searchenterprisedesktop.techtarget.com Open in urlscan Pro
2606:4700::6812:5c  Public Scan

Form analysis
1 forms found in the DOM

GET https://www.techtarget.com/search/query

<form action="https://www.techtarget.com/search/query" method="get" class="header-search">
  <label for="header-search-input" class="visuallyhidden">Search the TechTarget Network</label>
  <input class="header-search-input ui-autocomplete-input" id="header-search-input" autocomplete="off" type="text" name="q" placeholder="Search the TechTarget Network">
  <button aria-label="Search" class="header-search-submit"><i class="icon" data-icon="g"></i></button>
</form>

Text Content

3
Trending Now

O’Reilly’s guide to architecting for scaleDownload NowView All3
X
3Hello, these 3 documents have been trending and as a member they are free to
you.
 * 
   O’Reilly’s guide to architecting for scaleDownload Now
 * 
   E-book: The key mission of CockroachDB, and how it achieves these
   goalsDownload Now
 * 
   AWS, Azure, GCP: Who does cloud performance best?Download Now




SearchEnterpriseDesktop
Search the TechTarget Network
Sign-up now. Start my free, unlimited access.
Login Register
 * Techtarget Network
 * News
 * Features
 * Tips
 * More Content
    * Answers
    * Buyer's Guides
    * Definitions
    * Essential Guides
    * Opinions
    * Photo Stories
    * Podcasts
    * Quizzes
    * Tutorials
    * Sponsored Communities

 * E-zine

 * SearchEnterpriseDesktop
 * Topic Windows 10
    * Desktop OSes
    * Desktop management
    * Windows applications
    * All Topics

 * SubTopic All Subtopics
    * Features
    * Security and management
    * Troubleshooting
    * Updates
    * Upgrades
    * All Subtopics

 * Follow:
 * 
 * 
 * 



Anna Khomulo - Fotolia

Anna Khomulo - Fotolia

Answer


WINDOWS 10 DISK MANAGEMENT TERMS AND TASKS IT SHOULD KNOW




WINDOWS 10 DISK MANAGEMENT IS A CRUCIAL FUNCTION THAT SYSTEM ADMINS SHOULD
PERFORM. TO MANAGE WINDOWS DISKS, IT MUST KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VOLUMES
AND PARTITIONS.

Share this item with your network:

 * 
 * 
 * 


By
 * Gary Olsen

Published: 29 Sep 2021

Windows 10 disk management ensures users have an optimal desktop configuration
that allows applications and data to operate successfully.

Admins may encounter challenges with Windows disk management because the
terminology can be confusing, and the Windows 10 Disk Management tool can be
difficult to understand.




WINDOWS 10 DISK MANAGEMENT TERMS DEFINED

Windows admins should familiarize themselves with these Windows 10 disk terms to
ensure they can navigate the Windows 10 Disk Management tool or any third-party
disk management tool.

Hard disk. A disk that is a physical device for data storage. A hard disk could
be a hard disk drive, a solid-state drive (SSD), USB storage or other removable
drives, or an audio CD or DVD. "Disk" in the context of the following
definitions is just a storage term and not a physical device.

Basic disk. A storage type that contains partitions and logical drives formatted
with a file system for data storage. Basic disks include clustered disks and USB
removable drives, and support master boot record (MBR) and GUID Partition Table
partitions. Windows 10 desktops partition a drive as a basic disk by default.

Dynamic disk. These differ from basic disks because they span multiple disks and
create fault-tolerant volumes such as a mirrored and a redundant array of
inexpensive or independent disks (RAID). They are more flexible and manageable
than basic disks, and IT can create them in Windows disk. IT can convert basic
disks to dynamic disks and dynamic disks to basic.

> Windows 10 desktops partition a drive as a basic disk by default.

Volumes and partitions. Some people use these terms interchangeably and can
cause a bit of confusion for IT. Both terms are logical structures or divisions
of a disk that appear as individual disks to the OS. IT can create a volume on a
dynamic disk that spans multiple disks -- often a RAID configuration -- where a
partition is created on a basic disk. A simple volume is a volume on a single
drive. IT must format partitions with a file system to store data, including
Windows and applications.

Boot disk or partition. This is a recovery CD, DVD or floppy disk that IT can
use to start Windows for troubleshooting if the computer doesn't boot. A boot
partition holds the files for Windows and is accessed during the Windows boot-up
process. IT must have Windows installed on a basic disk that contains at least
one active MBR partition.


WINDOWS 10 DISK MANAGEMENT TASKS

There are several key Windows 10 disk management tasks that an administrator
should be familiar with for day-to-day operations. While it is possible to
perform these tasks via Diskpart, a partition manager that performs the
operations from a command line, it is often simpler to use the Disk Management
snap-in. The snap-in tasks to know include the following:

 * partitioning
 * formatting
 * volume manipulation
 * advanced tasks


THE WINDOWS 10 DISK MANAGEMENT TOOL

IT can find the Windows 10 disk management tool by going to the Windows Search
bar and entering "Disk Management." This tool displays several disks and
partitions on a Windows 10 PC (Figure 1). Note that physical disks -- including
USB -- are numbered starting with zero. In this example, the PC has one internal
hard disk (Disk 0), two USB drives (Disk 1 and 2) and a CD ROM drive. Disk 0 is
the "system disk" where Windows is.

TechTarget

Figure 1. The Windows 10 Disk Management tool displays each disk and partition
on a PC.


Note the following features shown for these partitions:

 * drive letter (recognized by Windows);
 * volume label (user supplied);
 * size and formatting (i.e., FAT, NTFS);
 * disk type (basic, dynamic, removable, etc.); and
 * partition type (primary, boot, OEM).


PARTITIONING A DISK

Partitioning a disk refers to dividing a Basic or Dynamic disk into logical
sections and is relatively easy to do. It is a common task required to make a
newly purchased disk appear in Windows for data storage or for repurposing an
existing disk by changing the partition structure.

The trick is to make good decisions on how many partitions to make and their
size. If a device has multiple hard disks, typically, one is used for the
operating system and the other for data for better performance. Windows
installation creates a boot partition and formats it before installing Windows,
leaving the rest up to the admin.

Create a partition. To create a partition, right-click in the Unallocated space
shown in the Windows 10 Disk Management display and select the type of volume
(Figure 2). Selecting the simple volume initiates a new wizard, which allows
specification of the volume size, the assignment of a drive letter or mount
path, then brings up the Format Partition dialog. The created and formatted
partition now appears in File Explorer as the E: drive and can be used as
needed.

TechTarget

Figure 2. Right-click on unallocated space and select


Mark partition as active. This feature reactivates a partition if it has become
inactive.


FORMATTING A PARTITION

A partition needs to be formatted with a file system to be useful. Trying to
perform any disk management operation on an unformatted drive, such as just
clicking on it in File Explorer, results in a message indicating it is
unformatted.

Right-click on the drive and select Format (Figure 3), which allows the user to
name the volume. Select a file system between FAT32, NTFS and exFAT and perform
a quick format and file compression if desired. The format tool also works on
removable USB drives.

TechTarget

Figure 3. The format command allows the user to name the volume, select a file
system between FAT32, NTFS and exFAT, and perform a quick format and file
compression if desired.


Caution: Formatting a healthy partition with data will prompt a warning about
destroying the data. It is best to avoid this altogether, but third-party data
recovery operations can usually restore data after a reformat. Windows will not
allow formatting the Windows drive.


VOLUME MANIPULATION

The volume operations in the Windows 10 disk management tool adjust the size of
the partition. These are very powerful operations that will enable the changing
of partition space for better data organization and can happen without
destroying data.

Delete Volume. Right-click and select Delete Volume. This action is very
dangerous as the data is not recoverable. Make sure there is a good backup just
in case you need it.

Shrink Volume. This reduces the space on a disk, even one with data, to create a
new partition. In the example from Figure 1, the C: drive has a 916 GB partition
and only one fixed hard drive, and we want to have a separate partition for
backup. Shrink Volume decreases the unused space, creating "unallocated space"
on the disk, which the new partition can use.

OEM-installed laptops and PCs only have one hard drive, so it helps to put
applications and data on a separate partition from Windows. To do this,
right-click on C: partition and select Shrink Volume, then indicate how much of
the available space to move to a new partition (Figure 4). In this example, we
selected 100 GB (100,000 MB). Due to overhead, Disk Manager will show this
volume as 97.66 GB of unallocated space.

Note: If a volume can't shrink, it is likely due to insufficient free space or a
file system error. Windows will not allow you to shrink past used space with
data or unmovable files.

TechTarget

Figure 4. Shrink Volume decreases the unused space, creating


Extend Volume. This expands the size of a partition if you have unallocated
space. Suppose that after adjusting the size to 100 GB, the E: partition should
be 150 GB. Without unallocated space, this wouldn't be possible. Instead, do the
following:

 * Backup the data and delete the E: partition.
 * Deleting the partition creates the 97.66 GB unallocated space again (Figure
   2).
 * Right-click on C: partition and select Extend Volume, which initiates the
   Extend Volume Wizard (Figure 5). The Extend Volume screen is where the amount
   of space to extend the volume is specified. Because the extended volume is a
   boot or system volume, it cannot convert to a dynamic disk. The C: drive is
   now 916 GB again.
 * Perform the Shrink Volume operation and use the new desired size of the E:
   partition to shrink the C: drive and create the new E: partition.

TechTarget

Figure 5. The Extend Volume screen is where the amount of space to extend the
volume is specified.



ADVANCED FEATURES

Other operations in the action list include the following:

Open and explore. This allows you to view the files via File Explorer.

Change drive letter and paths. These settings allow the user to change the drive
letter or NTFS Mount Point. For example, to change the Audio drive to W, so it
isn't confused with the data drives, right-click on the E: drive, select Change
Drive Letter and Paths, select Change, then enter the desired drive letter and
click OK. Caution: Some programs expect to run on a certain drive letter. Write
these down before changing drive letters.

Add mirror. This option allows the creation of a mirrored drive set. For
redundancy, an exact copy of the drive duplicates onto another drive.

The Windows 10 Disk Management tool can manipulate drive space to make existing
hardware more efficient and adapt to changing data storage needs without
purchasing additional hardware.



RELATED RESOURCES

 * Buyer's guide to multicloud –ComputerWeekly.com
 * Why Windows* 10 migration should start with new hardware –Intel
 * Newer Client Devices Powered by 8th Generation Intel® Core™ vPro® Processors
   ... –Intel
 * Developing the Intelligent Core with Windows Server 2019 –Dell Technologies
   and Windows

DIG DEEPER ON WINDOWS 10

 * STORAGE VOLUME
   
   
   By: Robert Sheldon

 * USING DISKPART TO CREATE, DELETE, CLEAN OR EXTEND DISK PARTITIONS
   
   

 * WHEN NOT TO CONVERT BASIC DISKS TO DYNAMIC DISKS
   
   
   By: Brien Posey

 * HOW TO GET THE WINDOWS 10 UPGRADE PROCESS RIGHT
   
   
   By: Ed Tittel

RELATED Q&A FROM GARY OLSEN

HOW DOES EXCEL'S INSERT DATA FROM PICTURE FEATURE WORK ON MOBILE?

The Microsoft Excel mobile app allows users to upload data through a photo. IT
professionals should learn how this process works so they can test its...
 Continue Reading

WHAT ARE THE REASONS TO STAY ON WINDOWS 7?

Most organizations should perform a migration to Windows 10. Some applications
aren't compatible with the new OS, however. Learn what to do in these ...
 Continue Reading

Sponsored News
 * What You Probably Don’t Know about HDDs –Western Digital
 * Zoned Storage Takes On the Zettabyte Age –Western Digital
 * Composable Infrastructure: The New IT Agility –Western Digital
 * See More

Related Expert Q&A
 * Yes, you can make a Windows disk partition read-only –
   SearchEnterpriseDesktop
 * What is a LUN and why do we need one? – SearchStorage
 * Should full disk encryption be used to prevent data ... –
   SearchSecurity.co.UK



Latest TechTarget resources
 * Virtual Desktop
 * Windows Server

SearchVirtualDesktop
 * Setting up and troubleshooting multiple thin client monitors
   
   Thin clients generally require less attention from desktop administrators,
   but sometimes, IT needs to intervene to set up or ...

 * Choosing a thin client for remote desktop protocol access
   
   There are plenty of suitable thin client options for RDP environments, but
   each device has unique characteristics that make it a ...

 * Understanding the difference between thin and thick clients
   
   How do thin and thick clients compare for licensing or flexibility? These two
   endpoint types each have their role in the ...

SearchWindowsServer
 * Microsoft Ignite 2021 conference coverage
   
   Microsoft is expected to highlight the features in its new Windows desktop
   and server products as well as company efforts in ...

 * Microsoft Azure Stack HCI adds Arc, virtual desktop support
   
   Azure Stack HCI users now have more management features, better integration
   with Arc and the ability to run Windows virtual ...

 * Slow Office 365 admin portal problems? Give PowerShell a try
   
   IT work is frustrating enough without having to deal with sluggish admin
   center performance. See how PowerShell makes Microsoft ...

 * About Us
 * Editorial Ethics Policy
 * Meet The Editors
 * Contact Us
 * Advertisers
 * Business Partners
 * Media Kit
 * Corporate Site

 * Contributors
 * Reprints
 * Answers
 * Definitions
 * E-Products
 * Events
 * Features

 * Guides
 * Opinions
 * Photo Stories
 * Quizzes
 * Tips
 * Tutorials
 * Videos

All Rights Reserved, Copyright 2008 - 2021, TechTarget

Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences
Do Not Sell My Personal Info


Close