Delete, merge, create, and rename a hard drive partition without formatting Windows

When you format your computer you are asked if you want to create partitions on your hard drive. I definitely recommend having your hard drive at least halved and made into two partitions for starters. This is not unreasonable as most hard drives in computers now days are getting rather large. Therefore you can afford to spare some extra space to store files away in case of a computer crash.

There are benefits to having your hard drive divided into separate partitions and the main one would be to backup important files. If you have files stored on another partition and C: drive crashes, it is most likely that your files on the other partition will be fine.

Another benefit is that you can format C: drive and leave the other partition intact and still storing your important files. You still go through the normal steps of installing Windows XP but you just choose to delete the C: drive partition only and then recreate it and install Windows on it. This leaves the other partition untouched.

Having partitions on your hard drive also allows you to organize your computer files better. Some people have a separate partition for different types of files.

How to create a partition on your hard drive without formatting Windows:

If you have a partition on your computer beside the C: drive, then you can delete, merge, rename and create more partitions.

1. Go to the start menu and select my computer (just make it blue)

2. Then right click on it and choose manage from the menu

3. Open the storage section by pressing on the plus sign in the left column

4. Then choose disk management

5. All of your partitions will show up here

To see more information please watch the video tutorial below.

Notes related to Delete, merge, create, and rename a hard drive partition without formatting Windows:

• You can get your calculator out and divide a piece of your hard drive into sections for different types of files to be saved there.

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About the Author

Mitz wrote this article and others for tips4pc.com  Browse for more articles that are written in an easy to understand way. Also see our very popular Video Tutorials page. Watching a video is a very easy way to learn about computers.

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