• ×
    Information
    Windows update impacting certain printer icons and names. Microsoft is working on a solution.
    Click here to learn more
    Information
    Need Windows 11 help?
    Check documents on compatibility, FAQs, upgrade information and available fixes.
    Windows 11 Support Center.
  • post a message
  • ×
    Information
    Windows update impacting certain printer icons and names. Microsoft is working on a solution.
    Click here to learn more
    Information
    Need Windows 11 help?
    Check documents on compatibility, FAQs, upgrade information and available fixes.
    Windows 11 Support Center.
  • post a message
Guidelines
Any failures related to Hotkey UWP service? Click here for tips.
Check out our WINDOWS 11 Support Center info about: OPTIMIZATION, KNOWN ISSUES, FAQs, VIDEOS AND MORE.
HP Recommended
Pavilion - 15-cs3048tu
Microsoft Windows 10 IOT

I work on a stand-alone HP notebook and all my files are currently saved on the Windows (C:) drive. I would prefer to separate my files across different disks/drives.

Is this possible?

Do I need to subscribe to a specific website or purchase an external hard-drive?

I would appreciate some help.

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions
HP Recommended

ClaireTheBear, the choice is yours!

 

There are many free cloud servers (box.com, dropbox.com, onedrive from MicroSoft, etc.) that offer limited space.  I find these easy to use, and as long as I have a decent internet connection, quick!

 

WyreNut

-------------------------------------------------
Former Expert in the PalmOS, WebOS, and Android sections of this Community Forum.
I am a Volunteer here, not employed by HP.

View solution in original post

6 REPLIES 6
HP Recommended

@ClaireTheBear 

It would help if you would provide us accurate information -- as you say your PC is running Window 10 IOt -- which is an embedded version for specialized devices.  Please open the search area and type "winver" (without the quotes) so we can see the Actual windows version you are using.

 

We can proceed when you provide the information.
Thanks



I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor represent, HP
HP Recommended

Hi WAWood

Thank you for responding.

My PC is running on Window 10 Version 2004.

HP Recommended

@ClaireTheBear 

OK, thanks for the feedback ...

 

First some terms.  What Microsoft calls "drives" everyone else calls "partitions" -- which are formatted chunks of continuous space on physical "drives".


This is important because most laptops only have one physical drive -- and HDD or SDD -- but that drive is preformatted into several "volumes".  What you call "C" is a formatted set of space, known as a Volume, on your drive.

OEMs format their drives usually with four volumes: System Reserved (or Boot), OS (C), Recovery (D) and HP_TOOLS.  This is the most volumes a drive can have -- so there is no way to create anymore -- and the only volume you can use to store your files is "C".  So basically, you can not create any new "drives" to hold your files -- they are all stuck on "C".

 

Now, if you have a really new PC, it will be formatted using something called GPT -- and that can hold hundreds of Volumes.  To see if yours has that format, you have to open the Disk Management tool and look at the window it displays. If it has something known as the ESP (EUFI System Partition), then it is formatted GPT and that would allow you to shrink the "C" volume and create a new one to store your files.

 

So, you need to look to see what you have.  You open Disk Management by entering "create and format" (without the quotes) in the Search area and selecting the Create and Format disk partitions entry.



I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor represent, HP
HP Recommended

ClaireTheBear, the choice is yours!

 

There are many free cloud servers (box.com, dropbox.com, onedrive from MicroSoft, etc.) that offer limited space.  I find these easy to use, and as long as I have a decent internet connection, quick!

 

WyreNut

-------------------------------------------------
Former Expert in the PalmOS, WebOS, and Android sections of this Community Forum.
I am a Volunteer here, not employed by HP.
HP Recommended

Thank you for your information.

It looks like I'm only able to create new folders in (C). I'll create a better naming convention for my files so they're easier to access.

HP Recommended

Thank you for your suggestions.

I have Dropbox but it's close to capacity and I'm not keen on upgrading just yet.

I use OneDrive at work so will see if it's easy to set up for my home PC.

† The opinions expressed above are the personal opinions of the authors, not of HP. By using this site, you accept the <a href="https://www8.hp.com/us/en/terms-of-use.html" class="udrlinesmall">Terms of Use</a> and <a href="/t5/custom/page/page-id/hp.rulespage" class="udrlinesmall"> Rules of Participation</a>.