How to Rename a Drive in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8
Information
This tutorial will show you how to rename a drive in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8. For example, a hard disk drive, USB flash drive, CD/DVD drive, etc...
Tip
If the drive name is missing or was changed and you did not do it with the methods below, then look for a
hidden (not always hidden though)
autorun.inf file (OPTION TWO below) when you open the drive letter in
Computer, then right click on the
autorun.inf file, and click on
Delete. Next, approve the deletion.
Warning
You must be logged in as an administrator to be able to do rename a drive.
CONTENTS:
EXAMPLE: Rename a Hard Disk Drive
EXAMPLE: Rename a DVD Drive
NOTE: Devices with Removable Storage, such as a DVD drive, can only be renamed by adding a label at the end of the drive description using OPTION THREE below. These devices do not have a Rename option in the context menu when you right click on them in Computer or Disk Management.
OPTION ONE
Rename a Drive in the "Computer" Window
NOTE: For Devices with Removable Storage, such as a DVD drive, that do not have a Rename option, you could use OPTION THREE below instead.
1. If you did
OPTION TWO below previously, then you will need to either remove the
label=new drive name entry from the
autorun.inf file, or
delete the
autorun.inf file in the root of the drive that you want to change the name of.
2. Open the
Computer window.
3. Select the drive you want to rename to highlight it, right click on it, and click/tap on
Rename. (see screenshot below)
4. Type in a name you want for the drive, then press enter. (see screenshots below)
5. Click/tap on
Continue. (see screenshot below)
6. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on
Yes (Windows 7/8) or
Continue (Vista).
7. The selected drive is now renamed.
OPTION TWO
Change a Drive Name using an "autorun.inf" File
NOTE: While this option can be used for any drive, it is really useful for external drives like a USB flash drive.
1. Set your
known file extensions to no longer be hidden.
NOTE: This way you will be able to rename the file extension in step 3 below.
2. Connect and/or open the drive that you want to change the name of.
3. In the root of the drive, right click or press and hold on an empty space, click/tap on
New and
Text Document, then rename this file
autorun.inf and press Enter. (see screenshots below)
NOTE: If you already have an autorun.inf file in the root of this drive, then skip this step and proceed to step 4 or 5.
4. If this is a New autorun.inf File
A) Open the
autorun.inf file, then type each line below followed by pressing enter. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: Substitute new drive name (ex: My USB Drive) with the actual name you want to use for the drive.
Code:
[autorun]
label="new drive name"
B) Click on
File (menu bar) and
Save, then close the autorun.inf file. (see screenshot above)
5. If you already have a autorun.inf File
A) Open the
autorun.inf file, then add or change the
label= line below. (see screenshots below)
NOTE: Substitute new drive name (ex: My USB Drive) with the actual name you want to use for the drive.
Code:
[autorun]
label="new drive name"
B) Click on
File (menu bar) and
Save, then close the autorun.inf file. (see screenshots above)
7. If this is for an Internal or eSATA Dive
A) Restart the computer to apply.
8. If this is for an External Dive
A) Unplug and plug in the drive to apply.
9. Open the
Computer window to see the changes.
Note
To Restore the Default Name
You would just need to either option below and repeat steps 7 to 9.
- Delete the autorun.inf and .ico file.
OR
- Remove the label= line and save the changes if you have other lines (ex: icon=) you wish to continue using.
OPTION THREE
Rename a Drive Through Registry Editor
1. If you did
OPTION TWO above previously, then you will need to either remove the
label=new drive name entry from the
autorun.inf file, or
delete the
autorun.inf file in the root of the drive that you want to change the name of.
2. Press the
Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog, type
regedit, and press enter.
3. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on
Yes (Windows 7/8) or
Continue (Vista).
4. In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
Code:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
5. In the left pane, right click on
Explorer, and click/tap on
New and
Key. Type
DriveIcons and press enter.
NOTE: If you already have the DriveIcons key under Explorer, then go to step 6. (see screenshot above and below)
6. In the left pane, right click on
DriveIcons and click/tap on
New and
Key. Type the drive letter (ex:
D ) that you want to change the icon for and press enter.
NOTE: If you already have the drive letter (ex: D ) key under DriveIcons, then go to step 7. (see screenshot above and below)
7. In the left pane, right click on the drive letter (ex:
D ), and click/tap on
New and
Key. Type
DefaultLabel and press enter.
NOTE: If you already have the DefaultLabel key under the drive letter (ex: D ), then go to step 8 or 9. (see screenshot above and below)
8. To Rename the Drive
A) In the right pane of
DefaultLabel, double click/tap on
(Default) to modify it. (see screenshot below step 7)
B) Type in the new name (HDD) or label (DVD) you want for the drive, and click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
C) The registry should now look similar to this. (see screenshot below)
D) Go to step 10.
9. To Restore the Default Drive Name
A) Right click on the drive letter (ex: D ) from step 5 above that you want to restore, and click/tap on Delete and Yes. (see screenshot below step 6)
10. Close regedit.
11. The changes should be immediate, but in some cases you may need to restart the computer to apply the changes.
OPTION FOUR
Rename a Drive Through Disk Management
1. If you did
OPTION TWO above previously, then you will need to either remove the
label=new drive name entry from the
autorun.inf file, or
delete the
autorun.inf file in the root of the drive that you want to change the name of.
2. Do
step 3, 4, or 5 below for what you would like to do.
3. In
Vista and
Windows 7, open the Start Menu, right click on the
Computer button (dark right side), click on
Manage, and go to
step 6 below.
4. In
Windows 8, open the
Power Users Tasks menu, click/tap on
Disk Management, and go to
step 6 below.
5. Press the
Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog, type either
compmgmt.msc OR diskmgmt.msc, press Enter, and go to
step 6 below.
6. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on
Yes (Windows 7/8) or
Continue (Vista).
7. In the left pane of Computer Management, click/tap on
Disk Management under
Storage. (see screenshots below)
8. In the middle pane, right click on the drive letter that you want to rename, and click/tap on
Properties. (see screenshot below)
9. Under the
General tab, type in the new name that you would like, and click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
10. When finished, you can close the Computer Management or Disk Management window.
OPTION FIVE
Rename a Drive using "Label" Command
NOTE: For Devices with Removable Storage, such as a DVD drive, that do not have a Rename option, you will need to use OPTION THREE above instead.
1. If you did
OPTION TWO above previously, then you will need to either remove the
label=new drive name entry from the
autorun.inf file, or
delete the
autorun.inf file in the root of the drive that you want to change the name of.
2. Open an
elevated command prompt.
3. Do
step 4 or 5 below for what you would like to do.
4. To Directly Change Drive Name
A) In the elevated command prompt, type the command below, press Enter, and go to
step 6 below. (see screenshot below)
label DriveLetter: Name
For example:
label C: Windows
Note
Substitute DriveLetter in the command with the actual drive letter you want to rename.
Substitute Name in the command with the name/label you want to rename the drive with. Leave blank if you do not want a name/label.
5. To See Current Drive Name and Change
A) In the elevated command prompt, type the command below, and press Enter. (see screenshot below)
label DriveLetter:
For example: label C:
Note
Substitute DriveLetter in the command with the actual drive letter you want to rename.
B) You will see the current name/label of the drive. Type in the name/label you want to rename the drive with, press Enter, and go to
step 6 below.
Note
If you do not want a name/label for the drive, then leave this blank, and press Enter.
6. When finished, you can close the elevated command prompt if you like.
That's it,
Shawn