In the event you have to install a new operating system, you can separate data through a great way like hard drive partitioning. While on a certain part of your hard disk you may choose to load the operating system, the other important data can be stored at another part. Prior to this task back up of all important data have to be taken incase the disk partitioning has not be done. Your operating system can be installed and files copied to a desire partition once your disk gets partitioned. Keeping the chances of certain risks in mind you will need to do this for maintaining a smooth data recovery process.
How to select the file system
Your back up file partition depends on your file system. Choosing the file system is your first step towards partitioning. This has to do a lot with the kind of operating system you have chosen.
Microsoft Windows
A variant of NTFS may be used incase you have chosen Microsoft Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2k or NT4. FAT has to be used under circumstances when Microsoft Windows ME, 98, 95 or any other older version is being used. Certain security features which are missing with FAT are present with NTFS.
Mac OS X
The logical options that you may use are only a handful and this makes it quite simple to choose your file system when you are using Mac OS X. Mac OS X also supports the HFS (Hierarchical File System), and so you may use it. You may also choose to use a freshly improved HFS version, which is known as Mac OS Extended. This version is popularly known as HFS Plus. Choosing FAT would ensure a quality experience if you require your partition to have access to both reading and writing and when you are using Microsoft Windows for dual booting. HFS support is not there in Windows, and there are certain restrictions for NTFS support in Mac OS X.
Choosing your Partitioning Application
There are two option for you when you want your drive to be partitioned in Mac OS X. You can do this with help of a partitioning application belonging to a third party and more advanced in nature, or may take the help of built-in software. Your package will decide the cost of the built-in software, which usually ranges between $90 and $50. It is in your own interest that you should use this software.
Using a Built-in Software
Commercial packages usually come with file system types of various kinds. For such a huge number of file systems, there is much lesser support for the built-in software. For partitioning, the built-in software seems quite friendly. Your “Utilities” folder has an option called “Disk Utilities”. This option has to be selected once you visit the application folder for using the built-in software. The disk that is to be partitioned has to be selected once the application loads. The radio button called “Partition” has to be clicked once you select the disk. Resizing partitions in a desired size can be done once you decide upon how many partitions need to be created. If your selections are correct, click on the apply button.
Third-Party Partitioning Software
The third party partitioning tools offered by Mac OS X are quite limited in comparison with numerous operating systems like Linux, Microsoft Windows etc. It is natural for you to pick a partitioning application which is not dependent on any platform, if you have more than one computer using multiple operating systems. Thank you for reading our article about disk partitioning your hard drive.
