Adding a partition to a toshiba laptop.

[OldDuffer]

First partition is system, primary, NTFS, 0x27 Windows RE, 1.4 GB.
Second partition is drive C:, primary,NTFS, 0x07 NTFS,578.8 GB.
Third partition is not named, primary, NTFS, 0x17 hidden NTFS, 15.8 GB.

I think that the 3rd partition must remain as the last one.

So can I safely partition the C: drive without losing the recovery system.

[Robin A.]

You can reduce the size of C:, leaving unallocated space to the right of C:. In this space, you can create another partition.

First try to reduce C: using the Windows 7 disk manager. If you can´t get the desired size, use Paragon, preferably from a boot medium.

Although this is a fairly safe operation, it is better to backup C: (create an image) before using the Paragon program.

[Paragon_Matt]

Originally Posted by OldDuffer

First partition is system, primary, NTFS, 0x27 Windows RE, 1.4 GB.
Second partition is drive C:, primary,NTFS, 0x07 NTFS,578.8 GB.
Third partition is not named, primary, NTFS, 0x17 hidden NTFS, 15.8 GB.

I think that the 3rd partition must remain as the last one.

So can I safely partition the C: drive without losing the recovery system.

Keep in mind that you will need to create an extended partition then a logical partition otherwise it may cause issues. You can only have a max of 4 primary partitions on a single NTFS drive, it is advised to create the partition as extended/logical.

[OldDuffer]

So this is the plan.

Partition 1: Primary 1.46 GB recovery (no drive letter).

Partition 2: 100 GB boot, page-file, crash dump, primary drive C:.

Extended partition: 478 GB.

Logical partition 3: 150 GB drive D:.

Logical partition 4: 328 GB drive E:

Partition 5: 15.87 GB hidden. (contains Toshiba recovery system).

Hopefully the recovery partition will be there after I partition the drive, I have done a rescue set of DVD's just in case.

Thanks

[Robin A.]

The recovery partition will be there.

But.. if you eventually intend to restore it, there are several possible scenarios:

-- Everything goes well and the image contained in the partition is restored to the reduced C partition.
-- The recovery partition is damaged for some unknown reason, and the image can´t be restored. This happens frequently in Dell computers.
-- The image can´t be restored because the "target" partition (C) is smaller than the original.
-- The image can be restored, but the process deletes the extended partition and all the data in it is lost.

So, it would be a good idea to check with the Toshiba customer service or in the forums how this recovery partition works exactly. Also, if you create regularly backup images in an external disk, you won´t ever need the recovery partition.

[OldDuffer]

Hi Robin.

Thanks for the info, I now know what may happen (hopefully not).
When I first received the Computer I made the 5 DVD Toshiba recovery set, one of the DVD's was bootable.

I have installed the Paragon Backup and Recovery 2012 program and to date have two backup sets, so I could easily restore from the DVD set then restore the latest backup and not loose installed user programs.

My user name OldDuffer means exactly what it says - Old, 73 years young and Duffer, well the brain box is not as good as it was.
I was being safe and sure as it is easy to make an unrecoverable mistake.

Oh, the avatar shows a flue brush popping out of my pipe, pipe smokers are always cleaning their pipe.

Many thanks Robin and Matt. I will report success or failure (failure is not an option).

[mick92z]

Originally Posted by OldDuffer

I will report success or failure (failure is not an option).

I look forward to your outcome , my Toshiba has 3 partitions, 1;46gb, 91.97gb and a large 605gb C drive.
I have been seriously considering splitting it in half. If i click on shrink volume, it then says size before shrinkage 619gb
My acer pc came already split, 350gb C drive, 320gb D drive, shame Toshiba don't do the same

[zapjb]

3-5 partitions on my Toshiba:
C: 39GB Win7x64hp
E: 395GB Data Storage
Then PCLOS with it's 3 Linux partitions 54GB

[OldDuffer]

Report as promised:

All OK.

Windows 7 home premium 64 bit.

Drive C: Shrink drive using Windows, could not get it smaller than 291.2 GB due to unmovable files.
Extended partition available is 287.5 gb.
Drive D: 131.84 GB.
Drive E: 155.73 GB.

Thanks again

[Paragon_Matt]

good to see it all worked out for you.