Windows 7 to 10 Partition Question


  1. Posts : 3
    Windows 7
       #1

    Windows 7 to 10 Partition Question


    So I have Windows 7 and have 2 partitions on my SSD/HD hybrid drive. I made C: and D: drives. The C: drive is for Windows and D: for everything else. My C: drive is 50 gb and says 10 gb left and D: is 881 gb with 849 gb left.

    My idea was to just let Windows have it's own space without the program files, downloads, etc, so I did some research and changed some registry settings to move the Program Files x86 and x64 folder to the D: drive.

    So basically will this upgrade be a bit complicated with my set up? Will I have enough space on C to upgrade and then have to manually move the Program Files folders back to D? If I don't have enough space on C, will I have to expand it another 50 gb or so? And if I do have to expand it will I have to back up my D drive and get rid of it to be able to expand C?

    Thank you in advance!
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 60
    WinXp; Win7 Pro; Win10 Pro
       #2

    I cannot speak to whether the upgrade process will work for a case of having moved the pgm folder to another drive. Frankly, I wouldn't risk it unless you have plenty of evidence that it has been thoroughly tested. I doubt there are even thousands of people that have that kind of setup.

    That being said, most of the apps that chew up our C drive space fast tend to be games. Regardless alot can be installed originally to any drive you want. So not sure why you actually hacked moved the pgm folders to another drive instead of just installing new programs to another partition in the first place.

    I am going to assume you didn't realize you'd have a problem until most of your programs were installed.

    What I would do in your case is uninstall just about everything that you can for sure reinstall. This is based upon you being within 10gbyte of have a full boot drive already. Windows 10 is about 20gbytes installed- larger than your existing OS. You will be pressing the boundary.

    If you uninstall your existing apps, backing up any data first, then move back your pgm folders by undoing your hack, reboot the computer and make sure it seems more or less ok, then perform the upgrade.

    It's messy, but having hacked the location of the pgm folder I think it will be wise to undo it all. Certainly afterwards you will be left with a cleaner install of Windows 10, and you can add back the programs you want and simply override the default install path to your other partitions. I do this especially for huge installs like games.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 14,046
    Windows 11 Pro X64 22H2 22621.1848
       #3

    Upgrade won't work with those folders moved. You need to put then back then resize the C: and D: drives to give more room to the C: drive. You may be able to do this with Disk Management.

    To open Disk Management, press Windows key+r, type diskmgmt.msc and press Enter or click GO. Make it full screen. Expand the fields as necessary so everything can be seen.

    Windows 10: How to Take a Screenshot in Windows 10
    If C: and D: are next to each other, reduce the size of D: on the side next to C: then expand C: to use the frees space.

    Need to see the Disk Management Window.

    I recommend using AOMEI Partitiion Assistant or EaseUS Partition Master.

    Then do the upgrade to Win 10.
      My Computers


  4. Posts : 60
    WinXp; Win7 Pro; Win10 Pro
       #4

    Since he said it was an SSD Hybrid, I suspect he can not do any partition shifting. The 50gbyte is a physical SSD and the 750 is a physically separate HDD.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 14,046
    Windows 11 Pro X64 22H2 22621.1848
       #5

    I don't think you can partition the SSD separate from the HDD. Need to see the Disk Management window to know for sure.
      My Computers


  6. Posts : 3
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #6

    Well the hybrid drive has its own SSD space that I can't even access or see that it uses for quick access files I believe. Everything else works like it should. I manually made the C and D drive what they are.

    I was just being a little too creative with the Program Files folders. I'll just have to undo that and move everything back or might just start from scratch. I also wasn't sure if I could move the partition space around like that but now that you mention it I will try it out.

    Thank you for all of the help. :)
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 14,046
    Windows 11 Pro X64 22H2 22621.1848
       #7

    Good luck. Also, you must upgrade to get the free Win 10. Once you activate you can then do a Clean Install if you want.
      My Computers


  8. Posts : 3
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #8

    Oh okay I see. I thought I could do a clean install from the start. I will do that then. Thank you again :)
      My Computer


 

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