Can't Extend C Drive in Windows 11? Here Is Why and How-to Fix
| Workable Solutions | Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
|---|---|
| #1. Shrink or Delete a Neighbor Volume to Extend C Drive | Since we don't have anyone on our hard drive, we'll be taking some from the Neighbor partition. We can delete or shrink...Full steps |
| #2. Extend C Drive with Non-adjacent Unallocated Space | Step 1: Free up unallocated space for C drive; Step 2: Increase C drive space; Step 3: Keep all changes to extend...Full steps |
| #3. Allocate Space from Other Drive to C Drive | Step 1. Right-click on the D: partition with enough free space and select "Allocate Space"; Step 2. Select the target...Full steps |
| #4. Extend C with Space in a Second Disk | Step 1. Right-click partition C, select Advanced and click Extend with 2nd Disk…; Step 2. After the software analyzes...Full steps |
Looking to extend your C Drive storage? Follow along and find out how.
Finding yourself low on C Drive space is nothing uncommon. After an extended period of the same Windows installation, you might find your main partition bloated with many things. This could mean programs, games, hidden files, etc.
That's when many people start facing problems, such as slowed down performance, constant low-storage errors, etc. So, they turn to extend their main partition but can't extend c drive Windows 11. So, are you someone who's facing the same issue?
Then let's find out how you can extend your C partition without losing any data, time, or the performance of your computer.
Why Can't I Extend C Drive in Windows 11?
If you're facing problems extending your C drive in disk management, then there could be a few reasons behind that. The most common reason behind this could be having no additional or unallocated space left in your physical drive. So, how do you go about checking that? Here's how:
Step 1. Click on Start Menu.
Step 2. Type Disk Management and press Enter.
Step 3. Find the physical drive with your primary partition; in this case, it's Disk 0.
Step 4. Navigate and find the disk type, state, and storage. There's no unallocated space left in this OS drive.
We have no space to work within this case, as we can see here. Therefore, we cannot extend this C partition using the normal methods. If we tried, we'd get the error of having no storage left to extend the partition. So, let's keep digging to find the solution.
You can learn how to check total hard disk space in windows 10 in this article.
Can't Extend C Drive Windows 11 - Is There a Workaround? Yes
Now that we've found out a few causes behind the inability to extend C Drive, try to find a workaround. But is there even a way to work around it? Yes, there is. We can head back to disk management using the same method.
Once we do, we can do a few things such as:
- 1. Using disk management to delete or shrink the volume. This is a common way requiring you to use the Disk Management program to execute.
- 2. Extend C Drive with non-adjacent unallocated space.
- 3. Allocate space from another partition to our C Drive.
- 4. Extend C drive with space from another physical drive.
The only problem with method 2, method 3, and method 4 is that you'll need a third-party tool. This isn't exactly a problem since you can easily do it with the help of Qiling Partition Master.
Why is that? Because the first step is the only one you can execute with the help of Disk Management, as mentioned before. For all the other steps, you're going to need Qiling Partition Master. So, let's see how you can do that.
#1. Shrink or Delete a Neighbor Volume to Extend C Drive
To make space on a physical drive, it must feature unallocated space. Since we don't have anyone on our hard drive, we'll be taking some from the Neighbor partition.
We can delete or shrink or delete this Neighbor partition to extend our C Drive.
Once the space is unallocated, we'll use that to add to our C Drive.
#2. Extend C Drive with Non-adjacent Unallocated Space
The first step required here is downloading Qiling Partition Master. Remember, there's no way to add non-adjacent unallocated space to your system partition without the help of a third-party tool. So, once you download & install the tool, you will have to use it.
Step 1: Free up unallocated space for C drive.
If there is no unallocated space on the system disk, click on a partition next to the C: drive and select "Resize/Move".
Drag left panel of the partition to shrink and leave unallocated space behind the system C: drive and click "Proceed".
Step 2: Increase C drive space.
1. Click on C: drive and select "Resize/Move".
2. Drag the system partition end into unallocated space so to add space to C: drive.
Step 3: Keep all changes to extend C: drive.
Click the "Proceed" to keep all changes so to extend the system C: drive.
As seen here, the tool puts all of our physical drives at our disposal, and from them, we can pick the ones we wish to use as our non-adjacent unallocated space to extend the C Drive.
#3. Allocate Space from Other Drive to C Drive
One of the common problems behind not extending a C drive partition is the lack of available space. If all of the space is taken on your primary drive, then you can take storage from another physical drive. However, you'll need Qiling Partition master for its Allocate Space feature for this step.
Step 1. Click on the D: partition with enough free space and select "Resize/Move".
Step 2. Drag the partition panel rightward to shrink D: drive for the free space. Then click "Proceed" to confirm.
Step 3. Select the target partition - C: drive and drag the partition panel rightward to add the free space from D: drive to C: drive. Then click "Proceed" to confirm.
You can allocate however many gigabytes that you wish to from one partition to another—in this case, from G to C. Therefore. You will need Qiling Partition Master for this convenient extension of your C Drive.
#4. Extend C with Space in a Second Disk
Extending it could be impossible if your computer only has one physical drive/partition unless you have another physical drive that you could use. You might be wondering, is it even possible to extend a primary partition on one Disk from a second disk?
Yes, it is. You'll need Qiling Partition Master with its option to extend C with the 2nd Disk.
Step 1. Click partition C, select Resize/Move.
Step 2. Drag the partition panel rightward to shrink C: drive for the free space. Then click "Proceed" to confirm.
This feature is only available in Qiling Partition Master. So, once again, you'll need to download and install it.
Conclusion: You Need The Right Tool & Methods
The "Can't Extend C Drive In Windows 11" error is fixable; ensure you have the correct methods. That's why you can either use the Disk Management tool within the windows. Or, you can install Qiling Partition Master. It is also the best data wipe software.
We'll recommend the latter because it covers up all the ends and ensures a smooth partition extension for a beginner.
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