How to Fix the Volume Not Working Issue in Windows 11/10/8/7

If you receive the “Windows 10 can't shrink volume” error, try a free disk management tool and other solutions below:

Error: Unable to Shrink Volume in Windows 11/10

Hello everyone, do you know why Windows 10 won't shrink volume? It doesn't let me shrink the C drive on my laptop. I want to shrink C drive but the Shrink button is grayed out.

Disk Management is unable to shrink or reduce the size of Drive C and gives an error message: "The volume cannot be shrunk to a location that contains a nonmovable file. See the Application event log for more information about the operation that completed." Can you help me with the issue of unable to shrink volume in Windows 10? Thanks."

Why Can't I Shrink Volume in Disk Management on Windows 11/10?

To resolve this issue, it's essential to know the reasons behind the unable to shrink C drive error. Here are the primary causes of disabling partition shrinking on a Windows PC:

• The volume contains immovable files, such as hibernation files, pagefiles, and the System Volume Information folder used by System Restore.
• There is not enough space for the process to complete, and you receive an error message that states, "There is not enough space on the disk to complete this operation."
• Existing fragmentation causes files saved on the device to be scattered.
• A file system error makes the volume inaccessible or invisible.
• Your partition type is FAT32. The Shrink and Extend Volume features support only NTFS partitions. You cannot shrink a FAT32 volume.

Any of these factors can cause the issue of Windows 10 unable to shrink volume. In such cases, how to shrink a volume or how to shrink C drive? Don't worry. This post will show you how to shrink volume with a professional partition manager when Disk Management is not available. Plus, we also provide you with effective ways to make the “Shrink Volume” option work again.

If you want to shrink the C drive using only Windows tools, click below for more detailed instructions.

How to Shrink C Drive without Losing Data [2023 Full Guide]

How to shrink C drive in Windows 10? If you're looking for a detailed answer on shrinking C drive, you've come to the right place. On this page, you can get three free tools to successfully shrink C drive without compromising your data.

How to Shrink a Volume with a Free Partition Manager

If you can't shrink the volume due to unmovable files or file system issues, don't worry. You can use a third-party free software to partition the hard drive to overcome Microsoft's technical limitations. A powerful alternative free disk management tool – tools Partition Master Free can help you easily shrink C drive in Windows 10/8/7 with simple clicks.

Download this user-friendly free disk management tool to see how easy it is to shrink a partition in just a few steps.

Step 1: Locate and select the partition that you want to shrink.

In the Partition Manager, right-click the partition you want to shrink and select “Resize/Move”.

Step 2: Resize to shrink the partition

Resize the partition by dragging the target partition's end to shrink the space.

You can also adjust the resize sliders to shrink the target partition. When you're done, click “OK” to continue.

Third step: Perform the action.

Click the Run Task button and choose Apply to save all changes.

Partitioning a hard drive in Windows 10 is easy with the free Disk Management tool. Watch this video to learn how to resize the C drive, allocate space from one disk to another, and delete a partition, among other things.

How to fix the inability to shrink a volume error when trying to shrink C drive

Before you shrink a partition, you should check the available space on your disk to avoid running out of space while manually adjusting the partition size. If you have enough space but still can't shrink it, try the following solutions for different issues.

1. Convert FAT32 to NTFS to resolve the inability to shrink a FAT32 partition.

The simplest and fastest way to convert FAT32 to NTFS is by using the free Partition Assistant, which can complete the conversion with one click. After the conversion, the issue of being unable to shrink the volume will no longer occur, and you can start shrinking the partition in Disk Management.

Step 1. Install and launch Partition Master on your computer.

Step 2. Right-click on a FAT32 partition in the Partition Manager and select Advanced -> Convert to FAT.

Step 3: Click Continue on the dialog box that appears to proceed.

Step 4: Click on “Apply” to start the conversion process. Wait for it to finish.

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2. Run a disk defragmentation and check for disk errors to fix the issue with Windows unable to shrink the volume.

Another way to fix the inability to shrink volume on Windows 10, 8, or 7 is to defragment the disk and check for disk errors.

Note: To fix the issue, you need to log in to Windows 10/8/7 with an Administrator account.

Resize Hard Disk Partitions

Step 1: Click on 'Start' and select 'File Explorer.'

Step 2: Right-click on "Local Disk (C:)"   or any other partition that you can't shrink in the "This PC" tree on the left panel.

Step 3: Click on “Properties” > Go to the “Tools” tab, and under “Optimize and defragment drive,” click on “Optimize.”

Step 4: In the Optimize Drives window, check the box next to your system drive (usually C:), and then click Analyze.

Please wait for Windows to finish analyzing and display the percentage of fragmented files on the selected disk.

Check and fix disk file system errors

If Defragmentation encounters too many bad clusters, you won't be able to shrink the volume. Therefore, your next step should be to run a disk check and fix all file system errors:

Step 1: Right-click on the drive or partition that won't shrink in File Explorer on your Windows PC, and select Properties.

Step 2: Click the “Tools” tab, and then click the “Check” button under “Error Checking.”

Wait for it to finish to repair file system errors.

3. Disable immovable files to fix "Can't shrink volume to this point"

Windows won't let you shrink a volume if it contains immovable system files, such as a page file, hibernation file, or System Volume Information folder, at the end of the volume.

The workaround is to temporarily disable hibernation, the page file, and System Restore. After you disable these features, restart Windows, and then use the Disk Management tool to resize the volume.

Disable System Restore

Step 1: Launch “systempropertiesprotection.exe” via the Run dialog box.

Step 2: Select the system disk and click "Configure."

Step 3: Click “Disable System Protection” and then “OK.”

Disable the hibernation file

Step 1: Click on "Start," type cmd, right-click on "Command Prompt," and select "Run as administrator."

Step 2: Run the following command: powercfg /hibernate off. This turns off hibernation and frees up the space on your system drive that's being used by hiberfil.sys.

Disable the paging file

Step 1: Start systempropertiesadvanced.exe from the Run dialog box.

Step 2: Click the "Advanced" tab. In the Performance section, click "Settings," then click the "Advanced" tab, and then click "Change."

Step 3: Select “No paging file,” and then click “Set.”

Alternatively, you can disable kernel memory dumping.

In the “Advanced settings,” go to “Startup and Recovery” > “Settings.” Under “Write debugging information,” change the drop-down menu to “None” to disable kernel memory dumps.

In summary,

With the methods provided on this page, you can effectively resolve the "Can't Shrink Volume" issue on Windows 11/10. We highly recommend trying the Partition Master Free tool to manage and optimize your disk partitions, thereby prolonging your computer's lifespan and performance.

Frequently Asked Questions About Shrinking Volume in Windows 11/10 (UTF-8)

Here are more topics about the issue that Windows 11/10 can't shrink volume. If you encounter the same problems, you may find the solutions here.

Why can't I turn the volume down any further?

Why can't I shrink the partition? There can be several reasons:

• Can't shrink the FAT32 partition.
• Not enough free space.
• File system or other errors.
• Files that cannot be moved exist.

How to fix the "The volume cannot be shrunk beyond this point" issue?

When you use Disk Management in Windows 10 to shrink a volume, you might see the error message, "The volume cannot be shrunk beyond the location of immovable files. See the Defragmentation event in the Application log for details after the operation is complete."

This is usually because of the page file (pagefile.sys, an immovable file), the hibernation file (hiberfil.sys), or the System Volume Information folder, used by System Restore, which prevent you from shrinking the volume to a certain point.

To resolve the "The volume could not be shrunk to this point" error, you can try:

• Disable System Restore.
• Disable hibernation.
• Disable the paging file.

How to Shrink Volume in Windows 11/10?

The easiest way to shrink a volume in Windows 10 is by using a disk management tool. It lets you shrink the C drive or any other partition with a simple drag-and-drop operation.

Step 1: Launch Partition Assistant, right click on the partition which you want to shrink and select "Resize/Move Volume".

Step 2: You can shrink the partition by dragging its end with mouse. Or you can adjust the size bar to shrink the target partition. Then, click “OK”.

Step 3: Click the “Perform Action” button and then click “Apply” to save all the changes.

How long does it take to shrink Windows 11/10?

The shrink operation proceeds quickly. How long it takes depends on how much data was in your partition.