How partition and use former larger image?

[poirot]

Acronis 8.
Disk with a 93GB single partition C.
OS+data make up for 8GB.
XP home sp2.

I would like to partition this disk into two partitions: C (40GB) for the OS and D (53GB) =only for data,non system,non primary partition.
Can i make this partitioning with just the Windows disk manager ?
(without having to buy anything)
Could i use my previous images taken with a 93GB C and shrink them into
the new 40 GB C when restoring an image?

[Xpilot]

Originally Posted by poirot

Acronis 8.
Disk with a 93GB single partition C.
OS+data make up for 8GB.
XP home sp2.

I would like to partition this disk into two partitions: C (40GB) for the OS and D (53GB) =only for data,non system,non primary partition.
Can i make this partitioning with just the Windows disk manager ?
(without having to buy anything)
Could i use my previous images taken with a 93GB C and shrink them into
the new 40 GB C when restoring an image?

Yes no need to buy anything. Two stages.
1. Create a secure zone of 53GB from C using the Acronis wizard. Do not activate the start up recovery manager. Now, using the same Acronis wizard remove the secure zone and leave the freed up space as un allocated.
2. Open MS disk management and use it to make your new partition D from the unallocated space.
Job done.

Xpilot

[seekforever]

Xpilot has told you exactly what you need to do without buying more software but as you can see you can't do it directly with Windows Disk Management; it won't even let you delete your active partition (C) to change it into 2 partitions. It also would cause all of your data to be deleted since it is not designed for re-partitioning without deleting the data.

You can restore an image made from a larger partition into a smaller one as long as there is sufficient space to hold all of the "in-use" sectors which in your case is about 8GB. It doesn't matter how big the original partition was, just how much of it is used.

[poirot]

Thanks Xpilot and seekforever,no need to add anything.
Your replies are the dream of any poster i guess, immediate,straight to the point and exhaustive.
In spite of my ancestral dread for the Secure Zone i'll have to use it in the end...
Regards to both,

[Acronis Support]

Hello poirot,

Thank you for choosing Acronis Disk Backup Software.

In addition, please notice that it is also possible to resize the partition while restoring, as you yourself suggested.
Please see chapter 5. "Restoring a disk (partition) from an image" of the respective User's Guide for detailed instructions.

Thank you.
--
Marat Setdikov

[poirot]

Mr.Setdikov,most kind of you to state that.
I read again all chapter 5 to good effect.
Actually,i already did that 10 Restores ago when discovering a 7MB partition created by an unidentified program-using the wizard i put back the right size.
I always had partitions in my computers,but with this HP notebook i initially left the single C one as i'd have lost guarantee rights had i partioned the disk,then ,as everything was ok i forgot about it, but now i wanted to keep the OS partition lighter and have more need for data space.
To sum it up:
1-I create a SecureZone (do NOT activate Recovery Manager)
2-I remove the SecureZone (leave space as Unallocated)
3-I use DiskManager to create New partition from Unallocated space.
4-when Restoring i can change partitions size with Restoring wizard.

Regards to all