I am trying to create an extended partition with a logical drive in unallocated space that I created on a Lenovo laptop that already has 4 partitions (one of which is a logical drive). I've been unable to figure out if it is possible in Disk Management, and in Partition Wizard boot disk the Create/Logical Drive option is greyed out. Any help appreciated. I've posted a screenshot below.
Thanks
Last edited by Vincenzo; 26 Dec 2011 at 17:16.
I'm not sure why Create is greyed out using PW boot CD as it should be available to create a Logical Subpartition.
Try using the most recent PW boot disk as it change to treat Unallocated (Primary) and Free Space (Logical) the same around v 5.2.
What options are available when you rightclick on that space with both Disk Mgmt and PW CD?
You could also boot into PW bootable CD, rightclick on D to Resize, slide left grey border to the left to extend into the Unallocated Space, click OK, Apply.
As your screenshot shows, you already have FOUR primary partitions defined on the drive. Your "logical" D partition is actually inside the existing "extended partition" (which is a primary partition). So you can't CREATE yet one more partition in the current "primary unallocated" space, as that would exceed the limit of 4 primary partitions. And the current "extended partition" only covers D at the moment.
But as Greg has suggested, you can simply slide the left-edge of the D "logical" partition to the left using the RESIZE function of Partition Wizard. That would then color the now enlarged D partition all that bright blue at the top which indicates "logical". It would then define the sum of D + the previously unallocated space as a new enlarged "extended partition", with the enlarged D inside of it using all of the space.
Once you have the new enlarged D "logical" including all of its current size plus the unallocated space added to it, you can now re-size D again if you want to create a second "logical" partition in the now enlarged "extended partition".
So, if you really do want TWO "logical" partitions:
(1) RESIZE D, sliding its left edge to the left. This will grow D to include its current size plus all of the current unallocated space. The surrounding "extended partition" grows accordingly, to hold the new larger D.
(2) RESIZE the new larger D, pulling its left or right edge accordingly, to present a new "logical unallocated" space INSIDE OF THE ENLARGED "EXTENDED PARTITON".
(3) CREATE a new partition in that new "logical unallocated" space. This will be allowed by PW, to create a new logical partition inside of the enlarged "extended partition".
Sorry I wasn't too clear. With the PW boot cd, when I right click, Create is available, but in the next menu Logical Partition is greyed out, if I recall correctly. I don't have that computer here right now.
I will be back on that computer tomorrow.
If I can drag the D partition to include the unallocated space, that would be fine I think. I am just looking to create a partition to use for the User folders.
The D drive right now has two folders of applications that Lenovo installed. Will making the partition larger with the unallocated space affect the performance of those applications? Can't really remember what they are, I will report back with more info tomorrow.
I'll check what version the PW cd is, I made it about 6 months ago.
Thanks for the help.
It's nearly impossible that already having the maximum Primary partitions, PW CD would offer Primary partiiton for a fifth once a Logical extended is established as the fourth. It should offer a Logical partition there and then add it as a sub-partition to D. If not, Resize D into the Unallocated Space using the latest PW CD which treats Unallocated the same as Free Space for all purposes.
To clarify your situation...
Your drive setup right now already has FOUR primary partitions, which is the maximum allowed. And you already DO have the one allowed "extended partition" (which itself IS a primary partition) defined, inside of which at the moment is just one "logical" partition D:
(1) primary 200MB (active) - "system reserved" for Win7 Boot Manager files
(2) primary 141GB - C - Win7 system partition
(3) unallocated 113GB
(4) primary 29GB - "extended partition" - currently containing only one "logical" partition D
(5) primary 14GB - OEM
So you already DO have the one "extended partition" defined, which currently is only 29GB in size and contains just one "logical" partition inside of it, your D partition.
You can thus already sub-define any number of additional "logical" partitions inside of that existing "extended partition", but you'll need to make room for the additional partitions. This can be accomplished in either of two ways:
(a) resize D to make it even smaller than the 29GB it already is, and allocate a second (or more) additional "logical" partition(s) in the very tiny "logical unallocated" space which would result from the shrinkage of D. This is obviously a crazy idea.
(b) resize D, expanding it to the left to include all of the 113GB currently unallocated space to its left. What you're actually also simultaneously expanding is the "extended partition" which includes "logical" D inside of it. So if you use PW to drag the left edge of D to the left... all the way to the left of that currently unallocated space... you have now just enlarged BOTH (1) D, which will now be 29GB+113GB=142GB, and (2) the enclosing "extended partition" which is what D is really living inside of. PW actually redraws and enlarges the boundary of that "extended partition to include the now larger D "logical" partition inside of it.
So now you will no longer have any unallocated space. And that third primary ("extended partition") will now be 142GB, and inside of it D will be 142GB.
And now you can once again resize D, by dragging its new left edge to the right, or its far right edge to the left, thus revealing some new "logical unallocated" space inside of the already enlarged and newly sized 142GB "extended partition". And in that new "logical unallocated" space which will be either to the left or right of the now once-again resized D you can now define your new second (or more) "logical" partition(s).
And that will accomplish your goal of making use of that current 113GB unallocated space... and either (a) adding it to D to make it larger, or (b) using it for the allocation of a second "logical" partition. Either of these is possible, but you must first extend that left edge of D all the way to the left of the current unallocated space, in order to accomplish either of these.
Is this more clear now? Are there still questions I can answer?
When you're done you will then have:
(1) primary 200MB (active) - "system reserved" for Win7 Boot Manager files
(2) primary 141GB - C - Win7 system partition
(3) primary 142GB - "extended partition" - containing say "logical" partition D 29GB (if you don't change its size from current) and new "logical" partition E (or any letter you assign it using either PW or DISKMGMT.MSC) 113GB, or any other combination of multiple "logical" partitions and their sizes that you care to sub-define. It's all done by PW's RESIZE function, and then CHANGE DRIVE LETTER to fit your desires.
(4) primary 14GB - OEM
One more note here... the drive letter you assign to any new partition you create does not need to be in "alphabetically ascending" sequence to the physical left-to-right arrangement of the partitions. In other words, if in my step (b) above performing that second re-size of "logical" D to make room for your new "logical" E inside of the now enlarged "extended partition", if you do drag that left edge of D back to the right, to create the "logical unallocated" space to its left where you create your new "logical" partition", you can still assign ANY drive letter (e.g. E) you want to the newly created partition. In this example you'll end up with say E to the left of D, but that matters ZERO.
--> You can letter any partition (other than C) ANYTHING YOU WANT. Their physical order on the disk has nothing to do with the logical drive letter you assign to them.
Not really.The D drive right now has two folders of applications that Lenovo installed. Will making the partition larger with the unallocated space affect the performance of those applications?
The whole partition is physically "to the right" of C, and that means the disk arm needs to move a bit to physically get there. The steps I detailed above to get you either (a) larger D or (b) resized/relocated D and a new second "logical" partition, perhaps the physical location of the Lenovo folders is a bit different from where they were originally. But in the grand scheme of things the net difference in "performance" (i.e. in loading the programs from disk into memory) is probably zero. Certainly you will never ever notice it.
Thanks gregrocker, I've done as you originally suggested, resizing D to the left. Once I downloaded the new Partition Wizard boot disk it worked fine.
Thank you dsperber for the detailed explanation of what was going on and why I was hitting a roadblock.
Once I expanded the Extended Partition and the D partition, I just left it like that and relocated the user folders into it.
Everything is as I need it now. Thanks
BTW I notice all the recommendations for resizing that extended partition to the left referred to doing it with the Partition Wizard boot disk. Would the free installed version have been able to perform the same function?
Thanks
Yes. The operations you performed were simply on "disk space" and the manipulation of space/partitions other than the running Windows OS partition. So you could have done the same thing with the installed version. You did not need to use the standalone boot CD, though there was no harm in doing so.
The standalone boot CD is really only required for operations involving the C partition, because those functions cannot be performed while actually running under the operating Windows system living in that partition.
As you've noticed, the standalone boot CD version of PW does not present Windows drive letters, but rather only shows the drives and partitions (and their labels, if they have labels). Running the installed version under Windows would actually show the currently assigned Windows drive letters.
Finally, if you do initiate an operation using the installed version of the program that cannot be performed while Windows is running (e.g. if you resize C, or move it left or right to accommodate operations on other partitions) you can actually do that (or rather "queue" the operation for being performed) using the installed version. But PW will recognize that situation, and will not actually complete the queued operations if you push APPLY.
Instead, when running using the installed version if you push the "APPLY" button in this situation PW will advise you that the operation cannot be completed without re-booting and request that you authorize it to re-boot right then and now (which you will do).
Upon re-boot, essentially the standalone boot version will kick in before Windows itself gets launched. This standalone version will then complete all the operations which were queued during the running of the installed version prior to the re-boot but which could not be completed right then because Windows was still operating.
When the standalone PW has completed all of the queued operations, the program will terminate normally and resume the rest of the standard Windows startup process. When you return to your operating Windows desktop, all of the previously queued operations will have been completed and you'll be operating with the newly adjusted C partition.
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