Why can't I expand the disk volume with. Windows Disk Management How to Delete a Compressed Volume

Editing partitions and volumes helps out with thoughtless disk layout at the beginning Windows installations. Any shortcomings made during installation can be easily corrected.

Why do you need to change hard drive partitions?

Due to the large number of programs and games occupying almost all the free space, Windows begins to slow down, and defragmentation of partition C is carried out with errors.

The main reason for changing partitions hard drive is the lack of space on the system partition C.

At this time, up to several hundred gigabytes are empty on partition D, but moving some files to partition D forces you to reconfigure many third-party applications. In this case, it is easier to expand drive C at the expense of D.

How to expand C drive

Expansion of drive C is possible using: Windows tools, and using third-party programs.

Extending the C drive directly in Windows 7

If you want to expand the disk using standard means Windows, then do the following:

Now there is enough space in C for normal Windows operation and your programs.

If desired, you can use third party applications, for example, Acronis Disk Director or Partition Manager. But it should be remembered that in the hands of inexperienced users, alternative programs often become not a “magic wand”, but a means of destroying the user’s files, and only a computer service center will be able to restore your lost data.

Video: Extending a volume using Windows 7 tools

Expanding the C drive when reinstalling Windows 7

When installing Windows, you will not skip the stage of changing disk partitions. During the reinstallation process, the program will ask which partition to install the system in and will suggest redistributing the hard drive space.

There are two types of Windows installations: upgrade and full installation. The update is carried out on top existing system, saves everything installed programs, but resets system parameters. Full installation - installation with formatting of the system partition, or installation on another partition of the hard drive. If you want to change hard disk partitions, then you need to choose the second installation type.

If you really need a “clean” installation of Windows, do the following:

After formatting, Windows will continue to be reinstalled. Section C has been successfully modified.

Video: Resizing partitions in progress Windows reinstallation 7

Why can't I expand a volume in Windows 7?

A situation where the “Extend volume” option is inactive is possible. For example, we take the extension of the same C drive.

A situation where the “Extend volume” option is inactive is possible

• a spanned volume was created as D, which includes, for example, disks D and E. Transfer files from these partitions to other media. Remove this spanned volume;
• you forgot to delete all subsequent volumes, including drive D. Expanding the previous volume only works when deleting the next one.

How to delete a volume

You can only add an unallocated partition to a disk, which appears after deleting a volume.

Deleting a volume in Windows 7

To delete a volume:

You will be left with free space the size of this volume, which can now be attached to another partition.

Why can't I delete a partition or volume?

In some cases, removal may be difficult.

The reasons are as follows:

How to remove the swap file

To make volume deletion available, do the following to delete the file Windows swap:

Go back to Disk Management and try to delete the volume again. Check to see if this volume is connected to a neighboring volume on the same partition.

How to shrink a volume

The disk can also be expanded by compressing it. As a result of compression, free space will be obtained, which can be used to create a new partition or volume.

Features of volume compression in Windows 7 are as follows:

• compression works only for main and additional partitions, as well as in file NTFS system. If the partition or volume is formatted in FAT32, move the data from it and reformat (or convert) it to NTFS. To do this, call the disk context menu and click “Format”;
• if a partition or volume has many bad sectors, it will not be possible to shrink it;
• The page file, hibernation files, and recovery point data present an additional challenge to compacting partitions and volumes. Beyond the second area free space, counting from the beginning of the volume, compression will not work.

Shrinking a volume using Disk Management

If you want to shrink a volume using standard Windows tools, then:

Shrinking a volume using the command line

If the option to shrink a volume in Disk Management is no longer available, use the command Windows string. It can bypass the inactivity of some actions that are hidden by the Windows graphical shell. The instructions are universal for Windows 7/8.x/10.

When volume compression is complete, the command line will display a message indicating that the volume was successfully reduced by the specified megabytes. Using the Disk Management application, make sure that there is free space in which you can create a new volume.

Video: Shrinking a volume using the command line

Expand, compress, delete, add new partitions and volumes using standard Windows utilities- it's not difficult. The main thing is not to lose valuable data that you have been collecting and creating for many years.

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How to enlarge drive C

01/11/2016 windows | for beginners | programs

If, when working with Windows, you are faced with the need to increase the size of drive C at the expense of drive D (or a partition under a different letter), in this manual you will find two free programs for these purposes and detailed guide on how to do this. This can be useful if you receive messages that Windows does not have enough memory or the computer has started to slow down due to the small free space of the system disk.

I note that we are talking specifically about increasing the size of partition C at the expense of partition D, that is, they must be on the same physical hard drive or SSD. And, of course, the space on drive D that you want to attach to C must be free. The instructions are suitable for Windows 8.1, Windows 7 and Windows 10. Also at the end of the instructions you will find a video with ways to expand the system disk.

Unfortunately, using standard Windows tools, the described change in the partition structure on the HDD cannot be done without losing data - you can shrink drive D in the disk management utility, but the free space will be located “after” drive D and it will not be possible to increase C using it. Therefore, you will have to resort to using third-party tools. But I’ll also tell you how to increase drive C at the expense of D and without using programs at the end of the article.

Increasing the capacity of drive C in Aomei Partition Assistant

First of free programs, which will help expand the system partition of a hard drive or SSD - Aomei Partition Assistant, which, in addition to being “clean” (does not install additional unnecessary software), also supports the Russian language, which may be important for our user. The program works on Windows 10, 8.1 and Windows 7.

Attention: incorrect manipulation of hard drive partitions or accidental power failure during the procedure may result in the loss of your data. Take care of the safety of what is important.

After installing the program and launching it, you will see a simple and intuitive interface (Russian language is selected at the installation stage) which displays all the disks on your computer and the partitions on them.

In this example, we will increase the size of disk C at the expense of D - this is the most common version of the task. To do this:

Upon completion of all operations and two reboots (usually two. The time depends on the occupancy of the disks and their operating speed), you will get what you wanted - a larger system disk size by reducing the second logical partition.

By the way, in the same program you can do bootable USB flash drive to use Aomei Partiton Assistant by booting from it (this will allow you to perform actions without rebooting). You can create the same flash drive in Acronis Disk Director and then resize the partitions on your hard drive or SSD.

You can download the program for changing disk partitions Aomei Partition Assistant Standard Edition from the official website http://www.disk-partition.com/free-partition-manager.html

Resizing the system partition in MiniTool Partition Wizard Free

Another simple, clean and free program for resizing partitions on a hard drive is MiniTool Partition Wizard Free, however, unlike the previous one, it does not support the Russian language.

After starting the program, you will see almost the same interface as in the previous utility, and the necessary steps to expand the system drive C using free space on drive D will be the same.

Right-click on drive D, select the context menu item “Move/Resize Partition” and change its size so that the unallocated space is “to the left” of the occupied space.

After that, using the same item for drive C, increase its size using the free space that appears. Click OK and then Apply in the main Partition Wizard window.

After all operations on the partitions are completed, you will immediately be able to see the changed sizes in Windows Explorer.

You can download MiniTool Partition Wizard Free from the official website http://www.partitionwizard.com/free-partition-manager.html

How to enlarge drive C at the expense of D without programs

There is also a way to increase free space on drive C using the available space on D without using any programs, only using Windows 10, 8.1 or 7. However, this method also has a serious drawback - data from drive D will have to be deleted (you can first move them somewhere if they are valuable). If this option suits you, then start by clicking Windows keys+ R on your keyboard and type diskmgmt.msc, then press OK or Enter.

The Windows Disk Management utility window will open, in which you can see all the drives connected to the computer, as well as the partitions on these drives. Pay attention to the partitions corresponding to drives C and D (I do not recommend performing any actions with hidden partitions located on the same physical disk).

Right-click on the partition corresponding to drive D and select “Delete Volume” (I remind you, this will delete all data from the partition). After deletion, unoccupied unallocated space is created to the right of the C drive, which can be used to expand the system partition.

In order to enlarge drive C, right-click on it and select “Expand Volume”. After this, in the Volume Expansion Wizard, specify how much disk space it should be expanded by (by default, everything available is displayed, however, I suspect you will decide to leave some gigabytes for the future D drive). In the screenshot I'm increasing the size by 5000 MB or just under 5 GB. When the wizard completes, the disk will be expanded.

Now the last task remains - to convert the remaining unallocated space to drive D. To do this, right-click on the unallocated space - “create simple volume” and use the volume creation wizard (by default, it will use all the unallocated space for drive D). The disk will be automatically formatted and assigned the letter you specified.

That's it, ready. All that remains is to return important data (if any) to the second disk partition from the backup copy.

How to expand space on the system disk - video

Also, if something is not clear, I suggest step by step video instructions that show two ways to increase the C: drive at the expense of the D: drive in Windows 10, 8.1 and Windows 7.

Additional information

There are others in the programs described useful features which may be useful:

• Transferring the operating system from disk to disk or from HDD to SSD, converting FAT32 and NTFS, restoring partitions (in both programs).
• Creation Windows flash drives To Go in Aomei Partition Assistant.
• Checking the file system and disk surface in Minitool Partition Wizard.

In general, they are quite useful and convenient utilities, I recommend them (although it happens that I recommend something, and after six months the program becomes overgrown with potentially unwanted software, so always be careful. At the moment everything is clean).

And maybe this will be interesting:

remontka.pro

How to enlarge the C drive in Windows 10. Part 1

how to expand c drive

Hello everyone, today we’ll look at how to expand the C drive in Windows 10. There are situations where you need to add disk space to the local system drive so that you can continue to install programs, or update Windows 10, the situations can be different.

You can only expand a partition on drive C by using another local drive located on the same physical drive, for example under the letter D, other options are not possible, RAID is not taken into account. Unfortunately, built-in Windows methods 10, you won’t be able to do this without data loss, let’s look at this in more detail.

Shrink an additional local disk

And so the first step that needs to be taken in order to expand drive c is to free up the required amount of space on the donor drive with the letter D. As you can see, I have very little space left on my system disk.

For this purpose, Windows 10 has compression functionality. Right-click on Start and select Disk Management

As you can see, there are two local drives C and D.

Right-click on the donor drive D and select Shrink Volume. Compression means freeing up free space and turning it into unallocated space.

Compress Windows volume 10

Let's set the size of the compressed space, I'll enter 10,000, which is about 9.77 GB.

As a result, we ended up with 9.77 GB of unallocated space.

And if you right-click on drive C, the Expand volume item will not be active.

And if it’s on drive D, then the item is active, which confirms that it’s not possible to do this using built-in tools.

Extend Partition C: Using AOMEI Partition Assistant

You can increase the capacity of drive C using the AOMEI Partition Assistant utility. Launch PartAssist.exe. A program window will open. We select a non-system drive, for me it is drive E.

Right-click on it and select resize partition.

Default majority hard drives are accompanied by two volumes: C and D. These are the main partitions on the hard drive (volumes or root directories), which are strictly separated from each other. First of all, they are made so that the system does not have to wander in the wilds of heavy films and games on the way to vital files. For ordinary users, the ideal placement of programs, games and files is: everything light and frequently launched is on the system drive (C by default), everything heavy and unimportant is on the second disk, an alternative OS is on the third. And in order to most efficiently distribute space between volumes or change their number, you should be able to manage disk space.

How to open hard drive management

Like most windows Windows settings, disk management has many doors and you can get to it in different ways. The simplest ones: right-click on the start menu and find the required item there (not available on all versions) or type in “Create and format partitions” in the search.

In Windows 10 "Manage" hard drives“is called “Creating and formatting hard disk partitions,” but in the window signature the name remains the same, and “Disk Space Management” is a completely different window with limited functionality.

If for some reason this method does not suit you, here is the path to disk management, which has not changed since XP:

1. Right-click on Start and open Control Panel. If it's not there, you can find it through a search.
2. Open the "System and Security" category when categorized.
3. Scroll down and click “Create and format hard disk partitions”, under the “Administration” group.

Login to management via command line it is forbidden. There is only a separate set of commands for disk management as a fallback alternative, but this is quite complex and pointless.

If it doesn't open

If the system does not allow you to manage disks, the issue is a restriction of user rights, since for this purpose you must have administrator rights. Most likely, the root cause of the problem is a virus on your computer and after following the instructions, be sure to scan everything and everyone with an antivirus.

Before proceeding with the method described below, try disabling your antivirus and try again.

1. Search the Start menu and find and open “regedit”.
2. On the left side of the window, follow the path “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SYSTEM/CurrentControlSet/Control” and single-click on the “Windows” folder contained there.
3. On the right side of the window, open the “CSDVersion” option.
4. Set the parameter to zero and confirm the changes.

Disk space management

So-called disks are correctly called partitions or volumes (you most likely only have 1 disk), but given that even Windows calls them disks, this is not important.

To make one volume larger, you must first make another volume smaller. You can't just grab a spot out of nowhere and you have to find a donor first. It is worth saying that in Windows 10 there is no function for merging volumes. If you want to merge, you will have to use the standard methods described below and copying information from disk to disk.

There is one very important non-obvious rule that imposes a strong limitation on disk management, and before you start wasting space, you need to consider the most popular mistake.

Why is "Extend Volume" inactive?

Pay special attention to the order of the volumes in the lower half of the window.

In our case, the order is: C, J, D. After we pinch off a piece of space from one of the disks, it will appear behind the donor volume. For example, if we take a piece from drive J, the order will be: C, J, Free space, D. Free space can only be filled into adjacent partitions. That is: return to the donor volume (J) or expand the next disk (D). We cannot expand drive C, since there is an obstacle in the way in the form of drive J.

To expand the C drive, you need to completely remove J and make it a remote space. But if this doesn’t seem enough and you want to expand to include drive D, you’ll have to delete it too.

Expansion of the first volume is possible only with the help of an individual multi-pass or specialized programs.

For example, in this case, to expand drive C at the expense of D, you can do the following multi-step:

1. Creating a new volume using drive D.
2. Moves all files from drives J and D to a new volume.
3. Removing the J drive and expanding the C drive using the freed up space.
4. Removing drive D and expanding drive C using the freed up space.
5. We call the new volume disk D.
6. We move from C to D as much space as needed.
7. We create drive J at the expense of C and move old files from drive D to it.

It all depends on the order of the disks, their volume and the availability of free space, so the multi-pass is individual.

If the disk with the system is not the first, then expanding the ones in front of it is impossible, since the disk with the system cannot be removed.

Compression

1. Right-click on the partition you are interested in and select “Shrink Volume...”.
2. Set the donor space size and click Shrink.
3. Free space will appear behind the donor volume.

If you cannot compress the volume, you must either moderate your appetite or delete part of the contents of the volume.

Removal

1. Right-click on the volume and select "Delete Volume...".
2. All its contents will then be deleted.
3. The freed space will appear in the place of the deleted volume.

Extension

The system disk expands just like all the others. But due to the error described above about the impossibility of expanding the volume, this is not easy to do. Before expanding your disk, be sure to read the first part of this chapter, which covers the most common disk management error.

Creation

Windows 10 does not recognize the difference between a local disk and a simple volume. In principle, there is no difference between them. The difference between volumes and local disks used on older operating systems and was purely a conditional limitation. By creating a simple volume, you create a full-fledged local disk.

1. Right-click on the unallocated space and select Create Simple Volume.
2. Select the size of the allocated space. You will not be able to use non-adjacent free space.
3. Select a letter for the new volume.
4. It is better to leave all settings as default.
5. A new volume will appear in place of the used space.

Video: Disk Management in Windows 10

Defragmentation

The entire contents of the hard drive are divided into many small fragments, and when new information is entered, these fragments are located taking into account their best position for sequential reading, one might say side by side. However, when they change, new information is recorded and existing information is moved, a well-ordered structure gradually tends to become more chaotic. Moreover, there appear bad sectors, where the reading process is greatly hindered. The process of optimizing this entire structure is called defragmentation and is recommended for periodic execution at least once every six months.

Checking the disk for errors is also included in the optimization process.

Defragmentation is intended exclusively for HDDs. For SSDs, it is not only dangerous, but also harmful. If you don't know what you have:

• HDD - The computer turns on for 10 seconds or longer, and hard drive looks like a box with a round part.
• SSD - Windows starts in less than 7 seconds, and the drive looks like an electrical contraption, just like the other components.

Cleaning drive C

In addition to simply cleaning the desktop and deleting unused programs, it is worth getting rid of files that are actually called junk. Windows 10 has a very specific place for collecting junk and junk files - this is the Temp folder. Everything in it can be deleted without any regrets and the slightest risk of harming the system.

Cleaning the C drive through its properties in Explorer is less complete and does not affect some temporary files.

1. Go to settings.
2. Open the "Privacy" section.
3. In the General tab, disable Ad ID and Start Tracking.
4. Go to the Speech, Handwriting, and Text tab and turn off speech services if they are active.
5. In the “Feedback and Diagnostics” tab, select the main method of data collection, disable the only switch and disable the generation of reviews.
6. In the " Background applications» turn off the main switch.

Programs

As mentioned above, regular means Windows has very limited capabilities for managing hard drive space. If you are faced with an insurmountable problem or are simply too lazy to bother with moving space multiple times, you can always use help special program, which will do all the dirty and mental work for you in just a couple of buttons.

Proper distribution of disk space is a simple and very far-sighted action, and timely defragmentation is the key to order on your computer. You should only change the size of volumes or their number after carefully considering your future plans for using the computer and distributing priorities between heavy games and programs. The main thing is to always leave at least 10 GB of free space on each volume, especially on the system one, and do not forget about defragmentation.

The hard drive is partitioned during installation of the operating system. But the applied division is not always optimal. For example, under the main drive C, on which you install operating system, usually not enough space is allocated. Fortunately, Windows 7 makes it possible to change the free space distributed between partitions.

Disk expansion

There are three ways to expand and edit the space allocated for a particular hard drive partition: through built-in utilities, third-party programs, or during a system reinstallation.

Through built-in utilities

In Windows 7, a program is installed by default that allows you to make all the necessary settings:

From the Start menu, launch the Run program. Open Run

Type and run the command diskmgmt.msc to open Computer Management.
Run the command to open Computer Management

Explore information about all media and hard drives connected to the PC, and about the partitions into which they are divided.
Explore information about the main partitions and disks of your PC

Do not delete small partitions, weighing about 1 GB, because they store information important to the system, for example, restore points and other Windows support files.
Do not delete system-reserved disks

Find out whether you have unallocated space or not. Unallocated space is the amount of hard disk space that does not belong to any volume. Only this space can be distributed between disks.
Unallocated space is marked in black

If you don’t have this space, then there are two options: erase one of the partitions, thereby losing all the information stored on it, or shrink the partition for which too much space is allocated. To delete a volume, right-click on it and select “Delete disk”. Please note that everything located on this disk partition will be deleted permanently, so transfer all important data to third-party media in advance.
Click the "Delete Volume" button

Confirm the deletion by clicking the "Yes" button.
Click "Yes" button

To shrink a volume, right-click on it and select Shrink Volume.
Click the "Shrink Volume" button

Check out the information in the expanded window: the total amount of memory, free space that can be compressed, and an interactive line in which you need to indicate how much space you want to take from the partition. All data is in MB. It is not recommended to take away all the free space from the volume, as this can cause a sharp lack of memory for programs or other actions; it is better to leave a few GB just in case.
Set parameters for volume compression

Click the "Compress" button

Find the "Unallocated" block.
Find the "Unallocated" block

Select the disk you want to expand, right-click on it and select “Extend Volume” from the menu that opens.
Click the "Extend Volume" button

The "Extend Volume Wizard" will open. Skip the greeting by clicking Next.
Click "Next" button

Find three items: the volume that has already been allocated to this partition, the unallocated space and the interactive line in which you need to manually enter the value of how much of the unallocated space you want to give to that partition. Having set all the parameters, click the “Next” button.
Set volume expansion parameters

Wait for the extension to finish and confirm its results by clicking the “Finish” button.
Click the "Done" button

Make sure that the disk has grown and the unallocated space has decreased. Restart the system so that all applications and processes take into account the changes made. Restart your computer

Video: how to expand a volume through Computer Management in Windows 7

During Windows installation

If you are in the process of installing Windows 7 and want to change the disk size, follow these steps:

Click on the "Full installation" option when prompted to select an installation type. In the “Update” mode, disk configuration is not provided.
Select "Full installation"

Do not delete small partitions that weigh less than 1 GB, as they store information needed by Windows, such as restore points and other files to support the system.
Do not delete the partition allocated to the system

Click on the “Configure Disk” button to open additional features.
Click the "Configure Disk" button

Check if there is unallocated (unallocated) space on the disk.
Find unused disk space

If you do not have this space, you will have to remove one of the disks by selecting it and clicking the “Delete” button.
Click the "Delete" button

Make sure that the unallocated space appears. Select the disk that you want to expand, click on the “Expand” button and specify the amount of memory that will be allocated to the disk from unallocated memory. Done, the disk has been enlarged. In the same section, you can delete volumes, expand them, format them, or create new ones.
Click the "Expand" button

Video: how to repartition hard drive partitions when installing Windows 7

Using third party programs

There are several free programs that replace the Windows utility for working with disks and their partitions. For example, Aomei Partition Assistant. This convenient program in Russian, featuring a simple and understandable design.

Right-click on the desired disk while in the main menu of the program and select “Resize partition.”
Click the "Resize Partition" button

Adjust the slider or change the numbers in the windows to edit the disk sizes. The process repeats all the steps and conditions described above in the article in the “Through built-in utilities” section.
Adjust the slider or change the numbers in the windows

Use the "Apply" function in the main menu of the program to save the changes. Click the "Apply" button

Restart your PC so that all applications and processes accept the changes made. Hit the reset button

Video: How to use Aomei Partition Assistant

Extend Volume feature is not available

Some users encounter that the “Extend volume” item in the built-in utility or during the installation of Windows 7 is inactive, that is, it is highlighted in a neutral color.

A similar problem occurs when you do not have space that can be allocated to one of the disks. That is, you do not have unallocated memory.

Please note that free disk space and unallocated space are two different things. To achieve the presence of a second one, you need to delete one of the volumes or compress it, moving the free space to unallocated space. How to do this is described in the paragraphs in the “Through the built-in utility” section above in the article.
The inactive Extend Volume button is gray

Unable to delete volume

Another problem that you may encounter when editing disks is that the “Delete Volume” button is inactive. It can occur for two reasons:

The partition that you cannot delete contains the page file. You can verify this by looking at the information in brackets in the “Status” column. The way out of this situation is to delete the swap file or move it to another partition. The first option is better because this file important for the system, it helps it run games and applications for which the computer does not have enough RAM;

the partition contains several volumes that must be deleted before erasing the entire partition.
The inactive “Delete volume” button cannot be pressed

One way to get unallocated space is to shrink a volume that has free space.

While in the built-in utility or special third party program, click on the desired partition and select the “Shrink volume” function. It is not possible to shrink a volume during Windows installation; it can only be deleted or expanded during this process.
Click on the “Shrink Volume” button

Specify the size of the compressed space in MB, but remember that it is not recommended to take all the free space from the volume, as this may cause a sudden shortage of memory for programs or other activities.
Set the necessary parameters to compress the disk partition

Click the "Compress" button to apply the changes.
Click "Compress" to save changes

Make sure the "Unallocated" block appears.
After compression, a block with unallocated memory should appear

Partitions of your hard drive's shared memory can be shrunk, expanded, or deleted. In addition, they can be formatted, that is, completely cleared. But do not forget to leave a few GB of memory in reserve when compressing and do not delete partitions reserved for recovery points and other system elements.

Editing partitions and volumes helps out with thoughtless disk partitioning at the beginning of Windows installation. Any shortcomings made during installation can be easily corrected.

Why do you need to change hard drive partitions?

Due to the large number of programs and games occupying almost all the free space, Windows begins to slow down, and defragmentation of partition C is carried out with errors.

The main reason for changing hard disk partitions is the lack of space on the system partition C.

At this time, up to several hundred gigabytes are empty on partition D, but moving some files to partition D forces you to reconfigure many third-party applications. In this case, it is easier to expand drive C at the expense of D.

How to expand C drive

Expanding drive C is possible using both Windows tools and third-party programs.

Extending the C drive directly in Windows 7

If you want to expand the disk using standard Windows tools, do the following:

1. By pressing the Win + R buttons, bring up the “Run” window. Enter the command "diskmgmt.msc" and click "OK". The command “diskmgmt.msc” will open the Disk Management utility
2. Select section D and context menu volume, click on “Delete Volume”. Do not rush to edit hidden drives without a volume name, since deleting a partition will destroy all valuable files stored on it. Necessary information should be copied to another disk or removable media in advance. You cannot remove drive C, on which the system itself is installed. After disk D is destroyed, there will be unallocated space in its place.
   Select the volume and delete it
3. Select drive C and in the context menu give the command “Extend volume”.
4. Set the number of megabytes that will be added to drive C. It will not be possible to exceed the maximum value, since the physical media itself is limited. Click Next.
   The size of the previously unmarked area will decrease by this amount.
5. Drive C will be enlarged. The size of drive D will be reduced by the megabytes given to drive C. Click on a free area of ​​the drive and give the command “Create a simple volume”. When you recreate volume D, this partition will be automatically formatted (applies quick formatting using Windows tools).
   Click on the remaining unallocated area and click on “Create Simple Volume” in the context menu

There is now enough space in C for Windows and your programs to run normally.

If you wish, you can use third-party applications, for example, Acronis Disk Director or Partition Manager. But it should be remembered that in the hands of inexperienced users, alternative programs often become not a “magic wand”, but a means of destroying the user’s files, and only a computer service center will be able to restore your lost data.

Video: Extending a volume using Windows 7 tools

Expanding the C drive when reinstalling Windows 7

When installing Windows, you will not skip the stage of changing disk partitions. During the reinstallation process, the program will ask which partition to install the system in and will suggest redistributing the hard drive space.

There are two types of Windows installations: upgrade and full installation. The update is carried out on top of the existing system, preserves all installed programs, but resets system parameters. Full installation - installation with formatting of the system partition, or installation on another partition of the hard drive. If you want to change hard disk partitions, then you need to choose the second installation type.

If you really need a “clean” installation of Windows, do the following:

1. Insert the installation DVD or USB flash drive and restart your PC.
2. To open the BIOS window, press the Del, F2, or Esc key during system startup (the choice of key depends on the computer manufacturer). In the window that opens, use the arrows to select “Boot”.
   In the window that opens, use the arrows to select “Boot”
3. Next, use the arrows to open the “Boot Device Priority” tab and in the list, select the boot device from which you need to boot the system. Close the BIOS and save the changes.
   In the list, select the boot device from which you need to boot the system
4. Wait while the installer downloads to RAM PC.
5. Select the type of Windows reinstallation.
   Select full Windows 7 installation
6. For example, one disk and one partition are taken. Select the drive and click Disk Setup. All your files should be copied to other drives in advance.
   Select the drive and click "Disk Setup"
7. Additional links will appear - click the “Delete” link. A warning about data transfer will appear, click “OK” and delete the partition. Do the same with adjacent sections (D, E, etc.), if there are any.
   Click "OK" if your personal files have been copied to other media
8. After removing existing partitions, you will have an unallocated (unformatted) disk area, which is the full size of the hard drive. To create new sections, click the “Create” link.
   Windows 7 Setup will help you create new logical drives
9. Specify the size of partition C, and create partition D in the same way. Go to partition C and format it. A quick format will be applied (clearing the disk table of contents).
   The installer requires you to format partition C

After formatting, Windows will continue to be reinstalled. Section C has been successfully modified.

Video: resizing partitions during reinstallation of Windows 7

Why can't I expand a volume in Windows 7?

A situation where the “Extend volume” option is inactive is possible. For example, we take the extension of the same C drive.

A situation where the “Extend volume” option is inactive is possible

• a spanned volume was created as D, which includes, for example, disks D and E. Transfer files from these partitions to other media. Remove this spanned volume;
• you forgot to delete all subsequent volumes, including drive D. Expanding the previous volume only works when deleting the next one.

How to delete a volume

You can only add an unallocated partition to a disk, which appears after deleting a volume.

Deleting a volume in Windows 7

To delete a volume:

You will be left with free space the size of this volume, which can now be attached to another partition.

Why can't I delete a partition or volume?

In some cases, removal may be difficult.

The reasons are as follows:

How to remove the swap file

To make volume deletion available, do the following to eliminate the Windows page file:

1. From the Start menu, go to Control Panel.
   From the Start menu, go to Control Panel
2. Go to the “System” section.
   Go to the "System" section
3. Go to " Additional options systems."
   Click on "Advanced system settings"
4. In the "System Properties" window, go to the "Advanced" tab and click on the "Options" button in the performance settings. Click this button
5. In the performance settings window, select the “Advanced” section and click on “Change”. Select the “Advanced” section and click on “Change”
6. In the virtual memory settings window, uncheck the option to automatically select the paging file size and check the box next to “Without paging file.” Click on the “Set” button. Uncheck the option to automatically select the paging file size and check the box next to “No paging file”
7. Click "Yes" when prompted to clear the page file.
   Answer yes to the request to clear the page file
8. Close all windows by clicking "OK" and restart your computer.

Go back to Disk Management and try to delete the volume again. Check to see if this volume is connected to a neighboring volume on the same partition.

How to shrink a volume

The disk can also be expanded by compressing it. As a result of compression, free space will be obtained, which can be used to create a new partition or volume.

Features of volume compression in Windows 7 are as follows:

• compression works only for primary and secondary partitions, as well as file system NTFS. If the partition or volume is formatted in FAT32, move the data from it and reformat (or convert) it to NTFS. To do this, call the disk context menu and click “Format”;
• if a partition or volume has many bad sectors, it will not be possible to shrink it;
• The page file, hibernation files, and recovery point data present an additional challenge to compacting partitions and volumes. Compression will not proceed beyond the second area of ​​free space, counting from the beginning of the volume.

Shrinking a volume using Disk Management

If you want to shrink a volume using standard Windows tools, then:

Shrinking a volume using the command line

If the volume shrink option in Disk Management is no longer available, use the Windows Command Prompt. It can bypass the inactivity of some actions that are hidden by the Windows graphical shell. The instructions are universal for Windows 7/8.x/10.

1. Search for the Command Prompt application in Start and run it with administrator rights. Tasks beyond the use of application programs often require administrator privileges in Windows.
   Launch the Command Prompt application with administrator rights
This command displays a list of disks, partitions and volumes. The command line reports the maximum available volume space for compression
2. Enter "shrink desired=(number in megabytes)" which you want to shrink. The “shrink” command is entered with parameters, and if they are missing, all available content will be compressed.
   The “desired” attribute is a variable that corresponds to a value in megabytes

When volume compression is complete, the command line will display a message indicating that the volume was successfully reduced by the specified megabytes. Using the Disk Management application, make sure that there is free space in which you can create a new volume.

Video: Shrinking a volume using the command line

Expanding, compressing, deleting, adding new partitions and volumes using a standard Windows utility is not difficult. The main thing is not to lose valuable data that you have been collecting and creating for many years.

Good evening!

G I F T:
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Error Fix: Insufficient space to create file to store shadow copy file
Sergey
If you receive the error “There is not enough space to create a file to store the shadow copy file,” then to solve it, try one of the suggested options:
Option 1.
Make sure that on the drive (usually drive C) the amount of space occupied by the information you are going to archive is less than the amount of free space on the drive (usually drive D) where you are going to save the information (system image).
And the amount of free space on the disk for which you are archiving information (usually drive C) is more than 40 MB.
Option 2.
Exclude library content from archiving and try again.
Option 3. Clearing the space occupied by the USN magazine on a hidden partition.
Perhaps you do not have enough space to write metadata on the hidden “100 MB” partition. Reserved by the system”, necessary to create an archive copy.
You need approximately 40 MB of free space for this:
1) In the Start menu search bar, type diskmgmt.msc and then press Enter.
2) Right-click on the "100 MB. System Reserved" partition and select "Change drive letter or drive path."
Then select "Edit" and assign a letter (for example: Z).
Then click "OK".
3) Run Command Prompt as Administrator.
In the search bar of the Start menu, enter the command: cmd and press “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “Enter” simultaneously.
4) Enter the two underlying commands sequentially, ending the entry of each of them by pressing the "Enter" key to confirm the end of the entry:

1. fsutil usn queryjournal Z:
2. fsutil usn deletejournal /N /D Z:

5) Repeat data archiving.
6) After successfully creating a shadow copy, go to the “Change drive letter or disk path” menu again, but now select “Delete”, thereby making the “100 MB System Reserved” partition Hidden again.
Option 4: Uninstall hidden section and moving boot files for Windows from a hidden partition (“100 MB. Reserved by the system”) to the drive on which your Windows is installed (usually drive C).
Use this option only if Option 3 did not help you!
1) Run Command Prompt as Administrator.
In the search bar of the Start menu, enter the command: cmd and then press simultaneously: “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “Enter”.
2) Paste the command bcdboot c:\windows /s c: and then press the "Enter" key to confirm it.
3) In the Start menu search bar, type diskmgmt.msc and then press Enter.
4.1) At the bottom of the window, where there is a graphical representation of the partitions, find the volume (partition, disk) on which your operating system is installed Windows system 7 (usually this is volume (disk) "C").
Here the volume letter "C" is identical to the drive letter "C" from the "Computer" folder.
4.2) Right click on this section and select "Make partition active" in the context menu.
5) Restart your computer.
6) In the Start menu search bar, type diskmgmt.msc and then press Enter.
7) Right-click on the “100 MB. System Reserved” partition and select “Delete Volume” and click “Yes”.
8) Restart your computer and back up again.