partitioned drive

[Guest]

I recently sent my computer for repair due to virus-related problems. Anyway,
the repair person had to reinstall Win XP(Home) from scratch and told me that
he had partitioned the drive (and without my permission!) in two: D:/Backup
and C:/System (Backup consists of the files from the previous system).

The problem is I notice that there is a duplication of files due to this
partition. For example, song A would appear twice on Win Media
PlayerC:/DocumentsandSettings/Owner/My Documents/MyMusic/SongA AND
D:/mydocbackup/MyMusic/SongA). I don't know if there are any duplication of
other files yet. Plus, I realised during Disk Cleanup that the system's
Temporary Internet Files is located in 'Backup drive' instead of 'System'.
Shouldn't this folder be in the other drive i.e. system drive, since Backup
is just,well, backup(of the old drive). The WINDOWS folder also appears in
both drives.

I've never had partitioned drives so this is causing major headaches for me.
If there is a need for me to un-partition my drives to clear the mess, can I
do it without re-installing the whole system from the Cd?

P.S: Sorry it's a long one
P.P.S: How many times can you reinstall from the Cd before it cannot be used
anymore (I hear there is a limit)

Thanks!

 

[Richard Urban [MVP]]

The technician was doing you a favor in saving your prior files. He was also
covering his butt! Copy them off of Drive D to where you want them. When you
have everything cleaned off, delete the partition. Then, using Partition
Magic you can "expand" Drive C to take up the entire drive.

--
Regards,

Richard Urban
Microsoft MVP Windows Shell/User

Quote from: George Ankner
"If you knew as much as you thought you know,
You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!"

 

[Alan Smith]

I recently sent my computer for repair due to virus-related problems.
Anyway,
the repair person had to reinstall Win XP(Home) from scratch and told me
that
he had partitioned the drive (and without my permission!) in two:
D:/Backup
and C:/System (Backup consists of the files from the previous system).

It's really down to you- you didn't give clear instructions of what you
wanted.
They were trying to be helpful. If you don't need things kept tell them.
Tell them you want a new clean installation. Losing things that may have
been important could have been more distressing.

The problem is I notice that there is a duplication of files due to this
partition. For example, song A would appear twice on Win Media
PlayerC:/DocumentsandSettings/Owner/My Documents/MyMusic/SongA AND
D:/mydocbackup/MyMusic/SongA). I don't know if there are any duplication
of
other files yet. Plus, I realised during Disk Cleanup that the system's
Temporary Internet Files is located in 'Backup drive' instead of 'System'.
Shouldn't this folder be in the other drive i.e. system drive, since
Backup
is just,well, backup(of the old drive). The WINDOWS folder also appears in
both drives.

I've never had partitioned drives so this is causing major headaches for
me.
If there is a need for me to un-partition my drives to clear the mess, can
I
do it without re-installing the whole system from the Cd?

It depends. What program or mechanism is backing up the files for you? You
can delete the partition and reassign the space but something is doing the
backup- it will still try to do that unless you disable/remove it.

Putting those temporary internet files on a separate drive is a good idea-
less fragmentation on your main drive so it may be helping performance.

It sounds more like a good idea than a mess, the guys know what they are
doing. If you don't want it like that go and talk to them and explain what
you'd like, ask them for advice. They know what they have done and it sounds
like they aren't amateurs who just wipe the disk and stick the OS on as
others do.

P.S: Sorry it's a long one

It's only as long as the questions you have

P.P.S: How many times can you reinstall from the Cd before it cannot be
used
anymore (I hear there is a limit)

The limit is that you'll be asked to reactivate after a certain number of
changes- not a problem with a genuine install CD. If you want more info
about this then do a search for product activation on microsofts site, or
the web in general.

 

[Li'l Roberto]

I recently sent my computer for repair due to virus-related problems.
Anyway,
the repair person had to reinstall Win XP(Home) from scratch and told me
that
he had partitioned the drive (and without my permission!) in two:
D:/Backup
and C:/System (Backup consists of the files from the previous system).

The problem is I notice that there is a duplication of files due to this
partition. For example, song A would appear twice on Win Media
PlayerC:/DocumentsandSettings/Owner/My Documents/MyMusic/SongA AND
D:/mydocbackup/MyMusic/SongA). I don't know if there are any duplication
of
other files yet. Plus, I realised during Disk Cleanup that the system's
Temporary Internet Files is located in 'Backup drive' instead of 'System'.
Shouldn't this folder be in the other drive i.e. system drive, since
Backup
is just,well, backup(of the old drive). The WINDOWS folder also appears in
both drives.

I've never had partitioned drives so this is causing major headaches for
me.
If there is a need for me to un-partition my drives to clear the mess, can
I
do it without re-installing the whole system from the Cd?

P.S: Sorry it's a long one
P.P.S: How many times can you reinstall from the Cd before it cannot be
used
anymore (I hear there is a limit)

Thanks!

In addition to the others advice [and totally agree with their
sentiments], get used to the idea of partitions, you will find it
extremely useful once you get your head around it.
There is no limit to the number of times that you can re install XP
on the SAME system.

rgds
Li'l Roberto

 

[_R]

I recently sent my computer for repair due to virus-related problems. Anyway,
the repair person had to reinstall Win XP(Home) from scratch and told me that
he had partitioned the drive (and without my permission!) in two: D:/Backup
and C:/System (Backup consists of the files from the previous system).

If your drive is large enough (say, 80GB or so) then there can be real
advantages in drive partitioning. It's preferable to keep programs
and data separate for various reasons.

I usually use 20GB to 25GB for the system partition. I load
development tools so I generally have more programs loaded than most.
You may be able to get by with less space.

I also keep my temp internet files on another drive, as they tend to
clutter the program drive. If you forget to delete them, they'll also
get backed up along with your system drive. (Ask your tech about
imaging your C: drive).

It sounds like your tech had something in mind. You may want to talk
to him before resetting your partitions. Maybe he can explain at
greater length.

 

[Alan Smith]

If your drive is large enough (say, 80GB or so) then there can be real
advantages in drive partitioning. It's preferable to keep programs
and data separate for various reasons.

I usually use 20GB to 25GB for the system partition. I load
development tools so I generally have more programs loaded than most.
You may be able to get by with less space.

I also keep my temp internet files on another drive, as they tend to
clutter the program drive. If you forget to delete them, they'll also
get backed up along with your system drive. (Ask your tech about
imaging your C: drive).

It sounds like your tech had something in mind. You may want to talk
to him before resetting your partitions. Maybe he can explain at
greater length.

I agree with the sentiment about temp files- unfortunately I forgot to do it
when I reinstalled on this machine but it is on the list of things I must
do.

 

[Guest]

Ok thanks for everyone's advice/opinions.