Resize C drive on Windows 10 without reinstalling
C drive is allocated while installing Windows Operating System, sometimes you need to change partition size if it is too large or small. Unlike data partitions, C drive is where Operating System located, so you’d better pay more attention. This article introduces how to resize C drive partition on Windows 10 easily and safely.
Resize C drive with Disk Management
The same with previous versions, Windows 10 has native Disk Management utility to resize C drive or any data partitions. The built-in Shrink Volume functionality can decrease partition size and generate Unallocated space on the right side. Extend Volume can increase partition size when there is adjacent Unallocated space on the right side.
Benefits to resize C drive in DM:
- Hard drives can be shrank and extended on the fly.
- Easy to use with few steps.
- Fast in most cases.
How to shrink C drive in DM:
- Right click Windows flag on bottom left and select Disk Management.
- Right click C drive and select Shrink Volume.
- Enter the amount of space and click Shrink to start.
How to extend C drive in DM:
- Open Disk Management.
- Right click C drive and select Extend Volume.
- Simply click Next till Finish in the pop-up Extend Volume Wizard window.
Limitations to resize C drive with DM:
- C drive can only be shrank from right to the left side.
- Sometimes C drive can’t be shrank.
- C drive can be extended only when there is adjacent Unallocated space on the right side.
- You cannot extend C drive by shrinking D.
Resize partition C with software
To resize C: drive on Windows 10, professional disk partition software is better choice, but you’d better select the safe and reliable software, otherwise, there is potential data loss and system damage risk.
Download NIUBI Partition Editor, you’ll see all disk partitions with detailed parameters on the right, all available operations to the highlighted disk or partition are displayed on the left side.
How to decrease C drive:
Right click C drive and select Resize/Move Volume.
In the pop-up window, drag the right border leftwards.
C drive will be shrank and Unallocated space will be produced on the right side.
In the pop-up window, if you drag the left border rightwards:
Unallocated space will be produced on the left side.
Video guide
If you want to extend C drive, you can shrink other data partitions to get free space, no matter they are adjacent or not. Watch the video how to resize C drive on Windows 10:
Comparing with Windows Disk Management, NIUBI Partition Editor is much more powerful.
- Both NTFS and FAT16/32 partitions are supported
- Shrink C drive and produce Unallocated space on either side.
- Extend C drive with adjacent Unallocated space on either side.
- Move nonadjacent Unallocated space and add into C drive.
- Much easier, you just need to drag and drop on the disk map.
Comparing with other partitioning software, NIUBI has unique technologies such as:
- 1 Second Rollback technology to ensure system and data intact.
- Virtual mode to avoid incorrect operations.
- Cancel-at-will technology to cancel ongoing but unwanted operations without data loss.
- Hot-Resize technology to help extend C drive on the fly.
In Summary
To resize C drive partition on Windows 10, the native Disk Management can help you in some cases. If you cannot shrink or extend C drive with this tool, you need safe partitioning software. Because of the enhanced data protection ability, NIUBI Partition Editor is the best choice.
