In the digital age, managing your computer’s storage can seem daunting. One might think it requires a tech expert or specialized software to handle disk partitioning on Windows 11 or 10. However, the reality is much simpler. Hiring a technician to resize or modify the Windows 11/10 partitions is unnecessary. With a myriad of freeware available over the internet, you can effortlessly resize or modify existing partitions on Windows 11/10. If you’ve recently bought a computer pre-loaded with Windows 11/10, you may notice it comes with only one partition. Conversely, if you’ve created several partitions over time and now seek to resize or merge them, you’re in luck! You don’t need any third-party tools for this task. Windows 11/10 provides an intuitive way to manage partitions using its built-in Disk Management tool. From creating to deleting, modifying to formatting partitions—Disk Management has got you covered. Furthermore, the tool enables you to switch drive letters without the need for additional software downloads. When you access Disk Management, you’ll be presented with two panes. The upper pane displays a list of volumes, while the lower pane provides a graphical representation of the available disks and their respective volumes. Navigating between these panes is seamless: selecting a volume from the top reveals its disk in the bottom pane, and vice-versa. The bottom pane categorizes disks as Disk 0, Disk 1, and so forth. Dive into this guide to discover how you can efficiently manage and resize partitions on Windows 11/10 without losing any data.
How to resize a partition on Windows 11/10?
It would help if you shrank the volume to resize the existing partition so that the unallocated space can be allotted to another volume/partition.
Follow these steps to resize a partition on Windows 11/10:-
Step 1. First, click on the Start button and type diskmgmt.
Step 2. Then, click on the “Create and format hard disk partitions” to launch the Disk Management tool.
Step 3. After that, right-click a volume/partition in either pane and select the Shrink Volume option.
Note: You can only shrink a volume if it has enough free space. In my example, we are shrinking “Volume F,” which has enough free space.
Step 4. It will open a new window with a Shrink name; you can specify the size to shrink. It will automatically select the maximum available free size to shrink, which is editable.
Step 5. When you have entered the size to shrink, click on the Shrink button.
Step 6. After that, you can see that the space is unallocated once the shrinking is completed.
How to create a Partition on Windows 11/10?
The free spaces not used by Windows are known as unallocated spaces. You need to create a partition to use this unallocated space.
Step 1. Click on the Start button and type diskmgmt.
Step 2. Next, click on “Create and format hard disk partitions” to launch the Disk Management tool from the search results.
Step 3. After that, right-click on unallocated space from the bottom pane and select “New Simple Volume.”
Step 4. Then, it will open a new window named New Simple Volume Wizard.
Step 5. Next, click on the Next button.
Step 6. After specifying the new partition/volume size, click on the Next button.
Step 7. After that, assign any drive letter that is not in use. Then, click on the Next button.
Step 8. Then, select a file system (NTFS is more reliable) and click on the Next button.
Note: You can also change the volume name from here.
Step 9. Finally, press the Finish button to create a new partition in unallocated space.
How to delete/format a partition on Windows 11/10?
Follow the below-given steps to delete an existing partition:-
Step 1. At first, click on the Start button and type diskmgmt.
Step 2. Next, click on “Create and format hard disk partitions” to launch the Disk Management tool from the search results.
Step 3. After that, right-click on the partition from any panes and select “Delete Volume.”
Note: Right-click on the partition from any panes and select “Format” to format a partition/volume. Formatting will erase all the data from the selected volume/partition, but it will not erase/delete the partition/volume.
Step 4. Next, click on the Yes button to proceed with the deletion of partition/volume.
Step 5. After that, you will find unallocated space in the bottom pane once you have deleted any partition/volume.
How to Merge Partitions on Windows 11/10?
Follow the steps to merge unallocated space with an existing partition without losing the data:-
Step 1. Start by clicking on the Start button and then type diskmgmt.
Step 2. Next, click on “Create and format hard disk partitions” to launch the Disk Management tool from the search results.
Step 3. After that, right-click on the nearby partition of unallocated space and select “Extend Volume.”
Step 4. Then, click on the Next button on Extend Volume Wizard.
Step 5. Now, specify the size in MB and click on the Next button.
Step 6. Finally, click on the Finish button to merge the partition with unallocated space.
Conclusion
Managing disk storage and handling partitions in Windows 11/10 is no longer a task for tech experts. With the built-in Disk Management tool, users can effortlessly resize, create, delete, format, and merge partitions. This guide offers comprehensive step-by-step instructions to help users navigate and optimize their disk space. Whether you’re looking to reclaim unallocated space or streamline your existing partitions, Windows 11/10 provides an intuitive way to achieve your objectives without the need for third-party software.
