Windows 7 partition help please

Sumanji · 6 Apr 2016 at 23:43

Hey,

Just trying to sort out my parents' laptop, as the C: drive is running out of space! At present, the single 240GB disk is set up like this:

C: Windows, 40GB
D: Programs & Files, ~70GB
E: Pictures etc., ~120GB

What I think would be best is to back up E: then clone the contents of D: over to it. Then I can delete the original D: partition and expand C: into that 70GB of free space.

Does that sound sensible? If, so what would be the best tool to use? It doesn't seem like I can do it from within Windows due to all the running programs on the D: partition.

Cheers,

Su

[edit] A picture, in case my explanation wasn't clear!

TheMadDutchDude · 6 Apr 2016 at 23:46

How much is installed on the machine? Would a reinstall after backing up all photos and such not be a better option? I'm not usually one for faffing with cloning as it can cause more headaches than if you just did a clean install from the start.

Just a suggestion.

Sumanji · 7 Apr 2016 at 00:03

Yeah, I mean if it was my machine I would just wipe all the partitions and do a clean install, but since both my parents have the machine setup in a way that's been familiar to them for years, this is the only painless way of doing it!

Cheers,

Su

TheMadDutchDude · 7 Apr 2016 at 00:05

That's fair enough. In that case, your original plan is probably the best one.

Sumanji · 8 Apr 2016 at 05:39

Any recommendations for what software to use please?

Cheers,

Su

TheMadDutchDude · 8 Apr 2016 at 05:45

I use Norton Ghost via DOS. Just make sure that you clone the right drive, or you will lose everything.

KIA · 8 Apr 2016 at 18:52

Macrium Reflect.

bledd · 8 Apr 2016 at 19:34

I would set C as 80GB, especially if you're not there to keep an eye on the space.

Sumanji · 9 Apr 2016 at 21:10

So I tried a bunch of different software and cloning / backup kept failing...

Just ran a checkdisk:

Ruh-roh

Time for a new SSD, I guess?

[edit] I guess now is a good time to move them over to Windows 10. Can I perform a clean installation of Windows 10 64-bit with a Windows 7 32-bit key?

nightmare99 · 10 Apr 2016 at 10:38

Yes you can, out of interest why is the drive partitioned that way in the first place?

Sumanji · 10 Apr 2016 at 14:08

Haha, so I think the machine originally had a 120GB mechanical drive, which was partitioned as 40/70 (possibly my doing

).

When I upgraded it to an SSD, I just did a straight clone of those two partitions, then formatted the free space as another drive.

I guess I'll just do 80/150 on the new disk, as bledd suggests.

In single disk machines, I always have a smaller partition for Windows, then a larger one as the default location for all files and pics... force of habit, I guess. I assume it's still sensible to set up that way as a safeguard against the Windows install getting hosed?

Cheers,

Su