“Shrink Volume” problem on C drive

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My OS is Win 7 Pro 64 bit with SP1 and all updates installed.

The size of my C drive is 465GB and I wish to shrink this to 100GB,but when I click shrink volume the maximum I can shrink the drive by is far too low.

If I open Event ViewerWindows LogsApplication, under Defrag the following entry appears: Log Name: Application
Source: Microsoft-Windows-Defrag
Date: 17-Mar-12 4:32:17 PM
Event ID: 259
Task Category: None
Level: Information
Keywords: Classic
User: N/A
Computer: Roy-PC
Description:
A volume shrink analysis was initiated on volume Local Disk (C:). This event log entry details information about the last unmovable file that could limit the maximum number of reclaimable bytes.

Diagnostic details:
– The last unmovable file appears to be: UsersRoyAppDataLocalMicrosoftWindowsTemporary Internet FilesContent.IE5index.dat::$DATA
– The last cluster of the file is: 0x3da195b
– Shrink potential target (LCN address): 0x156faba
– The NTFS file flags are: —-D
– Shrink phase:

To find more details about this file please use the “fsutil volume querycluster \?Volume{a07b783d-58d2-11e1-a112-806e6f6e6963} 0x3da195b” command.
Event Xml:

259
4
0
0x80000000000000

7482
Application
Roy-PC

Local Disk (C:)
\?Volume{a07b783d-58d2-11e1-a112-806e6f6e6963}
UsersRoyAppDataLocalMicrosoftWindowsTemporary Internet FilesContent.IE5index.dat::$DATA
0x3da195b
0x156faba
—-D
<analysis>
00000000C7000000AF00000000000000223679625372B2B9637B71360E00000000000000

What, if anything, can I do to increase the size by which I can shrink my C drive?

Advice would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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Replies

You could go to IE properties and clear the temporary internet files

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I would probably recommend a drive defragmentation and then maybe you can shrink the drive more than you are allowed now.

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I assume you are using Win 7 disk manager to attempt this shrink volume. After doing what Clive and Rui suggest, I would suggest using a different partitioning app for this purpose like Partition wizardor EaseUS Partition Magic. Either will perform this operation flawlessly and be available for other uses is needed. I have used Partition Wizard and it works very well.

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My OS is Win 7 Pro 64 bit with SP1 and all updates installed.

The size of my C drive is 465GB and I wish to shrink this to 100GB,but when I click shrink volume the maximum I can shrink the drive by is far too low.

Advice would be appreciated.

roy,
Hello…Sometimes Windows will place some small amount of “MetaData” kinda hanging out there all by itself… Who knows why…So Windows won’t let you reduce the size past that point …You need a 3rd party tool like Ted has suggested or a program that will consolidate free space like my Screen Shot (Prefect Disk) :cheers: Regards Fred

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Thanks for all the replies.

I deleted the temporary internet files and defragmented the drive but still got the same result when I tried to shrink the volume again using Win 7 disk manager, and the same message in the event log.

I am now trying one of the tools suggested by Ted, namely MiniTool Partition Wizard Home Edition.I clicked on Move/Resize Partition, with the C drive selected,and there are arrows to the left and right of the disk size, but when I place the cursor over them it changes to the left and right arrows and does nothing.If I hold the mouse down on the down arrow next to Partition size the size does reduce, but to get it down to 100GB from 465GB will take forever and wear my thumb out! Is there another way to do this that I am missing? Also,the MoveResize window says “Enter the new partition size and specify the location of the selected partition”, but there does not seem to be a place to specify the location.Ted, as you have used this program before I would appreciate your further help.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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Make sure your Image is up to date then go for it.

OK here you go, Open Partition Wizard.

In the Main Windows Click on the Partition you wish to resize (I am not going to actually resize my partition, just show the steps to do so)

30405-PartitionWizardMain

In my example I clicked on my Data Partition. It will open a second Window showing just the partition you have chosen to resize. Grab the edge of the Window you wish to resize (Grabbing the right side will be quicker as grabbing the left side to resize will cause the app to have to move any data in the partition to the new partition and this takes more time)

30406-MoveResize2

After you move the edge of the partition to the size you want you will notice the sizes change in the boxes under as well. When you get the size you want (takes seconds) release your mouse.

30407-MoveResize3

Now notice the Apply button in my first screen shot. If you are satisfied with the selected size click it. That’s all there is to it. If any data has to be moved the PC will reboot automatically and the movement will take place out of Windows. Be patient.

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Hello Ted,

Sincere thanks. I followed your instructions, but after I clicked Apply, when the restart occurred I was told BootMgr was missing.This caused a moment of panic as I could not find my Win 7 installation DVD, and my first thought had been to use the Startup Repair option on that DVD. However, my Macrium Reflect Rescue CD came to the rescue and repaired the boot problems, after which when the computer restarted again the MiniTool Partition Wizard completed its operations.I was then able to label the unallocated space created by MiniTool as Local Disk Z-logical disk, and now have 365GB free space on it.

All’s well that ends well.

Best regards, Roy

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Yes, I have also had an occasional momentary panic. These are usually easy to resolve. I did take the time a long time ago, even though I have my original installation disks for 3 separate PCs for Win 7, to make a Win 7 System Repair Disk as well. It fits on a CD. You can find it in the Win 7 Backup and Restore app. I just popped the CD in, booted and the system told me it found a problem and fixed it without me having to touch or do anything else except remove the CD and reboot and enjoy my new second partition. Glad Partition Wizard worked for you.

I have used this excellent app to move OSs, resize OSs etc. many times. It has never let me down. That is until I forget a step, then I have to restore with my Image and start over. That is not the apps fault, but my OLD BRAIN’s fault. :rolleyes:

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Hello Ted,my old (older?) brain thinks like yours. The first thing I did after getting the system back to normal was to create a system repair disk. I already had one for Win 7 32 bit but not for my current 64 bit version.

Regarding the message I got about BootMgr being missing, could that have been because when the MiniTool Partition Wizard was running and I was asked to choose the drive on which the operating system was installed (or words to that effect) I chose the C drive, rather than the system reserved partition? Advice on this point would be appreciated, for future reference, and thanks again for your help.

Regards, Roy

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Who knows, I do not. Sometimes these things surprise me. I got rid of my System reserved partition a long time ago. My MBR now resides on my C Drive with Win 7. As long as you have it working, I guess it’s a moot point anyway. Glad it’s working. Have fun with Win 8 CP (I think you said this was what you were going to do with the newly created partition) I am using it full time.

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Hello again Ted, I now have 3 partitions of what was my original C drive, namely unallocated space 101MB (this was originally the system reserved partition), the C drive 100GB (used 79%) and the new partition I created (365.7GB Used 0%) to use with Win 8 CP or whatever I choose. Can I merge the unallocated space with the C drive or the new 365.7GB partition, and if so how? I can’t find a way to do this with the MiniTool Partition Wizard, which I am not yet fully familiar with. Also the 365.7GB partition is shown as a logical drive. Is that OK?

Further advice would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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Roy,

You might want to give this thread a read. :cheers:

May the Forces of good computing be with you!

RG

PowerShell & VBA Rule!
Computer Specs

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You should be able recover the unallocated space. open Partition Wizard, click on the C Partition, Click resize and drag the left side as far as it will go to the left. When you choose apply the PC should reboot and Partition Wizard will move the C Drive forward into the 101 MB unallocated space. You very well might have to use that Win 7 Repair Disk to reset your MBR again.

As always MAKE AN IMAGE before starting the move.

RG, I did not have any of the problems you had when I reworked my granddaughter’s new PC. I simply did the very stuff Roy is doing now. I deleted the Dell Recovery Partition and used Partition Wizard to move the C Drive forward to occupy that space. In her case I did not remove the 100 MB System Reserved partition because I do not know if she might want to use Bitlocker later on, so I left it, but the recovery partition (Which normally exists in front of the C Drive) is gone and the C Drive was successfully moved by Partition Wizard with no fuss and no muss.

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Hello Ted,and thanks again. I resized the C partition as you suggested by clicking on it,then clicking resize and dragging the left side as far as it would go to the left.I clicked apply and rebooted, and did not have to reset the MBR this time. However, there was still 8MB of unallocated space in front of the C partition. I asked MiniTool’s support service about this and they said it was due to the small amount of unallocated space, and that I should try shrinking the C partition by say 500MB, leaving the 500MB as unallocated space in front of C, and then increasing the size of C to incorporate the unallocated space. I went through all the steps to do this, but it was back to square one, as after the final reboot I still had the 8MB of unallocated space.I realise 8MB is not worth worrying about, but as part of my learning curve decided to try the EaseUS Partition Master program. With that program I created a new partition for the unallocated space, and was then able to merge that partition with the C partition.

I consider both the EaseUS and MiniTool programs to be excellent, and MiniTool’s support is excellent, especially considering the program is free. You get no tech support with the free EaseUS Home Edition, but the Help details are good. One advantage of the EaseUS program is that you can merge partitions with it. You can’t do so with the free version of the MiniTool program, but you can with the paid version which I believe is only $12.

I have one final question. 2 of my hard drives are shown as active, the other 4 primary partitions are not. Should I change their status to active, and what difference would this make?

Further advice would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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I have one final question. 2 of my hard drives are shown as active, the other 4 primary partitions are not. Should I change their status to active, and what difference would this make?

Further advice would be appreciated.

Roy,
Hello… No …Only one primary partition per HD can be set to “Active” .. doing otherwise will probably result in your PC not being able to boot.. Seeing how your using “MiniTool” see Active:cheers: Regards Fred

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2 of my hard drives are shown as active, the other 4 primary partitions are not. Should I change their status to active, and what difference would this make?

FWIW, I think you’ve fallen victim to Microsoft’s unfortunate predilection to obfuscate terminology. For 30 years they’ve trained people to refer to logical volumes or partitions as “drives”, making a fuzzy term even more ambiguous. The term can be used in numerous hardware contexts (e.g., Hitachi drive … floppy drive … slave drive … SATA drive … ) or in a logical context (as in “C” drive). You have to be careful to be clear in what context you’re using the term or you can leave people confused. For instance, when someone talks about their “D drive”, do they mean a second physical hard disk, or do they mean a second partition on a single hard disk? It can make a difference in the advice you get.

Similarly, when you say “2 of my hard drives”, are you referring to partitions or physical disk drives? Perhaps I missed it, but I didn’t see where you stated what drive configuration you have. Reading between the lines, it appears you may have two physical disk drives subdivided into some combination of 6 partitions.

I’m sure you know you can have more than one partition per hard disk, and the “active” partition merely designates which partition will be booted by default if you boot from that hard disk. Ergo, it should be evident that you can only have one active partition per hard disk.

While a hard disk can only have one active partition, a computer system can have more than one active partition if you have multiple hard disks. The system will boot the active partition on whichever hard disk your BIOS is set to look for first. Active partitions on disks lower in the boot order are then ignored and treated just like non-active partitions.

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Hello dg1261, point taken. To make myself clear, one of my hard drives has 2 partitions, a C partition containing the operating system which is active, and one labelled Z, and I realise this should not be made active. Apart from that I have another drive, recently installed by my local computer tech which is active, and 3 other drives, 2 internal and 1 external USB connected. What difference would it make, if any, if I made those 3 active?

Further advice would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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What difference would it make, if any, if I made those 3 active?

Roy ,
Hello …See my post # 17…. You can only make “Active” a DrivePartition that has a MBR associated with it …most likely you will make your PC un-bootable if you set the others to “Active” :cheers: Regards Fred

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One of my hard drives has 2 partitions, a C partition containing the operating system which is active, and one labelled Z, and I realise this should not be made active.

You can only have one active partition per hard disk, so if you were to try and make Z active it would change C so that it is no longer active. Then the next time you reboot it would try to boot the Z partition instead of C. (Of course, that would fail if there’s no OS installed on Z.)

3 other drives, 2 internal and 1 external USB connected. What difference would it make, if any, if I made those 3 active?

Again, to be precise, you don’t make hard drives active, you make partitions active. I take it you’re implying those other three physical hard disk drives each have a single partition and your question is, “What difference would it make if I made each of those partitions active?”

The answer is it would make no difference at all, provided the existing C partition is on a disk drive first in the BIOS boot order. At boot time the BIOS progresses down the list of physical drives to find one with an active partition it can boot. Once it finds one, all other active partitions on devices lower in the boot order become immaterial and are treated just like any other, non-active partition. So if the disk with the C partition is first in the boot order, it doesn’t matter whether or not there are active partitions on any other disk.

Where it *would* make a difference is if one of those other disks was higher in the boot order than the disk with the C partition. In that case the BIOS would try to boot the first one it finds and wouldn’t get down the list to the one with the C partition. (Aside: this is the general principle behind true multibooting–which should not be confused with Microsoft’s half-baked style of pseudo-multibooting.)

Again, the only point to designating a partition active is if you want the BIOS to try and boot from it. If a partition doesn’t have an OS installed on it, there’s no point making it active. There’s no advantage to doing so, and the disadvantage is you risk hanging the system if the BIOS sees that particular hard disk higher in the boot order than the disk(s) with bootable OS’s on them.

BTW, as Fred mentioned, this only applies if you’re working with standard (aka, legacy) hard disks that have MBR-style partition tables. However, that’s quite likely the case because your main hard disk is a 500GB drive. The MBR partitioning scheme only works on hard disks less than 2TB, so it will gradually be supplanted by the newer GPT partitioning scheme as supra-2TB disks become more commonplace. On disks under 2TB you’re most likely going to encounter the MBR-style scheme.

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Belated solution to the Original Query re shrinking C partition:

I know it’s an old thread, but (for the record) the simple solution is to turn off system restore and delete all old restore points. That worked for me – you may also need to disable paging file as well (which I think would need a reboot).

The restore points are kept in the middle of the OS drive so need to be removed before you can resize the partition in disk manager.

More info here (see second post)
http://superuser.com/questions/88131/how-to-shrink-windows-7-boot-partition-with-unmovable-files

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I am not in a position to advise on that question. I am not exactly sure of the difference and whether it is advisable to change the partitions to active. Perhaps someone else could explain this or a Google search could explain the difference, sorry.

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Thanks dg1261. My final question is if I install the Win8 CP on one of my single partition hard disks, how should I go about it from the point of view of having what you refer to as a true multi-boot arrangement?

Advice on this would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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if I install the Win8 CP on one of my single partition hard disks, how should I go about it from the point of view of having what you refer to as a true multi-boot arrangement?

There are several options, with pros and cons well covered in other sections of this forum, so I won’t rehash details here. But to summarize, there are three basic choices:

[*]true multiboot: OS’s completely independent from one another, with no interference or interaction;
[*]Microsoft hybrid multiboot: OS’s mostly separate but intertwined to some degree;
[*]Virtual machine: OS’s independent, with one running virtually inside an application running on the other OS.

There are pros and cons to each of these methods, so do some research first.

I’ve followed many of DrWho’s (of whom Ted mentions) opinions on various topics, and typically find he and I are of like mind on many things. DrWho and I prefer true multibooting. It takes a little more care to setup, but is easier to remove. Think back to my explanation of active partitions and boot order and you should realize you can simply install OS’s separately, each on its own hard disk, and when you put them all together you can boot one or the other by simply changing the BIOS boot order.

Ted and others seem to like the Microsoft method. If you’re multibooting only Microsoft OS’s, it’s easy to setup, though removing can be trickier and sometimes interactions between the intertwined OS’s can cause problems.

Using a virtual machine is appealing because you can run both OS’s simultaneously, and removal is as simple as deleting the virtual machine. But it’s demanding on system resources so typically runs slower.

You’ll find detailed discussions of multibooting elsewhere on this forum, so explore those other threads. For additional background I might also suggest visiting my webpage, “Understanding Multibooting“. In particular, you might take a look at the little javascript demo I put together for an illustration of how Microsoft’s hybrid method differs from a true multiboot. The webpage is a bit dated but still valid–the same principles are still used with current OS’s.

Dan

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As always Roy, See my new signature and follow the advice before starting!

Right Click the Win 8 iso file and select Burn Disk Image to burn the iso file to a DVD.

DrWho would advocate disconnecting all other HDs power cables so only the HD that will contain Win 8 is active. At that point simply insert the DVD containing Win 8 CP, boot to it and install. This will definitely ensure no interference or interactions between the various OS’s. Read a couple of his posts about this. He has some very good info.

If you leave another OS HD connected (as in a dual boot scenario such as I have in my laptop) insert the DVD containing Win 8 CP and boot to the DVD. During the process at some point you will get to a screen to choose Upgrade or Custom Install. Choose CUSTOM INSTALL!!!! This will allow you to choose where to install Win 8 CP. Choose the unallocated HD and begin the install. This installs the Win 8 CP in the empty HD and Win 8 CP MBR on the Win 7 (or whatever OS you use) MBR. You can use EasyBCD to change back to the Win 7 MBR easily (I did this as I like the Win 7 MBR better even when I have Win 8 CP set as default OS)

I hope this makes sense.

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See my new signature and follow the advice before starting!

Ted,

??What new sig??

Zig

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Backup…Backup…Backup

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Dan, This is a very good explanation of the options. I have read many different explanations, but this is one of the easiest to understand and I thank you for that.

I guess the biggest reason I’m using the second alternative is the fact that I use a laptop almost exclusively and have only one HD. Plus HD’s in laptops are not nearly as easy to swap as desktops so I felt that option was easiest for me in my setup. If I used my desktop more than I do, perhaps I would use the first option. At this point my desktop is in the study up stairs on the 2nd floor and is not nearly as easy for me to use while I’m sitting in front of my large screen watching my favorite show. For now the desktop is just a storage device.

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You’re welcome, Ted.

Just to clarify, in case anyone thinks true multibooting requires multiple hard disks, it does not. You can use multiple partitions on a single hard disk and install OS’s independently each in its own partition without Microsoft’s intertwining. However, it requires changing which partition is the active one when you want to boot a different partition. It’s not as straightforward as just changing the BIOS boot order, but you can add a simple third-party boot manager to easily manage the task. As I mentioned above, it takes a little more setup work than the Microsoft hybrid method, but in return for the effort you get all the advantages of a true multiboot with complete isolation of each OS.

My work laptop currently multiboots 5 different OS’s, each completely independent and isolated from one another.

Dan

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I tried to install the Win 8 CP but whichever hard disk I select I am told “Windows cannot be installed to this disk.It has an MBR partition table.On EFI systems Windows can only be installed to GPT disks”. How do I get around this?

Further help would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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I do not know about this one Roy. This must be one of the new type Bios systems or something. The only thing I could advise is to go into disk management and delete the partition you wish to install to so it shows as unallocated space only. This is what I installed into. Perhaps others can advise further.

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See this KB article:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2481490

Try clicking next as it suggests.

Jerry

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Hi Jerry and thanks. I clicked next and was able to continue with the installation of Win 8 CP.However,although I chose the Custom Install, and selected the drive I wanted to install to (which was definitely not my C drive), Win 8 was installed on C.In fact I found that the C drive had been converted to 3 partitions,namely (a)Recovery Partition,(b) EFI System Partition,and (c) the C partition. I thought I had lost all the data I had on Win 7, but found it was still there but had been moved to a different drive.(I had made complete image backups with Macrium Reflect before installing Win 8 CP anyway).I did not have any option at startup to choose whether to boot into Win 7 or 8.

I tried using Win 8 for a while,but didn’t like it at all, so will stick with 7 as long as possible.

I tried various things to get back to Win 7, including the Win 7 Repair Disk and Macrium Reflect’s Rescue Cd,and formatting C, and using Easeus Partition Master. To be honest,I can’t recall all the many steps I took.

I rebooted several times,and on the fourth or fifth reboot, much to my surprise and relief,the option to boot into Win 7 or 8 appeared.(The Win 8 option said “Recovered”). I chose Win 7 and crossed my fingers, and to my surprise and relief when booting completed my Win 7 system was unaltered from what it had been prior to installing the Win 8 CP. Even my desktop icons were in exactly the same place, and every program worked as before.

I cannot trace anything relating to Win 8 on my system now, and yet when I reboot I still get the option to boot into Win 7 or 8. Can anyone explain this, and tell me how to remove the Win 8 option? Advice on this would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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EasyBCD to remove the Win 8 entry in the MBR. I cannot explain it, but this should remove it. Your problems must be associated with that new type Bios somehow. I am totally unfamiliar with it.

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Thanks a lot Ted. EasyBCD did the trick.Now all I would like to know,for future reference, is what do the following terms mean in relation to Hard Disk Partitions, and what are the pros and cons of each of them:

Simple Volume

Basic Volume

Primary

Active

GPT

Dynamic

Advice would be appreciated.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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This MS articlemight answer some of your questions.

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