separate partition for XP Pro, good or bad??

[PlagueWielder]

Hey
Im gonna format my comp in a few days and install XP Pro. My question is if it is a good idea while Im formatting using the XP CD to make a separate partition for the OS (I think 2 GB) and another partition for everything else I have??

btw, I have a 40 GB HD.

Thanks

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

Its always a good idea to have the OS on a partition but whoa 2 gb is no where near enough ........ a lot of programs even if installed lets say to D:/program files .... need to put some files on the partition where the OS is in this case we say it is C:/ so as time goes buy that partition still needs space to grow I would say make it 5-7 GB and then split the rest up or just leave it as lets say 35-33 GB but I prefere to make them around 10-15 GB for data storage ........ I guess the other partitions size is really all about what you want and like but the OS partition will need to be IMHO at least 5GB .......

 

[2z]

thats way too small ...... IMHO

if your using ntfs it needs to be bigger > around 10 gig
if your using FAT it needs to be smaller < less than 7 gig (4k cluster)

apps are better off installed to the boot drive

if XP has to look @ another drive during startup its going to slow the system startup time down

 

[PlagueWielder]

do u guys recommend Partition Magic?? And if I use it, will I be able to make a partition smaller or bigger without formatting??

Thanks

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

Yes partition magic is a very good program and you can do most anything with it such as resize, merge, and redistribute free space ....... as for not formatting that all depends on what operation you want to do ....

 

[Hipster Doofus]

If you are going to use PM make sure you have the boot floppies made.........just in case. Also back up what you want...........just in case. I install most programs on the c drive (ntfs 10gig) & d drive is for storage, mp3, etc.

 

[NetRyder]

My opinion:

Create a relatively large partition for Windows and all your software (probably 20-25 GB)
A second one for your documents, music, downloads, and other stuff that you don't want to lose in case your Windows setup goes bad and you have to format.

Most of your software won't run after you format due to missing registry entries etc, which is why I feel apps can go on the same partition as Windows.

And yes, Partition Magic has been one of the most useful utilities I have bought. Some great stuff you can do with it, as already pointed out.


Cheers!
NetRyder

 

[lechtard]

Another partition on XP is a great idea - I did that mostly so I can have a backup drive incase the OS crashes - It saves a huge headache and makes things better .

 

[PlagueWielder]

I think ill go with partition magic.

and another question: will it slow down my computer??

 

[Jazzhound]

XP is storage crazed. An install with no services (i.e IIS) takes up about 1GB.

Best to dedicate about 10GB as soemone said to the OS and applications alone.


Personally if I was doing a fresh install, I'd skip the Partition Magic and go straight to the hard format and partition. Leave no trace of your last OS.

 

[PlagueWielder]

well, Im going to format my PC using the XP PRO cd and in the same time install the OS, and then use partition magic to cut out a seperate partition for my music, movies, etc...

 

[lechtard]

If you are going to do a seperate partitiion it is best to do it with Fdisk and use disk management in XP to make the unalocated space what you want ..

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

Partition magic is a lot easier to use and there is no problem using it after win xp is installed.I install my os do some basic setups and then use partition magic and split up my hard drives after and it is fine ......

 

[lechtard]

You could also use Partition Expert from Acronis .

 

[Jazzhound]

If you can afford to wipe the entier 40GB clean, you might as well do all your partitioning during setup. I hate installing an excess of applications. Takes up precious storage (even though I have 150GB) and ties up resources.