Another reason for Low Disk Space on Recovery D: warning?

[GallantFox]

After reading through numerous threads on this problem, I have yet to find the reason I suspect my client is receiving this warning message and I need to see if there is a way to increase the size of the Recovery partition. I doubt it needs to be increased by much, but it definitely needs a little breathing room.

First, I'll let you know that I checked to make sure restore points weren't being amassed there and filling up all available extra space.

The space allocated for Recovery Drive 😧 was perfectly adequate, as long as the computer was running Windows 8.1. Once the machine was upgraded to Windows 10 (and subsequent 10 upgrades), that space was no longer enough. Now, when Windows Update tries to install regularly issued updates, it cannot complete the process because 'there is not enough space on the Recovery Drive'. 

The space allocated for the Recovery Drive on this machine is 27.3GB. There is only 1.96MB of space left. I'd like to increase the size of the Recovery Drive by only 1or 2GB. Is that possible?

And, what type of regularly issued update would add anything to the Recovery Drive? 

(I also noticed other posters reporting a similar scenario, with this happening after upgrading from one OS to another, but no one addressed that as being a possible reason.)

Thanks, in advance, for any help you can offer!

The machine is an HP notebook 15-ac055nr; product # NON 84UA#ABA

C: has 436GB available space to draw from.

[WAWood · Accepted solution]

@GallantFox

Increasing the size of the Recovery partition is not advisable -- for two reasons.  First, it will not solve the problem because it will just fill up, again.  Second, if you tamper with the Recovery partition, you will "break" it, and then, the built-in Recovery will not work.

My suggestion is to consider using a third-party tool to create your own recovery media, and after that, remove the Recovery partition so you won't get these problems anymore.

I prefer to use third-party recovery solutions for the following reasons:
1) More flexibility and reliabilty -- can make recovery media as often as you like, not restricted to one attempt, which if it fails, then you are stuck.
2) More media options -- can create media in DVD, USB stick, or external drive format
3) Mounting option -- can "mount" the save images as virtual "drives" and extract individual files and folders
4) WinPE boot option -- can install a special boot option that allows you to boot to recovery information and do a repair or restore from there -- when Windows will not boot

What I recommend is the following:
1) Download and install Macrium Reflect (MR) from here: http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx
2) Run MR and choose the option: "Create an image of the partition(s) required to backup and restore Windows" to write a full backup to an external drive, USB stick, or DVDs
3) Use the option to create a boot USB stick or CD

My experience is that MR, when using the High Compression option, typically can compress the saved image file to about 50% of the USED space in the OS partition. This means if you have an 80GB OS partition, and 40GB is used, MR only needs about 20GB to store the image file.

I use this all the time and it typically takes less than 10 minutes to do the image backup and about the same time or less to do a restore. Plus, MR has the option to Add a Recovery Boot Menu entry. This allows you then to boot into WinPE, and you can then use that to do a restore -- when you can't boot into Windows!

NOW, you have the means to restore a full working system from the external drive, USB or DVDs stick in only a few minutes.

Good Luck

[GallantFox]

WAWood, thank you!! And I understood 98% of that, which is refreshing. It's always so frustrating if I have to look up 50% of the instructions when I run across something unfamiliar. All I had to look up was WinPE when reading your reply, but I do have another question. (And I am absolutely going to do this as the solution to my problem.)

Feb. 10 update: 

I couldn't see a way to full-on delete my other posts, so I edited them away. I also removed your suggestion as the solution, WAWood, because when a thread is marked as resolved, apparently no one checks on it again and I still need a little help with this problem. I will mark it as the solution again, as soon as the tasks for this machine are completed. I am also going to use your system for backing up all my computers. Thank you.

1. How can I tell if the computer is booting from the USB drive? I changed the boot order in the BIOS and the drive flashes briefly when I turn the computer on, but I don't know if it's actually booting from the USB or going through its sequence, eventually making its way to the hard drive for the boot files. Will it look any different from a regular boot? It's been so long since I've had to boot from an alternate source that I cannot remember.

2. With the mirror image safely on an external hard drive and the rescue media on the USB (after I know for certain that it works), do I now simply delete the Recovery Drive that came on the machine? Can I use something like EaseUS Partition Master to do that?

3. The Recovery Drive contains a Windows 10 Upgrade folder in it that is 3.05GB, probably the thing that took the drive over its allocated space. Should I save that prior to deleting the Recovery Drive, if that's what I'm about to do? When I used Macrium Reflect to "Create an image of the partition(s) required to backup and restore Windows," the program selected every drive except for the Recovery Drive. When I wipe that out, will that folder exist on some other drive? I don't understand why it would be placed within the Recovery Drive to begin with, since that drive has limited space. But, I guess that's a Microsoft rather than HP designation.

Thanks again for your help.

Lauren

[GallantFox]

Removed because I found no option to delete it. It was of no benefit to the problem or solution.

[GallantFox]

Removed because I found no option to delete it.

[GallantFox]

Removed because I found no option to delete it.

[GallantFox]

I posted an update, but did it via editing and apparently that does not show as a new post. (If a moderator sees this thread and can delete those unnecessary extras, that would be great!) 

In following WAWood's suggestion, my most pressing questions are:

-- How can I tell if my computer booted by USB and not the hard drive?

-- Can I delete the Recovery Drive completely after creating rescue media and a full mirror image of the drive, saved to ext HD?

[GallantFox]

I can't count the times the most logical, the simplest, and the easiest ways around things are the best ways. I am definitely grateful for the information given me in this thread, as I will now retain full mirror image backups of all my computers and those I help friends with, according to the info on using Macrium Reflect. To give a final update and provide help for others in this situation, let me tell you the easiest way to deal with a problem like mine:

Make a copy of the gigantic Windows 10 Upgrade folder in the Recovery Drive, if you feel more comfortable that way, but basically just delete that folder from the partition. Done.

It shouldn't have been put there, to begin with, given HP's penchant for setting the size of the Recovery Drive to be just barely over what you need for the basics when the machines are set up at the factory.

Also: You'll know that the machine booted successfully from the USB rescue media if it opens up in a Macrium Reflect window giving you options to restore the PC. Somehow, this computer went back to the default BIOS setting for boot order. I checked it, reset it to start first with the USB, and it worked as expected.