When the system C drive runs out of space, most users come up with the idea to extend C drive with Disk Management in Windows 8/8.1. If you prefer an easier free tool, EaseUS partition manager software - Partition Master Free will make it easy for you to extend C drive in Windows/8/8.1.
Are you having a low space issue in your system C drive on Windows 8/8.1, Windows 7, and even Windows 10 PC? On this page, we'll take Windows 8 as an example to show you how to increase C drive space in Windows 8 without formatting or losing any data.
"Does anyone know how do I extend my C drive without formatting a partition? I'm using Windows 8 but I don't have unallocated space on my disk. What can I do?"
Some Windows beginners may have the same doubt. There are many ways that can help you extend C drive. But all these methods all require to add unallocated space to your target partition.
Pick up one of the following Windows 8 disk managers and navigate to the tutorial guidelines to enlarge your C drive for free now:
Applies to: All levels of Windows 8/8.1, Windows 7 and Windows 10 users, beginners' best choice.
As a magic Windows 8 disk manager, EaseUS Partition Master Free Edition can extend Windows 8 32-bit and 64-bit system partition safely with simple operations by its "Resize/Move partition" feature.
With this free partition software, you can also execute some advanced operations (that Disk Management and DiskPart don't support) on your disk, such as:
Tutorial: Extend C Drive in Windows 8 With/Without Unallocated Space
Video Guide: Increase C Drive in Windows 8
After EaseUS Partition Master executes these operations, you will see the Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 system partition has been extended successfully in Disk Management and File Explorer.
Applies to: Experienced Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 7/10 users.
As a free Windows built-in disk manager, Disk Management is indeed powerful in basic disk managing. Check the list and see what else can Disk Management do for you besides extending volume size:
You can do the following operations on Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 32 bit or 64 bit with Disk Management to extend the C drive now. Be careful while you are executing the following steps.
Step-by-Step Guide: Increase C Drive Using Disk Management
Step 1. Right-click My Computer, select Manage -> Storage -> Disk Management, open Windows built-in Disk Management.
Step 2. Check if there is an unallocated space next to your C drive.
If yes, jump to Step 6. If not, follow Step 3 to continue.
Step 3. Right-click on the partition next to your system C drive and select "Shrink Volume".
Step 4. Input the volume size that you want to shrink and add to C drive, click "OK" to confirm.
There, the unallocated space is now next to your C drive:
Step 5. Right-click on C drive and select "Extend Volume".
Step 6. Set and add the unallocated space to the C drive, and click "OK" to confirm.
After this, you will see that the C drive is now extended without any issues.
Although there are some improvements in Disk Management in Windows 8, it still has many limitations in partition management.
If you need to execute some advanced partition management tasks in Windows 8, such as to merge two partitions, migrate OS to SSD, turn to EaseUS Partition Master are recommended in Part 1 for help.
Applies to: Advanced users like administrators in Windows 8/8.1, Windows 10/7, etc.
Another workaround is using DiskPart to extend system C drive space using Windows DiskPart. It's free yet tricky for beginners.
Therefore, if you prefer to try, make sure you will follow the steps below very carefully:
Step 1. Type cmd in Search and right-click Command Prompt, select "Run as Administrator".
Step 2. Type diskpart and hit Enter to bring up the DiskPart command window.
Step 3. Type the following command lines and hit Enter each time:
Step 4. Type the following command lines and hit Enter each time to extend C drive:
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