Convert dynamic disk to basic disk in Windows 7

MrA2Z · 12 Nov 2013

I know some space is being wasted due to lot of partitions but it is my preferred way to keep the data separate. The other most important aspect is the installation of more OS. Usually I play around with different OS so I just need to move around important data and can install the OS straightaway.

The other thing is the fragmentation. On one large disk, data can be written anywhere and access time would increase if it is not together. But partitions help to reduce the access time. Though it would not eliminate or stop the data fragmentation. Another usage of partitions is the disk defragmentation. Large partitions tend to take more time during disk defragmentation than the smaller ones.

I am not saying, it is definitely better way to utilise the large disks. This is my habit since the times when among circle of friends 6.4 GB hard disk was considered massive than 4.2 GB. Old habits die hard :)

whs · 12 Nov 2013

It is hard to argue against 'old habits' - so be it.

But I don't buy the performance argument. With that many partitions spread over the whole disk, some partitions will be in areas where access requires a bigger arm movement (thus being slower). With one large partition, those disk areas may not even be populated with data - it may be free space.