All you Need to Know About How to Partition Hard Drive

Introduction

A hard drive is a data storage device, working on the principles of electro-magnetism. Magnetic material is used to store data in it and later retrieve it. It can keep the data stored even when you turn your system off. It comes in different sizes; for a desktop, the hard drive has a size of 3.5 inches but for a laptop, it is 2.5 inches. The hard drive is connected to the system or motherboard using standard interfacing cables.

Some space on the hard drive is not available for storage of user’s files or soft-wares. That space belongs to the operating system. A computer needs its operating system to be linked with everything so it can recognize the mouse, the keyboard, and all necessary components. In addition to this, the operating system enables a system to interact with all the soft-wares installed and access files stored. Without a hard drive, your computer would only be able to access features in the boot configuration.

Modern-day computers do not have a hard drive as a primary storage device. Rather, they get solid-state devices as the primary ones. It is faster as compared to a hard drive. Still, a computer needs an additional hard drive as a secondary storage device. A few computers also have hard drives as both their primary and secondary storage devices.

The first and the most important thing stored on a hard drive is the operating system. All the additional soft-wares you keep in the memory of your computer are also stored in the hard drive. It also stores all your personal files. A hard drive can store more data than any other storage device. In the past, the hard drives could store only up to certain megabytes or gigabytes. Hard drives currently made can store up to several terabytes. This makes them the most efficient kind of storage device.

Partitioning a Drive

How to partition a hard drive? It is like making a part of the hard drive visible or available to the operating system. An operating system can only access or use a hard drive if it has been partitioned. Partitioning a hard drive is a straightforward task. You just need to follow the following steps.

• Open the power user menu; from there, you can access disk management.
• After opening disk management, select initialize disk. The process would not work without initializing the disk first.
• Another screen would appear, asking you to select a style of the partition you want to make.
• After selecting the partition style, try to locate the hard drive via drive map. It is present at the bottom of the disk management window.
• After locating it, tap and hold, and another screen would appear. Select a new simple volume from there.
• Click on next. Specify the size of the partition you want to make.
• Select next, then click on do not format this volume option.
• Again click on next.
• Another screen would appear showing you all the specifications you made.
• Verify and then select finish.
• The system would open your drive automatically. You have to format it first to make it available for use.

Why Do We Need Hard Drive Partition?

Hard drive consists of a good amount of space that needs to be allocated and partitioned. You need to make segments of that space before you use it. This segment-making process is called partitioning. It is necessary due to the following benefits:

• Keeping the system files separate from personal files makes the system work efficiently. In this way, both the system and you know which folder to access for what purpose.
• It can help in creating backups for files. Storing files in different partitions is a simpler approach.
• It increases security. In case some virus or malware attacks your system, files kept in separate partitions stay secure. Even if the virus attacks them, you might have some separate backup kept safe in this way.
• It is a better way of organizing your files.
• Also, it allows you to install multiple operating soft-wares on your system.

Conclusion

Partitioning a hard drive helps organize your files and is kind of mandatory step before initiating your system. It is an easy process if you keep following all steps with care.