Many users who have at their disposal a hard drive with only one system partition “C” often wonder how to make a drive “D”, which could act as a virtual partition or emulator drive optical media. Here it is necessary to take into account some nuances without which these procedures may end unsuccessfully.
How to create a disk "D": basic directions and techniques
First you need to decide what exactly the user wants to create. Depending on this, the proposed solutions will be applied. For example, there is an option to create a virtual drive, but you can use the technique of creating a virtual partition, with a stationary or disconnectable one.
And if earlier special programs were required to carry out all these operations, then with the advent of Windows 7 and the modifications above, the problem disappeared, since you can also use the built-in tools.
Mount a virtual drive
To begin with, a few words about how to create a “D” drive on Windows 7, 8, and 10, which would act as an optical drive. Naturally, the easiest way to install programs like Nero Burning ROM, UltraISO or Daemon Tools.
In any such application, there is a special section for creating an emulator. In UltraISO, the virtual drive mount command is responsible for this; in Daemon Tools, this is the Virtual CD / DVD-ROM section. But in all cases, you will need a previously created (recorded) disk image.
In Windows 10, this procedure is simplified to the limit. When the user double-clicks on the image file, the virtual drive is created immediately, and completely automatically, after which the system reports that a new device has been found. It works without preinstalling drivers in the same way as if an appropriate disk had been inserted into the "iron" drive.
Creating a “D” (new) disk using Windows: where to start?
The previous procedure is quite simple, so there’s no point in dwelling on its technology. In this case, we are more interested in the question of how to create hard disk partitions.
The most primitive solution is to partition the hard drive into several partitions at the stage of system installation. But there are situations when you need to split a disk with the information already available on it and installed programs, and even so that after that everything works, and the data is not lost. The advantages of the virtual partition are obvious, because even when reinstalling Windows or formatting the system partition, the data on it is not affected. But first things first.
So, how to create a “D” drive on Windows 7 and above? For this, computer control is used, where a similar partition for disks is selected. The corresponding menu can be called up by right-clicking on the computer icon or from the “Control Panel”.
Here on the main panel you need to use the action menu, where the command to create a virtual disk is selected. In the settings window that appears, specify the hard disk partition on which the image of the future virtual partition will be stored. In this case, there is no choice, because there is only one disk. Point it out.
Then enter the desired size and preferred format (dynamically expandable or fixed). It is better to use a fixed type, because due to exceeding the amount of disk space used, its shortage will be compensated for by the system partition, which can sometimes lead to problems in the performance of the entire system (it is believed that at least 10 must remain on the “C” disk for the Windows to function properly % free space compared to the full volume of the partition). After entering all the necessary parameters, confirm them by pressing the "OK" button, after which the creation of a new section will begin automatically.
Initializing a New Section
But this was only the first step. In solving the problem of how to create an additional local disk, it should be borne in mind that even upon completion of the "Wizard" creating a virtual partition, it just won’t work like that. It is necessary to initialize. This is done so that the so-called "Local Disk Manager" can access the control and management of the new partition.
To do this, use the right click on the newly created section and select the appropriate line with the command in the menu. In the parameters window, only the disk number will be visible, not the letter, as many users assume. This is normal. We leave the values unchanged and activate the start of the process.
Volume creation
Now in solving the problem of how to create a disk "D", a crucial moment comes. The virtual disk seems to have been created, but in reality it is not yet ready for work.
Again, use the right-click menu on the partition and select the command to create a simple volume, after applying which the "Wizards" window will appear. Basically, you can simply follow the directions by clicking on the continue buttons. In the size indication window, you can also leave everything unchanged (you can reduce the volume of the created volume if the partition is still planned to be divided into subsections in the future).
Next, you will be prompted to enter a section letter. As already clear, select "D". But here it is important to remember that if the optical drive is initialized under the same letter, you will either have to change the letter of the virtual partition or change the drive letter (the command is available from the right-click menu on the disk).
Formatting
Finally, it remains only to choose the type of file system. As a rule, NTFS is proposed, which can also be left unchanged. After that, the formatting process will start, after which the new section will become fully functional. If you want to make the partition bootable, in the action menu you need to select the command to attach the virtual disk and specify the path to the saved image, which was defined in the steps described above.
Specialized Programs
Of course, not all users will want to decide how to create a “D” drive, exclusively using the built-in tools of Windows operating systems. Most prefer to use special utilities that allow partitioning the hard drive into partitions by a simpler method.
Among all software packages of this type, the most common and popular are Acronis Disk Director, Partition Magic, Paragon Partition Manager and the like. Sometimes applications that are virtual machines (VirtualBox, WMWare, Microsoft Virtual PC, etc.) can come in handy. But it will be much more difficult for an unprepared user to work with them, because such packages are not limited to creating a virtual hard disk, but recreate a full-fledged computer configuration.
Preference Issues
But, as you can already understand, the problem of how to create a “D” drive in a system with only a system partition is resolved quite simply. By and large, it is possible to give preference to narrowly targeted software products, since in them the implementation of all processes is facilitated by full or partial automation, and the proposed settings in most cases can be left unchanged. As for the tools of Windows-systems, although they look somewhat cumbersome, nevertheless, in the absence of special software, they can also be used. Here they are only available in the seventh version and above. For other modifications, you will have to install applications to partition the hard disk additionally.