XP's DiskPart utility is capable of only partitioning a hard drive that is empty
or has "unallocated" free space.
For example, if you were to install a new second drive, DiskPart can be
used to partition and format it. DiskPart cannot segregate current files from
free space, therefore, only a sophisticated third-party partitioning program,
such as Partition Magic 8 , can be used with a drive that already has Windows XP
installed.
The only way you can create, delete, resize or merge existing partitions,
and not harm your existing Windows installation, is to purchase and use
a third-party partitioning program such as Partition Magic 8.
http://www.powerquest.com/partitionmagic/pmdetails.cfm
The alternative is to perform a "clean install" of Windows XP:
How to Partition and Format a Hard Disk in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;313348&Product=winxp
--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User
Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
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|I am finding out that the one disappointing feature taken away from Win ME was the partitioning feature.
|
| I have found dos commands for XP in the Win XP help, it is called DiskPart. Has anyone used this? If so,
does it work?
| Please drop me an email with any info concerning partitioning without using 3rd party software in Windows XP
or without running Fdisk and losing everything on the drive.
|
| What about Disk Management, another XP option I have come across:
|
|
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;309000
|
| Using Disk Management - To start Disk Management:
| Log on as administrator or as a member of the Administrators group.
| Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK.
| In the console tree, click Disk Management. The Disk Management window appears. Your disks and volumes are
displayed in a graphical view and list view. To customize how you view your disks and volumes in the upper and
lower panes of the window, point to Top or Bottom on the View menu, and then click the view that you want to
use.
| NOTE: Microsoft recommends that you create a full back up of your disk contents before you make any changes
to your disks or volumes.
|
| Back to the top
| How to Create a New Partition or Logical Drive
| To create a new partition or logical drive on a basic disk:
| In the Disk Management window, complete one of the following procedures, and then continue to step 2:
| To create a new partition, right-click unallocated space on the basic disk where you want to create the
partition, and then click New Partition.
| To create a new logical drive in an extended partition, right-click free space on an extended partition
where you want to create the logical drive, and then click New Logical Drive.
| In the New Partition Wizard, click next.
| Click the type of partition that you want to create (either Primary partition, Extended partition, or
Logical drive), and then click Next.
| Specify the size of the partition in the Partition size in MB box, and then click Next.
| Decide whether to manually assign a drive letter, let the system automatically enumerate the drive, or do
not assign a drive letter to the new partition or logical drive, and then click Next.
| Specify the formatting options you want to use by using one of the following procedures:
| If you do not want to format the partition, click Do not format this partition, and then click Next.
| If you want to format the partition, click Format this partition with the following settings, and then
complete the following procedure in the Format dialog box:
| Type a name for the volume in the Volume label box. Note that this is an optional step.
| Click the file system that you want to use in the File system box.
|
| One can change the disk allocation unit size, and then specify whether to perform a quick format, or enable
file and folder compression on NTFS volumes.
| Click Next.
|
| Confirm that the options that selected are correct, and then click Finish.
| The new partition or logical drive is created and appears in the appropriate basic disk in the Disk
Management window. If you chose to format the volume in step 6, the format process now starts.
|
|
