Not Enough Disc Space

[evanson]

I have a large Photoshop programme and neglected to check the disc space on my C drive. Can I move some programme files to D drive - lots of space there. Thanks:)

[Phil Conners]

You'd probably be better of downloading Partition Wizard Home Edition from Download.com and use it to repartition your disks to make enough space on your c: drive.

[keeniau96]

Installed program files are locked in by their registry entries. So have to uninstall then reinstall the program onto d: drive if you want to gain space. Could also get new larger HDD, clone the current HDD onto the new HDD, then pull the old, replace with the new clone and use the old one for backup etc.

[Bengt]

Installed program files are locked in by their registry entries. So have to uninstall then reinstall the program onto d: drive if you want to gain space. Could also get new larger HDD, clone the current HDD onto the new HDD, then pull the old, replace with the new clone and use the old one for backup etc.

Maybe the best solution,in your case its better to buy a new larger disk and clone the present one into the new one.

Cloning its a good way also to backup your entire computer, disk ALWAYS crash, but you never know when!!!

Bengt!!

[welo]

Free up space on your C drive:

* Move the swapfile to D: **

* If hibernation is enabled and you don't use it, disable it in Control Panel / Power Options (the hibernation file on the disk equals the size of your RAM) - hibernation is usually off by default in XP

* Move the Photoshop scratch disk to D:

* Move your data to D:, that is the My Documents directory which includes the 'My Audio' and other subfolders - this might actually free considerable disk space if you keep all your data there at the moment (eg mp3s)

* Uninstall applications and re-install to the D: directory, start with large apps first, e.g. games.

Please not that it is not a good idea to fill up your C: drive. Experts recommend 10-30% free space on any partition for performance reasons.

If using partitioning tools to resize, make sure you have a BACKUP of your data on an external media before you start - there is a certain risk that something goes wrong and the partitions get 'lost'

** swapfile: downside is that within one harddisk the partitions at the 'beginning' are always faster than those at the 'end'

welo

[Max4243]

Don't touch your D drive if you can help it. This is for your back up use only. There are other better options as indicated in the many posters recommended.

[astral]

Is this a real D: drive, ie a second disk,

or just a partition of the main drive?

Uninstall and then install again is the way to move the programme.

[ignis]

Why 'Uninstall and then install again' ??

Simply move the files to 'D' drive after they are moved then you will need to right click on them and click on 'Send to' then click on 'create shortcut' so you have a shortcut to the program in 'D' on you desktop.

You say you have lots of space on the 'D' drive, why not install the large Photoshop program on 'D' to start with with a shortcut on your desktop ?

[nikster]

Free up space on your C drive:

* Move the swapfile to D: **

* If hibernation is enabled and you don't use it, disable it in Control Panel / Power Options (the hibernation file on the disk equals the size of your RAM) - hibernation is usually off by default in XP

* Move the Photoshop scratch disk to D:

* Move your data to D:, that is the My Documents directory which includes the 'My Audio' and other subfolders - this might actually free considerable disk space if you keep all your data there at the moment (eg mp3s)

* Uninstall applications and re-install to the D: directory, start with large apps first, e.g. games.

^^^ I agree with this, in this order.

Program files are not what's eating space on your hard disk.

You could get JDiskReport (free) and check what's using so much space.

Moving program files is tedious and should be your last option. Chances are it won't improve the situation much.

[evanson]

I've just spotted two files large enough to free up enough space in the C drive. On my own computer s'easy, just right click and 'send to'. I keep most of my doc files there.

However, no D drive is listed in the dropdown of this elderly ViewSonic?! Only cd/dvd and the portable F drive??? I know there's a D (data) drive as when I mouse over it, it's practically 80% empty.

So why's it not showing up in the dropdown of the 'send to'? That'd make things a whole lot easier.

Edited July 19, 2010 by evanson

[welo]

Please consider that there is a reason why most posters recommended to un- and then re-install applications instead of just moving the folder/files. This way all references to this program will be correctly set. You will most likely run into problems if you ignore this advise, especially if you move larger, more complex applications.

Of course you can move simple data files (movies, documents, mp3s etc).

Moving system or application files is NOT a good idea.

I recommend moving the 'My Documents' folder, which might be an easy and long-term solution for your problem. Follow one of these guides (Windows XP)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310147

http://thundercloud.net/information-avenue/my-documents/

[siamect]

Take backup first!

You can boot from Live CD of any major GNU/Linux distro and resize the partitions as you like. gparted is a program that can do this and is usually included in live CDs. (supports NTFS).

And did I tell you to take backup first...

... to take backup first...

... backup first...

... yes first...

... no first!...

did you?

[Supernova]

Free up space on your C drive:

* Move the swapfile to D: **

* If hibernation is enabled and you don't use it, disable it in Control Panel / Power Options (the hibernation file on the disk equals the size of your RAM) - hibernation is usually off by default in XP

* Move the Photoshop scratch disk to D:

* Move your data to D:, that is the My Documents directory which includes the 'My Audio' and other subfolders - this might actually free considerable disk space if you keep all your data there at the moment (eg mp3s)

* Uninstall applications and re-install to the D: directory, start with large apps first, e.g. games.

Please not that it is not a good idea to fill up your C: drive. Experts recommend 10-30% free space on any partition for performance reasons.

If using partitioning tools to resize, make sure you have a BACKUP of your data on an external media before you start - there is a certain risk that something goes wrong and the partitions get 'lost'

** swapfile: downside is that within one harddisk the partitions at the 'beginning' are always faster than those at the 'end'

welo

Excellent advice, but let me add a few things...

IF you're using an older computer with IDE hard drives (no SATA), do not move the pagefile to another drive or partition unless the (target) drive is on a separate IDE channel. Moving the pagefile to a drive on the same IDE channel or a different partition on the same hard drive will degrade performance.

To free up even more disk space, run the Disk Cleanup Utility to clean out the %TEMP% folder and other redundant files. Alternatively, copy and paste the following code to Notepad. Save the file with ".bat" or ".cmd" extension. Double-click the file to execute.

cd /d "%TEMP%"
attrib -s -h -r /s /d &del /f /q *.*
for /D /R %%a in ( * ) do rmdir /s /q "%%a"

You can also use this code to automatically delete junk in the %TEMP% folder every time you logoff or shutdown Windows. Additional commands can be added to include browser cache as well as Photoshop scratch disk data, among other things. Use the Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) to configure logon/logoff scripts.

A typical Windows system accumulates a lot of junk. Installers/uninstallers and various applications like to leave stuff behind. Not only does it consume disk space, but contents stored in %TEMP% could become a security hazard (unlikely, yes, but you never know).

Consider moving the %TEMP% and browser cache folders to a different drive or partition. This will dramatically reduce hard disk fragmentation. Also limit your web browser cache to 50MB or 100MB. There's no reason for it to exceed this amount. Internet Explorer in particular, is notorious for allocating crazy amounts of disk space for storing Temporary Internet Files. If you use IE, do yourself a favor by changing this setting.

[lopburi3]

Normally the D is a partition of the main drive rather than a physical unit. And it is not a good place for backups as if the drive fails it is gone as well as the C drive. Use external drives for backups. With the speeds today see no reason to have more than a large C drive for most people and have just restored my C/D to one C drive using built in abilities in Windows 7 without any problems.

[electau]

I have an Acer SA90 ( Vista ) and the HDD is partitioned into C and D drives of 32.5GB each.

Keep the system files and programs on C drive and transfer My Documents, photos etc to D drive. This will free up space on C drive.

You can back up on an external HDD as well if you wish or archive copies onto a CD or DVD.

[lopburi3]

Unless you have dual boot needs I would combine c/d space into c and then not have to worry. In earlier days it did make sense as you could search/defrag/backup a smaller partition but with the speeds now it really is not needed for general use.

[Supernova]

The idea behind having multiple partitions on a single hard disk is to separate the operating system files from user files. If the OS has to be reinstalled, it can be done with little to no impact on personal data. Bear in mind that having multiple partitions won't protect your data from hardware failure, so it's always a good idea to have some sort of backup solution in place.

There's no right or wrong way to partition a hard disk. However, I don't agree with having one large C: drive for everything.

Edited July 20, 2010 by Supernova

[lopburi3]

Why separate? And how many people could even do so if they tried? The computer knows what is which and there is user information all over the computer (that is what registry is). You should never have to reinstall operating systems in todays world as you have excellent repair/restore abilities and most people also save/clone. In the worst case you could access with operating system from Disc or USB prior to a format of "C" and remove what you want if that is what you are thinking about.

I agree it did make sense years ago but today it seems more bother than it is worth and most people would need to take manual action on every program they install and risk more errors that it would ever save.

[Phil Conners]

If for any reason Windows go belly up - and it does, sooner or later - and your only way out is a reinstall, then the reinstall starts by deleting all your data on the c: drive.

Better to get used to store your data on d:

This of course does not mean you should not take backups.

[lopburi3]

But you can access and remove what you want at that time from external boot so it is not the problem it might have been in the past when that option was not available. Add the fact we should all be making backups now that an external drive is the cost of dinner at a good restaurant. With the ability to revert to earlier working system built into Windows now most cases of having to re-install are gone.

[welo]

^^^

That is my strategy as well.

I had a discussion here once a while back on the same subject. The guy came up with a view good points against partitioning, but didn't convince me completely.

1. Before reinstalling the OS one should backup the data to a different harddrive anyway
   
2. Defragging tools will take care of organizing the data on the disk to improve performance anyway
   
3. A second harddisk is better than partitioning anyway (in terms of safety and performance), costs are low nowadays anyway
   

And while the statements are basically true, here my list of counter arguments

1. (A) The D partition can retain data that is not worthy to backup e.g. mp3s, movies, etc ( and in most cases a reinstall just works, no need for a lengthy process of moving data back
   
2. Using two partitions to separate system and data is more effective and doesn't require an extra step (running defrag, rearranging data)
   
3. (A) not possible with laptops ( for low-budget systems the costs might be an issue as well © an external harddrive might be preferable to a 2nd internal © even if a second harddrive is used one probably doesn't want to waste the unused space on the first drive, maybe use it as data storage for less sensitive data
   

I couldn't file my counter arguments back then because the poster 'opted-out' of the discussion being worthless

welo

[astral]

Why 'Uninstall and then install again' ??

Simply move the files to 'D' drive after they are moved then you will need to right click on them and click on 'Send to' then click on 'create shortcut' so you have a shortcut to the program in 'D' on you desktop.

You say you have lots of space on the 'D' drive, why not install the large Photoshop program on 'D' to start with with a shortcut on your desktop ?

When you install a programme under windoze entries are made in the Registry.

If you simply move a programme from the C drive to the D it may not function correctly.

Some Partitioning programmes have a facility for moving programmes that will take care of the Registry as well.

Have you tried running Ccleaner to free up space on the C drive.

IMHO it is better to keep all application programmes in the same partition

and data in another.

As suggested an external disk should be used for backup, or a different physical drive, if you have a desktop.

[Supernova]

You should never have to reinstall operating systems in todays world as you have excellent repair/restore abilities and most people also save/clone. In the worst case you could access with operating system from Disc or USB prior to a format of "C" and remove what you want if that is what you are thinking about.

You'd be surprised at some of the things people do to their computers (intentional or otherwise). While modern repair utilities do a fairly decent job in restoring the OS to working condition, sometimes it isn't enough. Viruses, malware, file system corruption will almost certainly result in a reinstall of the operating system. Let's not forget, it's "Windows" we're talking about here. Furthermore, the average user knows nothing about cloning, let alone how to maintain a good working system. OS re-installation is more common than you think.

Sure, rescue cd's and usb can be used to access data on C: drive prior to a reformat, but that's not the point!

Edited July 20, 2010 by Supernova

[evanson]

Normally I would just transfer docs to an external hard drive. Easy and backup too. However having just forked out for neighbour's kid for the computer (not being kee neaow or anything) don't feel like forking out any more. So anyone can explain why D: doesn't appear in the drop down for 'send to'?

[Supernova]

^ The default SendTo items don't include fixed drives, only removable ones. You can however, add your own shortcuts...

1. Go to Start menu >> Run

2. In the Run command, type shell:sendto

3. Press <Enter>

4. Create the desired shortcut item(s)

Edited July 21, 2010 by Supernova

[welo]

^ nice one!

SendTo is of only limited use because it will put everything in the top level (aka root) folder of the target drive.

Try to make yourself comfortable with Windows Explorer and copy/paste or drag and drop - you can open two explorer windows (one for the source folder, one for the target folder) to accomplish things faster.

Another solution is to add Copy To Folder... and Move To Folder... entries to the context menu, but this requires editing the registry, see here: http://dotnetwizard.net/tutorials/copy-to-folder-and-move-to-folder/.

Does anybody know of a more beginner-friendly method?

TeraCopy will do the same and much more: http://download.cnet.com/TeraCopy/3000-2248_4-10671835.html?tag=mncol

Remember: don't move system files or applications like this, you will run into problems.

welo

Edited July 21, 2010 by welo

[Supernova]

Another solution is to add Copy To Folder... and Move To Folder... entries to the context menu, but this requires editing the registry, see here: http://dotnetwizard.net/tutorials/copy-to-folder-and-move-to-folder/.

Read this first.

Does anybody know of a more beginner-friendly method?

ContextMenuExt.dll - is a Windows XP shell extension which performs the same function as the CopyTo/MoveTo tweak, but without having to edit the registry. I'm not aware of any beginner-friendly methods, all I know is I've used this extension for a long time.

Lamers note: If you've already applied the registry tweak, be sure to disable it before using this one!

Installation

1. Copy the ContextMenuExt.dll file to C:\Windows\system32

2. Go to Start menu >> Run, type in regsvr32 /s ContextMenuExt.dll then press <Enter>

To uninstall, simply un-register the file; only this time include the /u switch to the command shown above.

Known Issues

If the copy/move operation is initiated and then canceled while data transfer is in progress, you may receive a "handle is invalid" error. This behavior is completely normal, albeit the only minor flaw with this extension.

[welo]

Read this first.

Thanks for the warning. I wonder though whether the reported problems still apply, you still find this 'trick' all over the internet, even relating to Windows 7.

However, I found an even better (or beginner friendly) solution..

Enter FileMenu Tools: http://download.cnet.com/FileMenu-Tools/3000-2094_4-10810545.html?tag=mncol

This one allows adding a bunch of more or less useful options to the context menu, one of them is Copy To.. and Move To.. with a rather feature complete and nice folder selection dialog. With history, Favorites, and more.

There is a list of about 20 preconfigured actions available, among them:

Copy Path

Change Time

Delete Locked File

Create New Folder

I'm sure there is many tools similar to this, but this one is nice enough - seems to work on Windows 7 as well.

Tools like TeraCopy go a bit further and do not only add a Copy/Move entry but offer a more versatile (and faster) copy routine and progress dialog as well. Used in on Windows XP, but on Windows 7 I stick with the onboard method which is pretty fast.

welo

[Supernova]

Thanks for the warning. I wonder though whether the reported problems still apply, you still find this 'trick' all over the internet, even relating to Windows 7.

AFAIK, the context menu problems apply only to Windows XP. I've used the registry tweak in Vista as well as Windows 7 without any ill-effects.

Thanks for the link to FileMenu Tools. I enjoy fiddling around with this stuff.

[ronz28]

Since Windows XP allows you to split of have 2 page files and specify the size of the file on the C and D drive I wondered about that and found this advice:

Move the Pagefile off the disk that holds your system and boot partitions to another fast and dedicated hard disk. If you do put the file elsewhere, you should leave a small amount on C: - an initial size of 2MB with a Maximum of 50 is suitable - so it can be used in emergency. Without this, the system is inclined to ignore the settings and either have no page file at all (and complain) or make a very large one indeed on the C: drive.

I just changed the settings for the C and D partition for virtual memory of my single physical hard drive and freed up a lot of space. I used 10mg min and 50 meg max on C partition with the balance of about 4+ Gig on the D partition and so far haven't noticed a degradation in performance but will give it a workout today and if there are problems, I will report back.