Partition Hard Disk

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I have a 150g hard drive (c:) which is currently a big mess. I am in the process of backing up my data and settings so I can reformat the hard disk. At the moment the hard disk has no partitions but I am thinking of creating the following three partitions:-
C: (40g) Operating / Apps, Windows / Norton

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There are no correct answers to this kind of thing, it is very much a matter of personal preference.

My advice would be to combine the C: and O: partitions because:

• If you ever need to restore one of these from an image backup, you will have to restore both to ensure you have a consistent snapshot of a working system.
• When you back them up you will have to back both up at the same time for the same reason
• If you allocate the space to one larger partition then it will become less fragmented than two smaller ones
• A regular scheduled defrag of the single larger partition doesn’t take very long anyway[/list]60GB to 80GB is more than enough for this partition.

  I would create another partition for data that you don’t ever want to back up, so that you can have a very simple backup regime. On this partition I would store large downloads, temporary internet files etc.

  I don’t know if 70GB will be enough space for data for your four users, it depends on what kind of data they are storing. Lots of photos and music downloads could need more space than that, but I have less than 20GB used for five users who mainly create office documents.

  StuartR

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Hi bhapi,

I concur with Stuarts’ advice re keeping your OS and program files on the same partition. I doubt you’ll need anything like 40g for them, though. Unless you’re planning to install masses of new apps, I think you’ll find even 10-15g ample. To get an idea of how much your current OS and programs require, use Windows Explorer to check the properties of your OS and program file folders. You’ll probably find you’re using 4-8g.

As for messing up the hard drive as a result of frequent instals/uninstals, defragging both before and after each install (before to account for any automatic updates) will keep fragmentation to a minimum.

On the partition front, there are numerous packages (eg Partition Magic) that you can use to add/delete/resize partitions without the need to reformat the HDD. If you add a partition to hold your data and then move your data files into it, that will of itself defragment those files. Of course, you’ll also need to tell Windows and your various apps where their data files have moved to.

Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]

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