd


"randau" wrote in message
ups.com...
Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

In comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage randau wrote:
Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

Yes, with a partition-resizer application or by backing up,
deletion and recreation, and restoring the files.

Havinf backup fro this sort of operation is highly advisible!

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

No. But you can move the other partitions after it and increase
the size of it afterwards.

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

No. Allways consecutive sectors.

If you use NTFS, you need to buy something like partition magic,
unless you go tha backup-change-restore way.
Be aware that PM destroys partitons routinely, so backup is essential.

Otherwise you can use GNU parted (free) for the moving and resizing.

Arno

You can resize with a floppy made of the trial version of bootitng. Best to
backup first.


--
Ed Light

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http://bringthemhomenow.org
http://antiwar.com

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randau wrote:
Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?



There is no way to resize partitions using native Windows tools
without deleting the existing partitions, and creating and formating new
partitions, and then reinstalling the OS and applications.

There are, fortunately, quite a few 3rd party products that can
help you repartition the hard drive non-destructively. Two such
products are Symantec's Partition Magic and BootItNG. The latter even
has a free, fully functional 30-day evaluation version available for
downloading from www.bootitng.com. Simply use one of them to resize the
system partition, and then create a second (extended) partition.


--

Bruce Chambers

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"randau" writes:

Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

Yes.

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Yes.

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

The ones I've done it's been contiguous, but I'm not sure if that was
a requirement or not.

I've use qtparted and Partition Magic on several occasions to resize
NTFS partitions. Another poster said qtparted wouldn't do NTFS, and
that doesn't match with my experience. I've resized 3 NTFS volumes
down to make space for dual booting Linux, and each time I used
qtparted on the Kanotix linux live CD. Or I may have used Ubuntu's
live CD recently. I can't recall. So many liveCD's so little time!

I used Partition Magic once several years ago before i discovered the
joys of qtparted and linux live cd's. As I recall it worked fine.

Best Regards,
--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/

randau wrote:
Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

1. You don't need so many newsgroups; you're shotgunning rather than using
logic to select a group; one good way to get bad information, believe me.
Many will try to screw you rather than help you out.

2. Yes, partitions can be resized but XP doesn't have anything to do so.
It takes either an XP backup/reinstall of your machine or or 3rd party
program to do so. The three most popular are Partition Magic, Acronis TI
and BootItNG. They are not real expensive.

3. Avoid downloading and useing a trial version to get out of paying for
something; usually it'll work, but next time the issue comes up, you still
won't have anything available to do the job and will go thru this again,
most likely.

4. Personally I use Partition Magic and have found it reliable, stable and
easy to use. Acronis is apparently good too but I haven't used it. I tried
bootit quite a long time ago and didn't like it, but it may be better
designed by now.
All of these programs brag that you will not lose any data during the
operations or do a good job of advising if you are sure to lose data.

5. Regardless of what ANY instructions say, NEVER, EVER mess with
partitions without doing a full backup first! The chances of something
screwing up and ruining the procedure are too great to take chances of not
having a backup handy.
Personally I've never lost any data, but I still maintain complete
backups with intermediates done daily. I use Norton Ghost for that an
dthere are other good imaging programs around, too.

6. Yes, the partitions are continguous within themselves, but not to each
other necessarily; the partition apps manage that part of it and move things
around where they're needed. Excessive fragmentation might tell you to
defrag first with some of them; take the advice. Read the screens carefully
during use.

HTH
Pop`

Todd H. wrote
randau writes

Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been
in use without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

Yes.

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Yes.

Not necessarily, it has to be contiguous with the partition
being expanded, tho any decent partition manager can
move partitions as well as changing their size.

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout
the disk or does it have to be contiguous?

The ones I've done it's been contiguous, but
I'm not sure if that was a requirement or not.

Corse it is, the partition table entrys specify a start and end for
each partition in terms of the physical location on the drive, and
there is just one start and one end specifiable for each partition.

I've use qtparted and Partition Magic on several occasions to resize
NTFS partitions. Another poster said qtparted wouldn't do NTFS,
and that doesn't match with my experience. I've resized 3 NTFS
volumes down to make space for dual booting Linux, and each time
I used qtparted on the Kanotix linux live CD. Or I may have used
Ubuntu's live CD recently. I can't recall. So many liveCD's so little time!

I used Partition Magic once several years ago before i discovered
the joys of qtparted and linux live cd's. As I recall it worked fine.

Acronis Disk Director Suite leaves it for dead.

In comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage Poprivet wrote:
randau wrote:
Can hard disk Partition sizes be changed after they've been in use
without damaging the files stored within the Partition?

If you create hard disk Partitions leaving a portion of the disk
unallocated and later find that you need more room in one of the
Partitions, can its size simply be increased to utilize some of the
unallocated portion of the disk?

Is a Partition's disk space scattered throughout the disk or does it
have to be contiguous?

1. You don't need so many newsgroups; you're shotgunning rather than using
logic to select a group; one good way to get bad information, believe me.
Many will try to screw you rather than help you out.

2. Yes, partitions can be resized but XP doesn't have anything to do so.
It takes either an XP backup/reinstall of your machine or or 3rd party
program to do so. The three most popular are Partition Magic, Acronis TI
and BootItNG. They are not real expensive.

3. Avoid downloading and useing a trial version to get out of paying for
something; usually it'll work, but next time the issue comes up, you still
won't have anything available to do the job and will go thru this again,
most likely.

4. Personally I use Partition Magic and have found it reliable, stable and
easy to use.

Well, I have lost two installations in three attempts to resize with
PM. I cannot recommend it at all.

Acronis is apparently good too but I haven't used it. I tried
bootit quite a long time ago and didn't like it, but it may be better
designed by now.
All of these programs brag that you will not lose any data during the
operations or do a good job of advising if you are sure to lose data.

5. Regardless of what ANY instructions say, NEVER, EVER mess with
partitions without doing a full backup first!

Indeed!

Arno

The chances of something
screwing up and ruining the procedure are too great to take chances of not
having a backup handy.
Personally I've never lost any data, but I still maintain complete
backups with intermediates done daily. I use Norton Ghost for that an
dthere are other good imaging programs around, too.

6. Yes, the partitions are continguous within themselves, but not to each
other necessarily; the partition apps manage that part of it and move things
around where they're needed. Excessive fragmentation might tell you to
defrag first with some of them; take the advice. Read the screens carefully
during use.

HTH
Pop`

"Poprivet" wrote

3. Avoid downloading and useing a trial version to get out of paying for
something; usually it'll work, but next time the issue comes up, you still
won't have anything available to do the job and will go thru this again,
most likely.

The bootitng floppy will always be good. It only becomes a trial if you
install it on the hard disk. Then, if you don't pay, it eventually beeps at
you on boot for a really long time. I know because a friend in another city
waited to buy it.

Anyhow, you need to install it only if you want to have a boot manager.

--
Ed Light

Bring the Troops Home:
http://bringthemhomenow.org
http://antiwar.com

Send spam to the FTC at

Thanks, robots.