Last updated on April 22, 2024
NTFS stands for New Technology File System, which is the default standard Windows file system with excellent performance and reliability. As the preferred file system for Windows, it has gained much praise and been widely used on various disks. For instance, it can be set as the file system format for partitions on an SSD or an HDD. When you find the NTFS partition size unsuitable, you may want to adjust it.
To make the most of your NTFS partition, you might need to shrink other partitions to extend the NTFS partition or shrink the NTFS partition to free up space for other system partitions. Don't worry – resizing an NTFS partition isn't complicated. This article shows you three methods to resize NTFS partitions without data loss on Windows 11/10.
Can NTFS partitions be resized without losing data? Absolutely. You can easily resize an NTFS partition in Windows 11/10. This section introduces three methods: two built-in Windows disk tools and a professional third-party software, tools Partition Master. Which method is better? Quickly compare them in the table and choose the suitable one for you.
Comparison | |||
---|---|---|---|
Resize Partition | No Limit | Unallocated space is needed on the right side | Unallocated space is needed on the left side |
Difficulty of Operation | Easy - 3 steps | Moderate - 5 steps | Complex - At least 5 steps |
Intended Users | All users | Users with some experience | Expert users |
Among the three utilities, AOMEI Partition Assistant stands out with its more powerful features. It breaks through the limitations of built-in Windows tools and can resolve more NTFS partition resizing issues.
We'll start with the simplest method for resizing an NTFS partition.
AOMEI Partition Assistant is a professional disk partition manager that can resize NTFS partition quickly and efficiently. You can use the "Resize/Move Partition" feature to expand or shrink the NTFS partition by dragging the mouse. Even if you are a computer novice, you can easily manage your partitions.
Step 1: Locate and select the target drive/partition
Launch Partition Master, enter "Partition Management" interface, select the hard disk/partition whose size needs to be adjusted, right click and choose "Resize/Move".
Step 2: Resize or Move the Partition
1. To shrink it, simply drag one of the endpoints into the unallocated space. Click “OK” when you're done.
2. To expand a partition, you must have unallocated space next to it (if not, create some as described above). Drag the mouse over the unallocated space. Click “OK.”
3. To move a partition, unallocated space must be next to the partition you want to move. If there isn't any, free some up first.
Right-click the partition you want to move and select “Resize/Move.” Drag the entire partition to the left or right to reposition it. Click “OK” to confirm.
Step 3: Review the results and apply the changes
Here, you'll see the new disk partition information and图表.
To save the changes, click the Run Task button, and then click Apply.
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What is Disk Management? It's a free disk and partition management tool provided by the Windows operating system. You can use "Extend Volume" or "Shrink Volume" to adjust the size of an NTFS partition.
Now, follow the steps below to resize NTFS partition.
Step 1. Right-click the Windows button and select “Disk Management.”
Step 2: Right-click the NTFS partition you want to extend, and select “Extend Volume.”
Step 3: Click Next on the Extend Volume Wizard.
Step 4: Specify the size of your NTFS partition and click “Next.”
Click “Finish” to extend the NTFS partition.
Step One: Open Disk Management and right-click on the NTFS partition you want to shrink. Select “Shrink Volume.”
Step 2: Select the drive you want to shrink, and then click on "Shrink."
The Diskpart command is a command line tool that comes with Windows. It's more powerful than the Disk Management utility, but it's not for computer novices. You must be careful typing commands to avoid losing data. If you want to resize an NTFS partition with Diskpart, follow these steps.
Step 1: Right-click the Windows icon and select "Run."
Step 2: Type "diskpart", and press Enter.
Step 3. Enter each of the following commands in order, pressing the «Enter» key after you type each one.
List volume
Select volume 5
Shrink space, expected value = 10240
The "list volume" command will show you all of the partitions on your computer. "5" can be replaced with the number of another target volume. "10240" can be changed to the appropriate size.
To extend an NTFS partition, type the following command:
List volumes
Select volume x
Extend size
Step 4. Type "exit" to close the command prompt.
Diskpart is also a great tool for adjusting the size of an NTFS partition, but it can't resize a FAT32 partition. If Diskpart can't extend the volume, you'll need a partition master tool.
Do you know how to resize an NTFS partition? Using AOMEI Partition Assistant is the most comprehensive way. It breaks through the limitations of Diskpart and Disk Management, bringing more functions. In addition to resizing partitions, it can also merge non-adjacent partitions.
Disk Management and disk partitioning tools can meet basic needs, but proceed with caution. By the way, here are some common NTFS partition issues you might encounter.
Resizing an NTFS partition in Windows 11/10 is a pretty straightforward task. Hopefully, this article has addressed your concern. If you have further queries, please proceed with reading.
**Can the NTFS file system be resized?**
Sure, there are three ways to resize an NTFS partition in Windows. The recommended ones are Disk Management and Diskpart, but be aware of their limitations. The best approach is to use a tool like Partition Master.
2. What is the maximum partition size for NTFS?
The maximum NTFS partition size is 16 TB. If you can't create an NTFS volume larger than 2 TB, you should check your disk format. If it's MBR, you'll need to convert MBR to GPT during Windows installation to create an NTFS partition larger than 2 TB.
3. How do I resize an existing partition?
To resize an existing partition, you can use a tool like Partition Master to do it quickly. If you want to use a tool that comes with Windows, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open Disk Management.
Step 2: Right-click the existing partition that you want to resize, and select "Extend Volume" or "Shrink Volume."
Step 3: Type the size you want to resize the partition to.