How to resize disk partitions in Windows Vista

Being able to resize partitions using only Vista’s administrative tools is one of it’s features that I love.  In XP, this is not possible unless you have a 3rd party tool like Partition Logic.

By using Disk Management, you can enlarge or shrink a disk partition in Vista.  Be warned though, when dealing with disk partitions, it is a good idea to backup your work before touching the partitions. 

· Click on Start > Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Administrative Tools.

· In the Administrative Tools window double click the Computer Management shortcut.

· In the Computer Management window click Disk Management.

· In the Disk Management Utility window you will see all the partitions of your computer’s disks. To shrink a partition, right click on the partition you want to shrink and click on the shrink option.  If there is a blank space at the disk, you can also choose the Extend Volume option to expand the size of the partition.

· In the new pop up window enter the amount of space you want to shrink then click on the shrink button.

· After the shrinking process you will see a new partition with an unallocated space.

· In order for you to use the new partition you should format the unallocated space. To do this right click on the new partition and click New Simple Volume.

· The New Simple Volume Wizard will open, click next.

· Enter the volume size and click next.

· Assign the drive letter you want for the new volume and click next.

· Select format this volume with the following settings. Then select the file system you want to use (NTFS, FAT32, or FAT). Choose NTFS, the default option, unless you want to use the older FAT formats.  Leave the Allocation unit size to Default and type the Volume label you want on the space provided. If you want to perform a quick format or enable file and folder compression just check the check box for the option then click next.

· Click finish to complete the wizard and the new disk will now be created.

· After creation of the new disk you will be prompted to format the new disk before you can use it. Just click start and the new disk will now be formatted. After the format your new disk partition is ready for use. 

Ben Carigtan shows you how it’s done.