Solved c drive

[TuuS]

I understood from your original post that you wanted C=900gb and second partition=100, so the mystery is why that first partition is so small.

Most computer manufactures put the OS in a large partition, but I don't recommend it. I always use a smaller partition for my system drive and store my downloads on another partition. This is helpful if I want to scan for data recovery, which isn't a good idea to do on the same drive your booted from.

Additionally, I always install at least 2 operating systems, even if they are both the same, often more. If I was building my main system and had one single 1tb drive, I'd have a 100gb drive to install my main OS, a second 100gb drive for a backup copy of the OS. This way if I had a problem and didn't have time to fix it, I could just boot into the the second copy of the OS.

I also have a stripped down version of XP that I usually put in a 10gb partition at the end of the drive (the version I have will even fit in a 1gb partition if space is low).

I usually install a linux OS too, but I won't discuss that beings this is a windows forum.

The small xp version is only as a second backup which isn't necessary, and probably not even something you should consider, but thats how I like to do it. If you do install xp and vista/seven on the same computer, install xp first, because it will overwrite your vista/seven boot manager if you install it afterwards.

Another reason to keep your OS on a small partition is in case you have to reformat it, you won't have to worry about moving/backing up 900gb of files, you can just copy anything you need to keep onto your other partition/s, then format and reinstall the OS.


Edit:

However, as far as a secure erase, reformatting will not do that,

A quick format wont, but a full format should do fine for the purposes discussed here.

 

[essenbe]

I would suggest that before running a clean all command that you open an elevated command prompt and copy and paste sfc /scannow into it. It will scan the system files only and will repair them if they can but will tell you if the system files are corrupt. You can also, in an elevated command prompt run chkdsk c: /f /r . It will tell you that it cannot run it while in use and ask if you want it to run it the next time the computer starts. answer yes and restart the computer. It will check system files. You will at least know if there is corruption in the OS files.

 

[bridges]

Your talking about leaving the main drive just for the os and everything else include programs installed on another drive? I don't have a problem doing this but if I partition a drive isn't going to take just as long to recovery it to a new drive. With that said would it be better to have everything else on a separate drive since i'm going to separate the os.

Also would I then be able to access both the programs from both drives(using two os's) or just files.

I just thought of this and I'm not sure this is how I got into this mess, but My 500gb original drive I had prior to this 1tb. I plug it into the USB port to compare files, but it look like I was looking at the 1tb. Maybe this change the size of the drive.

Thanks for your help!

 

[essenbe]

I think you will find that most people have their own system for setting up their computer, and many of them are different. You just have to set yours up the way you feel comfortable. I have my system that is somewhat similar to what Tuus told you but also a little different. I put all of my user files on a different hard drive than my OS. Done properly, the OS will work no different than if the files were on the OS drive. I do this for security purposes. I have in my user files photos, documents and videos that I could not replace. Baring HD failure, which can't be predicted, if something goes wrong, it will be on the OS drive. files can get corrupted registry settings can be messed up or something of that nature. If that happens, as much as I don't want to, I can re install windows and my programs. What I can't install are the user files I can't replace. They are safe in that situation because they are on a different disk. I do backups of my user files to another internal HD and an external HD. I, like TuuS Keep still another disk with a copy of my OS on it. That way, if I lose my OS due to corruption, I just boot into my backup OS and keep right on going. I also have 3 copies of my user files (but usually 4). That is how I set my system up.

You and others may not like my system and prefer to do it a different way. That's OK. It really doesn't mean anyone is right or wrong, it is simply preferences. I just believe in 'hope for the best but prepare for the worst'. You just need to consider your needs and how you use your computer and set it up the way that makes you most comfortable. My only advice to you is, however you set it up, do plenty of backups and put them somewhere other than the same disk your OS is on.

 

[bridges]

I would suggest that before running a clean all command that you open an elevated command prompt and copy and paste sfc /scannow into it. It will scan the system files only and will repair them if they can but will tell you if the system files are corrupt. You can also, in an elevated command prompt run chkdsk c: /f /r . It will tell you that it cannot run it while in use and ask if you want it to run it the next time the computer starts. answer yes and restart the computer. It will check system files. You will at least know if there is corruption in the OS files.

I ran this just as you describe and the drive is still showing the same.

I think I'm going to pick up a new hard drive and start over. This drive I will wipe clean after and then use as secondary drive for files and such.

What size drive are you guys using for your main drive?

 

[gregrocker]

A good start is 100gb. A popular way to set it up is to put OS and programs on C, then link User folders to another HD: User Folders - Change Default Location - Windows 7 Forums

This keeps the OS/Programs backup image (also stored on the data HD) smaller so if Win7 becomes irreparable you can easily reimage the OS/Programs partition in 20 minutes and the data will be waiting and current in it's own partition "vault" - which also needs to be backed up BTW.

Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup - Windows 7 Forums
Clean and Clean All with Diskpart Command - Windows 7 Forums

 

[seekermeister]

I got to thinking about the size of C: (488GB), and realized that is the usable capacity of some 500GB hard drives. This made me wonder how you transferred data into that 1TB drive...did you use a backup image or cloning program? It is possible that the backup/cloning program that you used created a new partition of the same size as the original source of the image.

 

[bridges]

The old drive was 500gb. I used ghost to backup the old drive and restored to the new drive. Everything was fine after the restore. This change I think took place within the last few days maybe.

 

[Shootist]

If ghost is anything like Acronis True Image then when you restore a image it makes the partitions the same size as what it was when the image was made. So if you imaged a 500GB drive then restored that image to the new 1TB drive Ghost made the C partition the size of the 500GB drive, 488 or there abouts.

That means you have some unallocated space on that 1TB drive. With some partitioning programs, like Acronis Disk Director, you can move that free unallocated space into the partition next to it then move it again to the front of the drive, the C partition. I've done this several times on different drive with total success.

 

[gregrocker]

He has the best partitioning program for Win7 after Disk mgmt, free Partition Wizard. It should show Unallocated space if some is not being used, but there is a strange unmarked empty area to the right which could represent the missing space.



I would use the free Partition Wizard bootable CD which always has the authoritative answer when even Disk Mgmt or the home version is inaccurate. If the space exists as shown in PW Home Edition, rightclick it to see if you can create a New NTFS Primary partition there.

If this works and you decide you want to add the missing space to C, rightclick D to resize, left click hold and drag it the far right, click OK. Then rightclick C>Resize, drag right grey border all the way to the right, OK, Apply all Steps.

I'd run Disk Check from Win7 on all partitions afterwards to clear up the errors.

If this fails, I'd run the maker's HD diagnostics/Repair extended CD scan on the hD to see if it has problems and can be fixed. HD Diagnostic

 

[TuuS]

This is why I don't like to use disc cloning programs. I prefer to build a new drive myself and move whatever data onto the new file system, rather then try to clone the old one.

My method might be less efficient, but I think it would have avoided this problem.

 

[SIW2]

Interesting.

I assume that is a new 1gb drive with two 500gb platters.

Did you look at it with something reliable - try gparted and see what it says.

Strange disagreement between disk management list view and disk view.

I am tempted to think there may be an issue with the HD.

 

[Shootist]

Interesting.

I assume that is a new 1gb drive with two 500gb platters.

Did you look at it with something reliable - try gparted and see what it says.

Strange disagreement between disk management list view and disk view.

I am tempted to think there may be an issue with the HD.

In Disk View it lists the drive as 931GBs then there are 2 paritions. One 488 the other 100.
That means there is 343GB of unallocated space at the end of the drive. It actually shows that in the disk view section.

 

[SIW2]

 

[Bare Foot Kid]

My sentiments exactly!

 

[DocBrown]

I am wondering if in the screen snip from post #3, it was not Full Screen, therefore the un-allocated space to the right is not showing ?

 

[SIW2]

What unallocated space, Doc?

Disk view shows Disk 0 830gb for C and 100gb for D - that's it for a 1tb drive.

 

[Shootist]

What unallocated space, Doc?

Disk view shows Disk 0 830gb for C and 100gb for D - that's it for a 1tb drive.

Not sure what disk management is showing but that Partition wizard program screen shot on page 3 shows Drive 0 931.5 and 2 partitions with a whole bunch of space after the 100GB partition.

Never used that program but I just booted off a MustangPE boot CF card with Acronis True image and Disk Director on it to look at my drive structure (did a system backup while I was at it) and on my smaller drives the drive bars do not go as far as the larger drives. In that screen shot the drive bar for Drive 0 goes all the way just the other drive in the system. I know they aren't the same program but you would think they would be similar.

 

[SIW2]

PW normally shows unallocated in grey, like this:





It is also not picking the full size of the drive - it is truncated.

Need something to take info from the disk controller - gparted , or similar - maybe fafhrd will have an idea about other partitioners, but gparted always works well for me.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/gparted/files/gparted-live-stable/

 

[bridges]

The screen shot in post three is the full screen. You can see from the screen shot in the list view the drive size is different then the next section.

I have my new drive, I went with cloning the drive because it's easier on this pc I always have to install the drivers for the new drive and thats a pain. Now on my laptop on the other hand, windows install disk is able to do all that for me.