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General discussion

Which PARTITION software is the best

Oct 6, 2006 2:52PM PDT

Looking for any opinions on what ever partitioning software is the easiest and best to use.
Thanks

Discussion is locked

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Browse this link with 84 responses
Oct 6, 2006 4:14PM PDT
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Thanks...but
Oct 6, 2006 4:41PM PDT

... most of the forum is whether to partition or not and I am more interested in the tools available

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I use what comes with the OS.
Oct 7, 2006 12:15AM PDT

Having helped too many recover from 3rd party tools I find the stock tools to be able to partition just dandy.

Such tools are in MacOSX, Linux, Windows, DOS and others.

My answer? Stock.

Bob

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That is the kind of answer I wanted to hear
Oct 7, 2006 8:03AM PDT

Thanks

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Disk Partitioning Utilities
Nov 9, 2007 4:57PM PST

While some stock disk utility tools may help you expand an unoccupied partition, there is little you can do once the entire partition has been allocated. Tools like Partition Magic can take that allocated space, size down the unallocated portion, and let you create a new partition. I am wondering if there are any other tools or utilities that allow this; or does Partition Magic own the market?

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Just to add a late reply.
Sep 3, 2010 12:02AM PDT

I wince at Partition Magic as I have had too many not backup prior to trying that feature. If you didn't backup, that was your choice.

"We only lose what we don't backup."

With that out of the way, I will share once in awhile I'll use GPARTED.
Bob

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(NT) (NT) One question, one answer. Use Partition Magic.
Oct 15, 2006 12:14AM PDT
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Until.....
Oct 19, 2006 9:26PM PDT

...something goers wrong. I have dealt with many HD failures where these (virtual) partitions created by these tools are hard to track and recover data from.
My advice is to back up and reformat the drive into two Physical partitions.

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Don't waste your money
Oct 11, 2006 5:16AM PDT

Use the Operating System's facility. It will do all you need.

Hitbit

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Sure, but only if...
Oct 13, 2006 8:19AM PDT

Only if you're starting with a clean install of the O.S. On the other hand, if you're like most people, you want to partition with data (programs, personal photos, etc.) already on the harddrive. That's when you need a "third-party" solution.

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WAY too optimistic...
Oct 13, 2006 8:21AM PDT

Most people would have NO CLUE what you mean by "Use the Operating System's facility". When you use a program like Partition Magic, there is less margin for error. Unless a person is very familiar with how their system works or gets very detailed directions from a trusted source, purchasing a program like PM gives an inexpirianced user a little added security.

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Disk Director
Oct 11, 2006 11:21PM PDT

this is Disk manager programm, able to resize/merge/split partitions.
Besides, it has recovery feature that will recover ur accident deleted data.
it's very easy in use
and rather cheap ~ 45$.
so my vote goes to Acronis Disk Director
here is link
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/diskdirector

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Partition Magic can help you
Oct 13, 2006 2:11AM PDT

I am a Network Admin at an SMB. I often need to reimage laptops and PCs, and rarely do I need do any other (re)partitioning than what was mentioned in the first answer (the built-in partitioning utility when reloading Windows from the OSR disc). However, there are occasions when I need to add additional partitions or resize partitions after the OS has been loaded. I find that Symantec's Partition Magic is the easiest tool for me. It allows you to resize and create partitions, as well as check the stability of all partitions on a HDD. You get an easy-to-read graph of current usage, and you can see if there are any bad sectors on the drive.

Is it worth $69.95? That depends on how much use you will get out of it. Since I never know when I might need it and I deal with hundreds of computers, the price is well worth it. This may be more than you are willing to spend. However, with PM you will receive support and help from the manufacturer if you need it. There are other free and low cost alternatives out there. If you type 'partitioning freeware' into a search engine, you will get plenty of results. Just remember, many times you get what you pay for! Good luck...

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Only if...

I had all the Norton stuff including SystemWorks, PartitionMagic and Ghost. I finally got tired of the many bugs and useless tech support and removed all of Norton. I freed up over 70 MG of ram and lost about 15 processes.
I vote for Disk Director. Easy to use and does not hog a lot of resources like Norton.

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There is no reason to pay for this
Dec 13, 2006 7:42PM PST

just download knoppix and use QTParted. Sorry, but there is no reason whatsoever to pay money for this functionality.

http://www.knoppix.org/

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Linux on one side Windows XP on the other
May 19, 2008 6:23AM PDT

This may seem like a silly question, but being a bit of nubie with Linux and combining Windows and Linux together on one drive or two drives within one machine does the partion software have to support both OS in one or more fashion? The reason I ask, I had partioned my drive XP and Ubuntu 8.04; Ubuntu corrupted XP; I'm sending this on a new install of XP. AS of late I have obtained a new drive and installing in same machine, i.e. two OS drives one machine. Before investing in partion software other than Windows own; I'd like to get someone's opinion about treatment of OS and partioning drives.

Thanks

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That's not necessary...
May 19, 2008 8:59AM PDT

As long as the partitioning software works with the OS you're running it under you're good to go. Partitioning apps do not create OS-specific partitions, nor do they need to remain installed during or after OS installation. Just remember to install Ubuntu (or other distro) after Windows.

John

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Try BOOTIT NG
Oct 13, 2006 3:08AM PDT
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Allocate extra memory to an extended partition?
Dec 7, 2006 1:18AM PST

I had a go at using Bootit as I would like to allocate extra memory to my C drive. Apparently it is not allowed to allocate extra memory to Extended Partition. Is there a solution ? I have 2G available as free space and my computer is still running under Windows ME.
Thanks for any tips.

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Gnome Partition Editor - Free, does everything & easy to use
Oct 13, 2006 3:19AM PDT

Don't bother with PartitionMagic if you're only going to use it once or twice -- it's a waste of money and totally not worth it.

It's even open source!
http://gparted.sourceforge.net/

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Free may not be easy
Oct 13, 2006 8:39AM PDT

"Gnome Partition Editor" is a Linux program, meaning that you will either have to install Linux, or run it from a bootable "Live Linux" CD. That also means dealing with the quirks inherent in Linux.
It is very important to read the instructions - there are a few quirks in Gnome PartEdit. For example, while it can resize NTFS partitions, you MUST reboot Windows, and Windows will note the changes and scan for errors and correct them.

It is not as easy to use as Partition Magic or Partition Commander, 2 programs I can recommend for ease of use. Both can resize/move FAT, FAT32, NTFS and Linux partitions without any problems.

If you want to save money, try the disk management tools included in your OS first. Then, if they are insufficient or too difficult, consider other options.

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(NT) (NT) Norton PartitionMagic
Oct 14, 2006 2:12AM PDT
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It's not worth purchasing
Oct 15, 2006 10:40PM PDT

It's unreasonable expensive.
doesn't have recovery expert wizard.
so i'm not sure if u need that?

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partition magic LOL give me a break
Jul 17, 2008 1:02AM PDT

Partition magic is useless and dangerous even.
I just recovered (literally just) from the mess PM created
partition merge ? forget it all it did for me is delete the partition and data on the partition that supposed to be merged .

Thank god it didn't ruin C:/ and cudos to Easy Recovery Professional which saved me terabytes in the past as well

back to the good Ole Fdisk for me

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Acronis True image Workstation 9.1 Rocks
Oct 16, 2006 1:30PM PDT

It makes a bootable backup without needing your original XP disk. I use it with an external Harddrive. I put together using a Nexstar enclosure and a Seagate 300gig ATA drive. (No External SATA yet on my tower). I had an issue with a deeply rooted virus a while back and it worked perfect. One warning, some USB mouses wont work on the boot disk depending on the motherboard, but you can manuver with the keyboard, NO USB problems there. Restored 250Gigs of data using default setting and copying partition whole in a couple of hours with USB 2.
Spend the extra money for workstation over home as home is still 9.0 and buggy. Costs $79 on their site.

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It's not a partitioning software
Oct 17, 2006 10:50PM PDT

no doubt ATICW is a good product but it's not a partitioning, but backup utility.
so i'm not sure this product can help the user

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This could help...
Oct 19, 2006 9:28PM PDT

As you could use it to back up data, then reformat the HD into the partitions you want and then easily restore the data to your primary partition.

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Isn't it too difficult?
Oct 22, 2006 10:29PM PDT

That's takes much time and is too hard to complite.
It's much easier to donwload partitioning software.
and create partition, don't u find?

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U must be kidding
Oct 25, 2006 5:48PM PDT

should agree with Noizxland
it's rather hard. Much better to download Disk Director. besides, unlike, ATICW 9.1, ADDD can resize partitions (that will most likely need costumer).
so, it's unwarrantable to download True Image Corporate Workstation version.

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De gustibus non disputandum
Oct 20, 2006 7:42AM PDT

Iam satisfied by PartionMagic8.0(Power Quest's Power Magic)Probably the same with that Symantec which incorporated them.