Format the partition without re-installing Windows

[HKrish]

I own an aged HDD for laptop in which I have installed Windows XP but not on a C drive but on D: drive. I have used it for a month and now I require some more space on another drive. Is there a method to format the additional drive (C) and contain it added toward d: drive exclusive of re-installing Windows XP another time and without losing my information? I don’t have anything to back up the data lying on computer and does not even have Windows XP boot CD to re-install windows. Please help me.

[Galbraith]

What you want is impossible. If you format C then you have to reinstall XP. By the formatting all the data inside the partition will be gone including the operating system. Without an operating system can you run a computer? So from the XP CD to boot (i.e. create, delete the existing partitions, i.e. C and D and new), when the time the hard disk repartition, reformat and reinstall XP.

[MaggieK]

In certain situations we need to move or resize the Windows partition (or other OS) that we have on our hard drive. This may be because we need to make space to install a second operating system, or simply to create a second partition where, for a point of order and convenience, we will store our data only, leaving Windows containing exclusively for the use of the system or, as in the example of video that we have wasted space on the disk and instead of creating another partition enlarge existing desire to fill the entire disk. Windows 7 and Vista already include the functionality to grow or shrink partitions, but this is limited since we cannot move or copy.

[GracieSingh]

EASEUS Partition Manager Home version, for instance, takes in the advantages of the previous Partition Magic (currently recognized like Norton Partition Magic) and somewhat on the region. It is free software designed specifically to help with a dicing hard drive to your needs and taste. From the drop-down menu in the sidebar, users can choose to complete operations like creating a new partition, resize and move an existing one, or even eliminated entirely. If you think about how to move data in the units to be processed, you really do not have to worry because the application can perfectly finish the job without affecting stored files. But just to be on the safe side, it is best to back up all the information before participating in the reorganization, or move the partition.

[Sydney_7]

You will really need a Windows CD for this otherwise it cannot be possible to do so. If you can find one then put in disk drive, turn on the PC and when you the bottom of the screen at startup, it puts you "Boot from CD" and right after "Press any what button to boot from CD". It will initiate the Windows installation, but what you want is just format the C: Drive. So it's going to ask you what partition. Select the partition and select the option named as “format partition" and then it will start the formatting. After complete just skip the installation.

[Anirvinya]

Gparted is free software that provides all the tools for partitioning the hard drive and the management of units already divided into one or more partitions. The program bases its operation on the Linux kernel (issue, specifically Debian) and is capable of performing any type of operation on partitions formatted with the file system more diverse. It is immediate to check what the supported file systems are and what operations can be performed. Gparted, however, has no difficulty to detect, read, resize, move and copy Windows partitions (NTFS, FAT32) and Linux (ie ext2, ext3, ext4).