Merging Two Partitions Using Windows Vista Disk Management Snap-In

In this blog post, I will describe how to merge two partitions on the same hard drive into one partition drive using the Windows Vista Disk Management snap-in.

Windows Vista cannot merge two partition together if the partitions contain data (files and folders). One of the partitions must be deleted, once this is done then you can successfully merge the partition that you didn’t delete with the unallocated space. All of these tasks can be performed using Windows Vista Disk Management snap-in.

In this example I have a 80 GB hard drive which I have split into two partition; drive C contain Windows Vista Business Edition and drive E has Windows Vista Business Edition also installed but I would like to delete drive E and merge it with drive C. With Windows XP and earlier version of Windows, you could not perform this operation without third-party software such as Acronis Disk Director. Windows Vista has the ability to expand and shrink volumes by using the Window Vista Disk Management snap-in. Administrative privileges are required for this task.

What I Did

1. Click on the Start Orb (formerly know as the Start Button in earlier version of Windows).
2. Type diskmgmt.msc in the Start Search field.
3. Press SHIFT+CTRL+ENTER to open Disk Management snap-in in an elevated state.
4. Right-click E drive to select Delete Volume….

   NOTE

   Ensure you have backup any data on drive E before deleting the volume which will cause loss of Data.

5. Click Yes in the confirmation dialog.
6. Right-click C drive to select Extend Volume….
7. Click Next when the Extend Volume Wizard opens.
8. Enter the expansion size for drive C click Next.
9. Review disk settings and click Finish.
10. Congratulations, you now have successfully extended (merged) a partition using the Disk Management snap-in with Windows Vista.

Platforms Tested

• Microsoft Windows Vista x86 Versions

Related Articles

• Splitting Hard Drive into Two Partitions Using Windows Vista Disk Management Snap-In

Version 1.3
Edited: May 11, 2012

Splitting Hard Drive into Two Partitions Using Windows Vista Disk Management Snap-In

In this blog post, I will describe how to create another partition on the same hard drive using the Windows Vista Disk Management snap-in.

In this example I have Windows Vista Business Edition installed on 80 GB hard drive. After installing Windows Vista, I realized I should have split the hard into two partitions. With Windows XP and earlier version of Windows, you could not perform this operation without third-party software such as Acronis Disk Director. Windows Vista has the ability to expand and shrink volumes by using the Window Vista Disk Management snap-in. Administrative privileges are required for this task.

NOTE

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What I Did

1. Click on the Start Orb (formerly know as the Start Button in earlier version of Windows).
2. Type diskmgmt.msc in the Start Search field.
3. Press SHIFT+CTRL+ENTER to open Disk Management snap-in in an elevated state.
4. Right-click C drive to select Shrink Volume….
5. Enter the amount of drive space to shrink in Enter the amount of space to shrink in MB:.
6. Click Shrink.

   NOTE

   When the Shrink operation is completed then you there should be unallocated space on the hard drive, refer to image below.

   

7. Right-click the Unallocated Disk Space to select New Simple Volume….
8. Click Next when the New Simple Volume Wizard opens.
9. Enter the disk size of the new simple volume and click Next.
10. Choose an available drive letter and click Next.
11. Perform a quick format the new simple volume as NTFS. Name the volume and click Next.

     

12. Review disk settings and click Finish.
13. Congratulations, you now have successfully create a new partition using the Disk Management snap-in with Windows Vista.

Platforms Tested

• Microsoft Windows Vista x86 Versions

Related Articles

• Merging Two Partitions Using Windows Vista Disk Management Snap-In

Version 1.3
Edited: May 11, 2012