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Most ideal partitioning strategy?

M

MoreDents

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 9, 2008
Messages
294
I'm building a new system and would like my hard drive (I only have one) to be partitioned as best as it can be. I have a 320GB HDD and plan on Vista 64 bit

This was what my friend has:

10 GB = OS
100 GB = PROGRAMS
200 GB (the rest) = FILES


Any thoughts?
 
What's the benefit of having it partitioned?
I seriously think 100gb for the programs is overkill though.
 
normally, i wouldn't make any partition, but i suppose if i had to, and it was 320g drive, i'd do it like this

80g = OS + Programs
240 = Files

seriously though, having OS and programs on different partitions gets to be a pain in the ass to either A) change settings of installations everytime you install something to go to the right drive B) find the setting to change where programs are installed (something like HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ProgramsDir <-- or something like this)

anyways, having the OS partition towards the outside of the disk platter can increase you read/write performance as it is "better" towards the outside of the platter than towards the inside, but this should automatically happen when you partittion/format.

just FYI, i have no drives partitioned at all, and i have 11 drives of varying size, but that's what i WOULD do if i had to.
 
There is merit to installing a dedicated OS partition if you have to re-install your OS. You format the partition instead of the whole drive - data remains undisturbed.

There is merit to installing a dedicated OS partition for backup/restore security.

You can quickly archive your stable OS partition to HD archive in about 3 minutes, 15 minutes to archive on DVD media. In the event of OS corruption or infestation, restoration take 5 minutes from HD archive, 20 minutes from DVD.

Without an OS partition, the only backup/restore option is whole-disk backup/restore - which is preferable, but requires a second HD.

Just decide on your own partitioning setup for your own tasks and preferences. If you wish to change partitions scheme later, there are partition-managing apps from Paragon, Terabyte, Acronis and others that allow partition creation, sizing, merging, splitting, etc.

Hope this helps!
 
Yeah I agree with gud4u. Those are the exact reasons why I would partition a hard drive. In case of failure...I can just reinstall the OS and all my data will be intact :)

And I agree with bigted that 100GB for programs is a bit too much. 60GB sounds better
 
JamesL said:
What's the benefit of having it partitioned?
I seriously think 100gb for the programs is overkill though.
Click to expand...

As you add more files to your hard drive. File fragmention occurs which slows down performance. If you partition, you get better performance. For example, if you install a couple programs on to a partition that was meant to have programs on it while the OS was on a totally separate parition. There would only be a performance decrease for whatever would be on the program partition.
 
I disagree with the idea of a separate partition for OS and programs. Maybe a separate one for data. If you have a separate partition for the OS, and programs, and you format reinstall your OS partition, you lose all of the system files that went with those programs. Any .dll or .ocx files are gone. Along with any registry settings that those programs may or may not recreate when you attempt to run them. It may not be an option here, but I put the OS and programs on 1 drive with a single partition, and all data on a separate drive. If you are stuck with one drive, I would go about half and half, 1 for OS and programs, the other for data.
 
If you do a system backup on the OS partition you don't have the problem of having to reinstall the programs. Just reinstall the OS then go and restore from your backup. Just make sure you create a new OS backup everytime you install a new program.
 
Consider using an OS partition and installing a backup/restore app (Acronis, Terabyte, Paragon, etc.).

Consider this with the intent of always having a reliable OS installation backup archive. This means that the backup/restore app is a security app, just as important as your Firewall, AV and AS apps for maintenance of a stable system.

The idea is avoid re-installing the OS. You should only have to install an OS when you change your OS or when a situation such a new motherboard forces re-install.

I recommend a lean OS partition consisting of the installed OS and most-critical apps (Firewall, AV, AS, drivers). Backup takes only 3 minutes - and you're more likely to backup regularly if it only takes a few minutes. My OS partition uses only about 7.5GB, so 10GB would be adequate.

You needn't worry about programs and data on other partitions, since the registry and drivers are restored whenever the partition is restored.

Consider what items are important to backup. For example, how important is it to backup games and apps if you have the installation CDs.

Some argue that a dedicated DATA partition defeats the intent of simple file/folder organization. I do have a dedicated DATA partition, and all apps (Word, Excel, etc.) are configured to store files in folders in this dedicated partition. It makes backup easy and fast - everything's in one partition, so highlight all and burn to DVD for safe offline storage.

No one knows your preferences and requirements better than you, so just think it through.

Hope this helps!
 
dcds1 said:
If you do a system backup on the OS partition you don't have the problem of having to reinstall the programs. Just reinstall the OS then go and restore from your backup. Just make sure you create a new OS backup everytime you install a new program.
Click to expand...

Or even better, just backup the whole system with Acronis or something similar. You could then restore any partition as needed.
 
I use a 150GB Raptor for OS and applications/games. I don't generate headaches of changing the default installation directories either, everything into Program Files as they naturally want. And then I have storage drives. Though 150GB is a bit limiting. With games taking 6-8 gig these days, this drive fills up fast on me =(

I even redirect all profile type directories to my storage drive. Right click on My Documents, location tab, move to D drive on fresh install. I dod that with the OS music and video folders as well. As well as my Thunderbird email profile. If I have to reformat due to unexpected OS crash. The most I lose currently are my Firefox bookmarks, not a big deal, and my gaim settings and logs stored in it's profile. Again not a big deal.

Of course all applications have to be reinstalled... but that's not so bad, I don't use that much and it's not that hard to plop in a few cds and run a few .exe files from my storage drives.

If I only had one drive, I'd easily make a 100-150GB partition just for OS and applications, and the rest for storage. But Any more partitioning than that is a waste IMO.

I keep a leaned down vlite dvd that I keep fairly current, just created a new one this past weekend from a MSDN x64 with SP1 disc, has everything but sound blaster and nvidia drivers slip streamed. Once the partition is selected all the rest is automated with no input needed from me. Then I have a fresh OS and a fresh set of graphics/audio drivers.
 
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