How to partition a hard disk (Windows 7): step-by-step instruction. Why break a hard drive?

Immediately specify, marking disk space - the process is not mandatory, however, as practice shows, very useful. Moreover, to protect yourself from data loss is the lot of the wise of this world. Yes, and the well-known saying: "Do not store all the eggs in one basket," - unobtrusively reminds us, people that life is full of surprises. If you have not yet made a disk partitioning and store your data in the system partition, you risk a lot.

Operating system, as they say, can "collapse", but at the same time you will be deprived of virtually all the information that was stored on your computer's hard drive. If you do not know how to partition a hard disk (Windows 7 will become the reference point of our story) - do not despair. In a few minutes, right after you get acquainted with the simple methods of marking HDD, you will only have to translate the theory into practice. Well, forward, to comfortable security!

Structural introduction

First of all, let's touch on the subject question: "What does a computer hard drive consist of?" Let us dwell on a memory device of a mechanical type, because, firstly, it is the most common type of drives, and secondly, the hard disk parts of this modification are most interesting for consideration . It should be noted that, unlike solid-state SSDs, a hard drive (HDD) consists of many structural elements.

The main details of the mechanical information store are:

• The spindle that rotates the motor.
• A magnetic disk made of a specific metal or glass.
• The reading head, which is attached to a special bracket.
• A printed circuit board with electronic components printed on it.

All of the above, as well as many other technical elements, except for the last part from the list, are inside the hermetic block (the body part of the hermetic type). Of course, all this is only a brief information.

On the benefits of HDD markup: for the computer to work quickly and stably

To dispel any doubts about the question of whether or not to divide disk space into partitions, let's touch on the main benefits that the user will receive after studying information on how to break the hard drive.

• The operating environment of the OS will not be constantly overloaded with various user data, which will favorably affect the processing speed of system information.
• A separate section "File Storage" will become an independent area of HDD. Your data will not be threatened by anything, even if Windows OS will lose its performance.

It is impossible not to mention the situation when the user suddenly wants to try out a new OS. It is unlikely that you will be able to shove another version of the Microsoft OS into a directory that is already occupied by the previously installed system. However, a little later you will learn how to properly break a hard drive (in 3 ways, by the way!) And organize an acceptable scheme for storing data on your PC's hard drive. By the way, it is in this article that we will consider one more advantageous moment of HDD partitioning - "Recovery area". An incredibly convenient addition will become a kind of digital insurance. Well, it's time to move on to the practical part of our narrative.

Standard option: how to partition a hard disk

Windows 7 is equipped with a special software tool called "Disk Management", through which you can mark up the hard drive installed on the PC.

• Click the Start button and point to Computer.
• Right-click the shortcut menu - select "Manage."
• In the opened window, you need to activate the item "Storage devices".
• Then you need to go to the "Disk Management" section.
• After that, information about the information storage device will be displayed on the screen.

Important retreat

The user can split the hard drive (Windows 7 is still limited in its standard features!) In only four parts. If the working area of your hard drive consists of five or more volumes, the use of the specified software will simply prove to be a useless enterprise. The alternative is only third-party software, which for today is enough. By the way, we'll talk about one such program later. In the meantime, let's return to the interrupted narrative.

Correct manipulations in disk management

So, let's say your hard drive has only one partition (as a rule, a single disk space is denoted by the Latin letter "C"). You also need to create another volume, which will contain all your user data: audio, video, text, graphics and other kind of digital material. Let's call the created area "imagery" - it simplifies understanding of the essence of the process. Well, back to the immediate solution to the question: "How to split the hard drive?" Windows 7 elegantly manages this kind of tasks, as you will more than once see for yourself.

• So, from the Disk Management utility window, right-click the partition you want to separate.
• Select "Compress volume" from the drop-down list .
• In the next menu, the program automatically sets the optimal values. Nevertheless, you need to consider that in the future you will need free space on the system disk. After all, installing new programs is an inevitable process when using computer technology.
• Leave the operating section ten gigabytes, the rest of the spatial volume will become the directory "File Storage".
• After you click on the "Compress" button, the process of reallocating the disk space follows the specified parameters, which will allow you to split the hard drive.

• Windows 7 (Disk Management) automatically displays a new volume in the main service window. Free space will be identified by the system as a free HDD area - "Not allocated". The unregistered area should be formatted, and the file system must be selected "NTFS".
• Hover the marker over the free space and use the same right mouse button to bring up the context menu.
• Choose - "Create a simple volume".
• In the next window, specify the size of the new partition (by default, the program will offer the most accessible options).
• Then click the "Next" button.
• Assign a letter to the section.
• In the next window, select the item "Format ..." and set the value of the "NTFS" file system.
• The final action is pressing the "Next" key.

So, the question: "How can I break a hard drive?" Can be considered closed. Nevertheless, there are alternative ways of structuring the hard drive area of the hard drive, you will learn about some of them from the article below.

AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition will help correctly partition the hard disk into partitions

The first thing you should pay attention to when organizing the process of redistributing space on a storage device is how comfortable it is to use a particular software tool. Again, in the case where the user wishes to restructure the HDD workspace in a special way, the standard Windows tool is unlikely to be "competent", since the functionality of the integrated tool is very limited. However, everything is solved, if you install the above software on your PC. Well, let's look at the process of interacting with AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition.

How to create a new partition on a hard drive without data loss: step by step instruction

Before you begin the implementation of the scenario, it is necessary to understand the following: in spite of the fact that AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition is considered free software, this program for the hard disk has multifunctional properties. With this memory manager, you can perform a large number of tasks. As you understand, activating the "wrong button" can cost you dearly. Be careful when working with the program, and everything will go well.

Step # 1: Install the software

Find this program on the Internet is not difficult. Nevertheless, it's worth to be cautious: download software only from a trusted source. The installation process is very simple - read the service explanations and know that you need to press the "Next" button and wait a little.

Step # 2: Running and working in the program

Having a general idea of why to break a hard disk, we will start implementing the conceived project - this is the division of the workspace of the hard drive into volumes.

• In the case where your drive consists of a single and indivisible space, two entries will be displayed in the main program window (on the right): a reserved HDD area of several hundred megabytes and a system partition, which in our case occupies the entire disk space.
• A bit below you can see the graphical diagram of the drive regions involved.
• Right-click on the system object.
• From the drop-down menu, select "Resize Partition".
• In the next dialog box, move the spatial slider as a circle to the left, thereby freeing up space for the new volume.
• The illuminated program for the hard disk in automatic mode will set digital values, which will be the actual value of the volume of the two demarcated areas of the hard drive.
• After the manipulations, click "OK".
• After a certain time, you will again be in the main window of the AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard Edition.

• Hover the marker on the graphic object "Unoccupied" and re-activate the right mouse button. From the context list, activate the "Create Partition" item.
• Specify the letter value of the new volume and set the parameter "NTFS", then click "OK".
• The changes you make should be confirmed. To do this, click on the "Apply" tab, which is in the upper area of the program window, on the left.
• In the prefinal window, click on the "Go" button.
• Then you need to agree to the "Reset" action.

In a few minutes you will get a practical answer to the question that most newcomers are interested in: "How to share a hard drive?" Windows 7 will reboot and you will witness an immediate process of breaking your HDD, which, by the way, can take a long time. It all depends on the amount of hard drive and its technical characteristics. Be patient and in no case interrupt software operations - this can be critical for the performance of the hard disk as a whole.

If the old drive fails

At the first stages of the installation of the operating system, the user is given the opportunity to partition disk space. After the installation window appears in front of you, in which you need to select a specific location on the hard drive, where exactly the OS will be located, click the button below - "Disk Setup". Then proceed according to your preferences. How many sections you need, create as many.

Believe me, it seemed impossible for some users (perhaps even for you) to solve the problem: "How can I break a new hard drive?" Is actually easy to implement with just a few clicks. Read system prompts and act!

"Hard" systemic curiosities with a laptop and not only ...

Sometimes we (users) have a desire to expand the cumulative resources of their PC. In such situations, we usually install an additional HDD. In some cases, especially progressive users equip their "electronic horses" with solid-state drives. As you understand, a fast SSD hard drive becomes a "system dwelling". Typically, for this type of drives install the OS itself. However, not every user of such an upgrade runs smoothly. Sometimes the system requires some kind of driver for the hard drive. How to be in such situations and what needs to be done - read in the next paragraph.

Where to get the driver and how to install it: exit from the "Windows-deadlock"

The motherboard of any computer (including laptops) is equipped with a special microchip - a memory controller. The electronic component works according to a certain software algorithm. In the case where the driver for the hard disk is not available in the Windows distribution, the process of installing the OS on an unknown drive is simply impossible. As a result, a service message appears before the user.

• Read the documentation of your computer and, according to its typical characteristics, conduct an appropriate search on the Internet.
• After you can download the required software component, repeat the installation process until you need to select the partition for the installation.
• Click the "Download" button and specify the path to the downloaded file, which must first be copied to a USB flash drive or CD / DVD drive.

Promised information: where is the recovery section hiding?

Perhaps one of you, the dear reader, could not find the answer to the question: "How to break the hard drive of a laptop?" Nevertheless, all of the above applies to portable computing devices. However, try the EaseUS Partition Master Free Edition program, perhaps your choice will stop on this particular software.

Now about that, as to the opened section. Before resorting to any method of partitioning disk space, it should be understood that as a result of your actions you can destroy a special recovery area on the hard drive. As a rule, the modern computer equipment that we buy with a preinstalled OS on its hard drive has a "Recovery" section, which can be seen through "Disk Management". However, until you assign an alphabetic identifier to the hidden partition, you will not find it in the traditional explorer.

That's basically it. Delete information on it or not - it's up to you! After wiping the "Recovery" partition, you can free up only 10-20 GB of disk space, while you lose the ability to restore a full copy of the licensed OS.

Briefly about the important

Never hurry! Before you use this or that disk manager, remember - the risk of destroying valuable data is too great. Take only deliberate steps, save copies of important files before you start irreversible processes.