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General discussion

Desperate. Pls advise how to partition 160GB hard disk.

Jul 29, 2007 3:02AM PDT

Hi Editor,

I have a new Dell Dimension 9100 computer, 3GHz dual core intel processor, 1GB RAM, Windows XP Professional Operating System with SP2, 160GB hard disk, etc. It has been left untouched for half a year just because I do not know how to partition my hard disk. The new computer comes with only 1 partition for the whole 160GB hard disk. I do not know how to manually partition my hard disk so I plan to use PartitionMagic 8.0 to partition my hard disk. I need to know what is the best way to partition my 160GB of hard disk like for example, the number and type of partitions to create, what's the partition created for and how to do it using PartitionMagic 8.0?

Currently my new computer is running Windows XP Professional operating system. I want to use my computer mainly to surf the Internet, play and store thousands of MP3s songs, watch and store videos, photos and programs. In near future, I would also like to install Linux operating system in it. Sometimes I will also be using my computer for editing videos and photos. I will also use it to play games but not very often. In view of what I mentioned above, how do I partition my 160GB hard disk? How many partitions do I need, for example, is it better to have a separate partition, each for video files, music files, and photo files? Is it better to have a separate partition for programs/applications or should programs and applications be stored in same partition as my Windows XP Professional operating system? How should I partition my hard disk so that programs and music files and video files, etc, can open up and run efficiently and reasonably fast? What is a swap file partition and do I need one for it? What type of partition for each of the above-mentioned storage purpose, such as FAT32, NTFS, etc? What do I need to do if in future I want to add additional partitions to my hard disk - should I reserve some free space in my hard disk for future partition needs and how do I go about doing this..... as in extended logical partition or what...hope you know what I mean?

Another question that is hanging in my mind for a long time and is important to me is what is the best partition strategy for say, when my Windows XP Professional operating system crashes and I need to reinstall or install a new one, how should I partition my hard disk in such a way that I can simply put in my operating system disk into my DVD ROM and do the job while my video, mp3, photo files and other data files will not be lost? In other words, just simply reinstall my operating system and all my other files are not lost or affected. Hope you do know what I mean. This is important to me because I surf the net often and there will often be times my computer would be infected with trojans and viruses and spywares and times my registry or system files could be corrupted and thus I would need to reinstall my operating system. So I hope there could be a simple way to do this (reinstall my operating system) and not lose my other files and data in my hard disk. How should I partition my hard disk for my operating system, programs/applications, video, mp3, photo, data files for this purpose? BTW, just curious, when surfing the net and you caught a virus or a trojan or a spyware, will that particular virus, trojan or spyware be spread to the other partitions in the hard disk?? When I defragment my hard disk, do I really need to defragment my whole entire 160GB of hard disk or could I just defragment the necessary partitions? is there a faster and yet effective way to defragment my 160GB hard disk as such would take a very very long time. Will having
the right partition strategy help in this matter? And if it does help, what partition strategy should I use? Also, do I really have to do a virus scan on my entire 160GB hard disk (that would take ages to complete). Do people have to scan their entire hard disk for viruses or is there a better and faster way to do our virus scan?

Lastly, I would be using PartitionMagic to do the partitioning. Is there any drawbacks using PartitionMagic? I am new to PartitionMagic, could someone guide me to how to use it? BTW, any idea where can I find online resources to understand about how to partition my hard disk in such a way that my computer can function at its optimal efficiency and performance? I have searched Google and am overwhelmed by the millions of topics it has found. I have read some but some of it is not relevant to my questions or my particular usage and storage purposes.

As you can see, I know nothing about partitioning strategies. There are so many ways but what is best for my computer in terms of my usage and storage purposes? I hope someone knowledgeable can give me his/her expert guidance and advice. It has been half a year and nothing is done and I am tired. PLEASE HELP ME OUT. PLEASE! THANK YOU.

P.S. I will use Ghost 2003 to create an image of my system partition so that I could easily restore this partition when Windows crashed or when I want a clean slate of my operating system just as it was on the very first day because as time passes, windows registry tends to get bloated and causing system to run slow. I read that Ghost images can only be stored in a FAT32 partition, is this true? Do I need to create a FAT32 partition to store Ghost images. Also, how do u do a restore of the system partition from its Ghost image? Thank you.

Discussion is locked

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Lot of questions, lot of answers...
Jul 29, 2007 3:24AM PDT

* Windows does not let you split partitions, only delete and create from unallocated space, so something along the lines of Partition Magic is indeed needed.

* You will need at least two partitions, one for Windows and one for the Linux distro. The size depends on which flavor of Linux you plan on installing and how much you plan on using it...will you install a lot of programs and use it heavily or just lightly once in a while?

* A third partition for your multimedia is optional. It's nice to set it up this way in case Windows becomes corrupt, slightly reducing the risk of data loss while repairing the OS, but isn't necessary. It would also enable easier access to the files from both Windows and Linux. The size should depend on how much you plan on storing there, leaving a couple extra GBs for a buffer zone.

* NTFS is best for the Windows installation as it supports EFS encryption, enhanced data compression, etc. Linux will recommend its own while FAT32 would be appropriate for the multimedia partition, if you create it, reducing the chances of compatibility issues while accessing the data from outside Windows.

* The swap file (paging file) is used as virtual RAM, regardless of how much physical RAM you actually have. Some create a separate partition to house it, but that's unnecessary and provides no noticeable benefit.

* You could set aside unallocated (free) space or split existing partitions into new ones down the road...it's up to you. Splitting partitions has some risk of data loss, so it''s a judgment call.

* Extended logical partitions are not what you'd be looking for at that point.

* If that's a retail copy of XP then you can run a repair installation with very little chance of data loss. OEM installations, on the other hand, are trickier, and if it's a manufacturer's recovery system it could wipe all partitions. Thus, as a general rule, always backup what you can't afford to lose.

* Yes, anything that infects your computer can spread between partitions or affect files on other partitions if it's designed to. There is absolutely no protection there, and is another reason for maintaining backups.

* You just need to defragment the individual partitions as necessary. The Windows partition would likely need it the most, and the Linux partition the least.

* Yes, you really do need to scan your entire hard drive, not just the local partition. As stated above, it can spread, so if you only scan C: you're leaving yourself at risk.

* The above mentioned partitioning scheme is fine for both fragmentation and scanning situations.

* Partition Magic has a nice guide available for download from the product website. That will get you started.

* Ghosting your hard drive is a good idea, but you need to store the image on CD/DVDs or an external hard drive, otherwise it defeats the purpose. As to the FAT32 issue, I honestly can't remember for that version, but the user manual can sort that out.

Hope this helps,
John

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still abit confused
Jul 30, 2007 10:20PM PDT

Thanks John for writing. Greatly apprerciated.

I have decided to use Norton Ghost 2003 to image my C: drive first then after this, use Partition Magic 8.0 to resize/reduce the size of my C: drive from 160GB to 30GB. Pls, anyone advise me if having 30GB for my C: DRIVE (which is also my system partition) is a little too big or just nice as this partition will only be used to store my Windows XP Professional, ZoneAlarm firewall, McAfee Anti-virus, Norton Anti-virus, Acrobat Reader, Microsoft Office and other O/S-related applications.

After resized my C: drive to 30GB, I will be left with 130GB of unallocated space available. Thereafter I will create 4 partitions, each for storage of my Pictures, music files, video files, and games. I will create a 20GB partition for my pictures, a 30GB partition for my music files, a 40GB partition for my video files, and a 30GB partition for games. Here is my problem, should these 4 partitions be primary partitions or logical drives in an Extended Partition? Could someone explain to me the purpose of a primary partition and a logical drive in an Extended Partition? And what kind of files is appropriate to store inside them?

After all these done, I will be left with 10GB of unallocated space left. I will create the remaining 10GB as a partition for Linux just in case in the future I would like to try Linux. Again, what type of partition should this be, primary or logical drive??

I will not crerate a partition for my swap file as I read it's no point to create a partition for swap file in the same hard disk. What do you think?

Is there any other partition that still I need to create? Please advisde me on these. Your help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

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Why all that hard work?
Jul 31, 2007 12:05AM PDT

Wouldn't a subdirectory or folder work as well to hold these items?

Bob

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advantages of partition
Jul 31, 2007 12:53AM PDT

Hi Bob,

Don't u know the advantages of partitioning your hard disk? I am surprised why people still want to stick to one partition for a large hard disk. If u do more readups, u will agree that it's better to partition your hard disk than leave it as one whole partition.
Advantages include the following:

When your windows crashed, u can just easily restore your system partition and not lose your data or programs if u had partitioned them in to separate partitions.

If u make the system partition as the first partition on the hard disk, u acually limits the system partition to fastest track on the hard disk, as u can imagine that the speed is highest at the outer edge of the disk. When there is windows update to download, this downloads will not spread all over the disk, thus your rerad/write head do not have to search all over the disk. Wasting time.

When an error creeps out, it helps narrow down where the error could have happened if u partitioned your disk appropriately rather than search through the entire disk to find the error.

You don't have to defrag the whole entire disk sometimes. You only need to defrag those partitions that need to defrag.

Well the above are just some of the advantages. They are more but I won't state them all.

So, could someone tell me how I could partition my hard disk? How many partitions should I have and the type of partition? I hope someone knowledgeable could help me out. Thanks.

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Sorry that has been found to not be true.
Jul 31, 2007 2:37AM PDT

Partitions are not a safeguard for files as Windows crashes. I'd heard and read this for years but people still bring me their broken file systems and partitions didn't save them.

Even more damning are that most owners don't have more than a RESTORE CD that usually wipes out these partitions.

Given you have your ideas about this and I have only a few hundred (this year) failures to compare with I think you should do what you want?

Bob

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There are some benefits...
Jul 31, 2007 3:58AM PDT

1.) If you are using an OEM recovery system's nondestructive recovery method you can avoid potential data loss if the recovery system is one of those that only ensures protection of files in the My Documents directories.

2.) If you have a retail copy of Windows and need to perform a full clean installation, you can wipe the system partition and reinstall without losing your personal files on the other partition(s). This, of course, assumes you're not using EFS or have backed up your key.

3.) You can selectively defragment, though considering the advances made in both preventing and dealing with fragmentation it's becoming less of an issue.

However, as you said, it's not a true safety net, for malware infections, misc data corruption, mechanical failures, a recovery system's full reinstall, etc. can still cost you everything. I also wonder what aspect he's looking at when he mentioned 'tracking down errors.' Regardless, there are still some benefits to be had.

John

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Personally...
Jul 31, 2007 4:16AM PDT

lavinci7, personally I would consider a partition for each media type excessive. Instead, I would store Windows and all programs on one partition, Linux on a second, all all personal documents on a third. I can see the argument for your proposed setup, but to me it wouldn't be worth the hassle, would offer limited benefits, and create the potential for future changes should one partition end up needing more space. That's entirely up to you, though.

I will make two important notes regardless of your decision:

1.) Windows must be installed on the first, primary partition, C:.

2.) Logical drives in extended partitions cannot be used to host an operating system. Their existence is merely to bypass the limit on the number of logical partitions supported by the operating system, supplying additional storage compartments. Thus, you'll want Windows and the Linux distro to be installed on primary partitions. The others can be placed in logical partitions inside a single extended partition.

And, as for a final consideration, if you want to fiddle with Linux you could always run it from a Live CD and save the 10GB of hard drive space for now until you wish to commit.

Hope this helps,
John

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Some more questions...
Aug 4, 2007 7:48PM PDT

Thank you all for writing. Thanks for all your input. I guess it's easier if I show u how I will partition my hard disk and u can advise me and correct me if needed.
I plan to have:

1) One 30-GB NTFS primary system partition for my existing WinXP & all normal programs/apps [C: drive]. My question here is that really puzzles me is whether to have my programs/apps be installed in the same partition as my operating system or should I install my programs/apps in a separate partition?? One advantage for having your programs/apps installed in a separate partition away from the operating system is that it allows easy and quick re-installation of the operating system (should something happen to my operating system or when it gets bloated after sometime) and NOT LOSING my program files. I also understand that some (O/S-related)programs such as anti-virus program and firewall need to be installed in the same partition as the operating system,...is this true or not?? If it is true, how about Miscrosoft OFFICE programs and Acrobat Reader program, should these be installed in the same partition as the operating system or I could install them in a separate partition??? Another question is whether 30GB for system partition is too big or what, taking into consideration when programs/apps are included or excluded in that partition?? If it is too big, what would u suggest? I will be creating Ghost images of the system partition for future restoration when needed. Pls advise me of the size of this system partition and whether or not the programs/apps should be in same partition as my operating system.

2) One 5-GB FAT32 primary partition. FAT32 is DOS-compatible. Never know when you might need to load some DOS disk utilities, or install a legacy version of Windows. It's nice to be able to if need be. [D: drive]

3) One 40-GB NTFS extended/logical drive for digital media such as lossless audio, MP3s, jpegs, graphics, scans, photos from digital cameras. [E: drive]

4) One 30-GB NTFS extended/logical drive dedicated solely for video files and video-editing. [F: drive]

5) One 25-GB NTFS extended/logical drive dedicated solely for games. [G: drive]

6)One 7-GB NTFS ext/logical for downloads, drivers, back-up files, etc. [H: drive]

7) One 8-GB NTFS primary dedicated for beta OS'es, such as the newest version of Windows such as Vista or Longhorn. It's nice to have one standing by, just in case. If I don't use it for Longhorn or Vista, I could use the space for other things.

Cool After all the above partitions, I will be left with 15GB of space left. I intend to have thnis space as unallocated space for future use of Linux operating system. I won't be installing Linux at present but will not rule out in the future. I understand that I don't have to format this space now, am I right?? Besides I don't know what type of partition for Linux (whether it should be NTFS or FAT32 OR EXT3, primary or extended/logical). Pls advise me on this.

The above is how I intend to partition my 160GB hard disk. I hope you could advise me and answer all the questions I mentioned above. Correct me if I am wrong in any way of my partition strategy above. You could even show me your plan of partitioning my 160GB hard disk. PLEASE HELP. Thank you very much.

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Dos and 160GB drive = How?
Aug 4, 2007 9:05PM PDT

DOS is not 48BIT LBA aware and just does not work. You would have to stay with 127 of less size drives to make this viable.

Read http://www.48bitlba.com

Sorry but I don't see any benefits here.

Bob

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A few notes...
Aug 5, 2007 4:21PM PDT

1.) Just about every program you install utilizes the registry and shared system files, storing some required data outside of the directory (or partition) you point the installation to. If you ever had to perform a clean installation of Windows just about all of the programs, installed to another partition, would not work and have to be reinstalled from scratch. Thus, you can install them to J: or elsewhere, but it will NOT save you from having to reinstall all of them if you wipe Windows. (The 'advantage' you cited is nonexistent.)

2.) In most cases the program does not need to be installed to the primary partition the OS is on, including for security software. Such a limitation is imposed by the individual program itself and not a common issue.

3.) The size of the primary system partition looks OK, though only you know how many programs you will eventually be installing.

4.) You should never store backups on the same hard drive...it is insecure and defeats the purpose. (Review your #6.)

5.) Scratch your #7...Vista's minimum requirements state 15GB free space, so unless you're willing to dedicate at least that amount of space it's not worth attempting at all. And besides, Vienna (Windows 7/Vista's successor) is another 3 years away...there will be no public beta for a good two or more years.

6.) You are correct...you can leave space unallocated for future assignment. If/when you do install Linux let it format it accordingly.

7.) I still think having a separate partition for each type of multimedia is overkill, but it doesn't hurt.

Hope this helps,
John

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more questions....
Aug 9, 2007 3:41AM PDT

Thanks John for your input. So your final advice is that I install all programs/apps in the same partition [which is my primary system partition] as my operating system. Am I right? You mentioned that if I were to do a clean installation of the operating system, all programs stored in another separate partition would not function as installed programs utilizes the registry and shared system files; these programs would need to be re-installed. Am I right about this? Well, I have come across doing a clean installing of my operating system and it seems like some programs like Macromedia Flash and Director and other programs like Winamp, which were installed earlier, could still function properly. So how true is it when u say that the advantage is not there when programs and operating system are not in same partition and doing a clean installation of the operating system would render the programs in a separate partition unfunctionable. Pls clarify this as I don't quite understand it.

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(NT) So , how did it turnout?
Aug 17, 2007 2:08PM PDT
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Information is available from this location, for Windows.
Aug 18, 2007 3:06AM PDT
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Partition advice from a 20 year vet.....
Aug 17, 2007 5:34PM PDT

I'd suggest 3 or 4 partitions...

1 partition should be used for your XP installation and programs and any files you wish to encrypt using the NTFS file format. DO NOT store recorded TV programs and seldom-used media on this partition as it will slow your backup/recovery program and waste unncessary time and space to back up or restore your computer.

1 partition for your linux installation.

1 partition for your personal stuff (pix, MP3's, videos) that you want to back up regularly (Fat32 unless you'd like XP/NT security on these files)

1 partition for the stuff you don't care if you lose if your system goes down (like those 50 episodes of "The Nanny" that you'll probably never watch).

AND FINALLY - I'd suggest a separate drive to back all this up to... and that can be 1 large partition and my favorite backup program is Ghost. Ghost also has the ability to backup your existing XP Pro partition and restore it to the newer, smaller partition as you partition the disk into smaller, more manageable partitions.

I'd stick with using the XP setup disk, fdisk and disk manager to do your partition management... even though XP WILL eventually mess itself, it's less likely to do so if the partitions are made and handled by it's own disk management software. Partition Magic and other such utils add a layer of complexity and make one more disk you'll have to hunt for when XP makes a mess of itself down the road.

Hope this helps!
Poke

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partitionaing a 160 GB had disk.
Aug 17, 2007 6:44PM PDT

I suggest using Partition Manager by paragon software. It is the best I have seen and is virtually bombproof. It comes with all help files and just does the job. What else do you need.

martingreg3@aol.com

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very informative thread
May 15, 2010 9:11PM PDT

it was a very informative post helped me address all my concerns thanks to vinci and wilkinson

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Partition Hard Drive
Sep 2, 2010 11:21AM PDT

Partition Assistant, maybe you have heard it.
So, you can get more information through the article--Guidelines on how to partition a hard drive by Creating, Deleting, Formatting and Resizing Partition.
You can get very clear about the operations through this detail article.
And I want to tell you, this software is helpful, and it also has free edition, we can experience its superiority in advance.