Partitioning Your Hard Drive
Low End Mac Reader Specials
Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core 8GB kit $232 / 4GB kit $116 / 2GB kit $72. New Macbook 2GB DDR3-$65. HARD DRIVES available -- Free shipping / LIfetime warranty.
Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com
LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.
Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.
Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.
Evan Kleiman - 2002.01.21
Q. What's the deal with partitioning? What does it do?
A. Every computer has a hard drive these days; some have more than one. Those who own iMacs, PowerBooks, and iBooks, as well as many with Power Macs, will only have one internal hard drive.
But what if you want to have your single drive function as many separate hard drives?
There are many reasons partitioning your hard drive. Most people do it because they want to install a different OS on their system, such as Unix, Linux, or even OS X, while still have the convenience of OS 8 or 9 (or even lower) at their disposal.
Another good reason to partition is the ability to keep a live backup of your current operating system on another drive, just in case you're customizing your main OS and mess up (sort of like me) - then all you need to do is copy the clean System Folder from your back-up drive onto your main drive. Time saved: About 30-40 minutes, that is if you even know where your backup disks are.
People also do this because they want to get into video editing, don't need for a new hard drive, but want some separate space to store unfinished movies.
Now that you have some of the reasons for partitioning, how do you do it?
You should know that partitioning your drive reformats it, so you need to back-up all vital data before starting, since you will not be able to get it back once your drive has been partitioned and reformatted.
Okay, and now that we're done with the hard drive safety speech, we can begin the process.
First, you need to boot your computer off of something other than the hard drive you wish to partition - usually your bootup or restore CD, a floppy disk, a anything else that can boot the system. iMac, G3, and G4 users should make sure that they are using the "Software Restore" CDs instead of the "Software Install" disks, as only they will have the applications you will be needing. Otherwise you can use the "disk tools" floppy from System 7.5 for older Macs or the "OS 9.0 Installation" CD from newer Macs.
To boot from a CD, be sure it's in the drive and hold the "C" key on your keyboard during startup. Now you can either launch the Apple HD SC (used on older Macs) application or the Drive Setup application.
Now select your hard drive and click the initialize button. Some users will then see a "formatting options" button - click this and you should see a window with a large rectangle in it. This rectangle represents your hard drive. You can now divide your hard drive into as many partitions as you see fit (up to 8).
In the end, partitioning is a great way to distribute your free disk space to better organize your world or backup your life.
Next time we'll look at making one hard drive from many: the RAID array.
Further Reading
- Hard Drive Partitioning, Scott L. Barber, Online Tech Journal, August 1998
Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.
Recent Mac Daniel columns
- Bringing G3 iMacs and other G3 Macs into the Tiger Age, Dan Knight, 12.07. Tips on hard drives, memory, WiFi, and getting Mac OS X 10.4 installed on G3 iMacs and other older G3 Macs.
- Multiple users on the same Mac at work, Dan Knight, 11.15. How to set up a Mac so multiple users can log in and use it - and use the same pool of work files.
- 1 working eMac from 2 broken ones, Dan Knight, 11.14. A pair of matching eMacs, each with a different failure, results in one working eMac and lots of leftovers.
- Problems running Classic mode in Tiger, Dan Knight, 11.08. After upgrading to Tiger, the old Classic installation stopped working. Where to find the pieces to get everything up to date.
- More in the Mac Daniel index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: 15" iMac G4/800 MHz, Jan. 2002 - The iMac is redesigned with a flat panel display and G4 CPU.
- Group of the Day: G4 List is for those using Power Mac G4s or G4 upgrades.
- January 7 in LEM history: 97: Mac OS 7.6 - 99: What color iMac do you want? - 00: S900 chronicles - 02: Who let the iMac out? - Expo keynote - iMac G4 - 14" iBook 600 - iCab fastest low-end browser - Addressing battery problems - 03: 12" PowerBook G4 - 17" PowerBook G4 - Changes in Jaguar - 04: Waiting for the tipping point - 05: Headless Mac an upgrade path for low end users - 08: Could OS X DRM drive users to Linux? - Netscape dead, but its children live on
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- The 17" Unibody MacBook Pro Value Equation, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.07. The new model is a bit faster, a bit smaller, a bit lighter, and has an incredible 8-hour battery life.
- Blackouts and Web Access, Death of a Kanga, the Future of PowerPC Macs, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 01.07. Also another email client suggestion and whether a G3 iMac can handle a 7200 rpm hard drive without overheating.
- How Netbooks Impact Microsoft and Apple, Tim Nash, Taking Back the Market, 01.07. Netbooks are keeping Windows XP alive, which may slow adoption of Windows 7, and perceived value keeps the Mac market share growing at the expense of Windows.
- The Ill-Fated Apple III, Jason Walsh, Apple Before the Mac, 01.07. "...not only was the Apple III mind crunchingly expensive, it was made with none of the passion of the Apple II or Macintosh."
- Apple III Chaos: Apple's First Failure, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.07. Apple had known nothing but success with its Apple II product line, but when it tried to enter the business world with the Apple III, the learned the cost of failure.
- Apple's Worst Business Decisions: Another Perspective, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.07. Apple's poor business decisions predate the Macintosh. Let's hope they learn from their mistakes.
- 2 Apple Failures: Apple III and Lisa, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.07. Apple's two not-so-great product lines between the Apple II line and the Macintosh.
- 17" Unibody MacBook Pro, 01.06. Thinner and lighter than ever, the unibody model tops out with 8 GB of RAM and a 2.93 GHz clock speed.
- Apple's Half-Baked Support for DisplayPort, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 01.06. The DisplayPort specification supports audio, so why does Apple use USB to route sound to the LED Cinema Display?
- Adventures with an Overheating PowerBook, the 10.5.6 Update, and Other Things, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 01.06. After three years of reliable service, the PowerBook began to run so hot that the fan was almost always on. What was causing the problem, and what would fix it?
- No, an Overgrown iPod touch Is Not a Netbook, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.06. BlackBerry pretends its Storm is a netbook, but a netbook needs to be big enough for a typable keyboard.
- Apple IIe Nostalgia: A Reunion 15 Years in the Making, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 01.06. Sometimes nostalgia is all you remembered, like when you get to recreate your first computing experience from the Apple II era.
- VisiCalc and the Rise of the Apple II, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.06. "VisiCalc was first released for the Apple II, which quickly became an invaluable tool for businesspeople - at least until IBM moved into the 'personal computing' market in 1981."
- Apples from Other Orchards: Apple II Clones, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.06. Before the IBM PC spawned compatibles, companies around the world cloned the Apple II - some with more success than others.
- Interview with Dan Bricklin, Inventor of the Electronic Spreadsheet, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.06. Until 1979, a spreadsheet was something you did by hand. VisiCalc changed all that and gave personal computers the first 'killer app'.
- 9.6% Mac Market Share, Quanta to Supply New iMac, New Mac mini a Go, Macintosh at 25, and More, Mac News Review, 01.05. Also what's missing from Apple's product line?, unattended online backup with MyOtherDrive, first USB 3.0 storage solutions, Find Any File, and more.
- Large Form iPod Coming?, Touch Screens a 'Huge Mistake', EarBud Yo-Yo, and More, iNews Review, 01.05. Also iPhone now at Walmart, iPhone trounces BlackBerry Storm for satisfaction, iPod video conversion software for Mac, and more.
- Intel's Quad-core Mobile CPU, Prevent OS X 10.5.6 Crashes, 'Netbook' Name Under Fire, and More, The 'Book Review, 01.05. Also the Age of the Notebook, build a cardboard laptop stand, MacBook reviews, bargain 'Books from $170 to $2,299, and more.
- Origin of the Apple I and Apple II Computers, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.05. From the first behemoth computers to the Apple II+, the computer that drove the personal computer revolution.
- Personal Computer History: The First 25 Years, Dan Knight, 01.05. A brief history of the first quarter-century of personal computing.
- Apple Has Always Been a Niche Player, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.05. "Despite the myths, Apple has never been a dominant player in the personal computer industry."
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best 17" MacBook Pro Deals, 01.07. Used 2.16 GHz Core Duo, $1,190; 2.33 Core 2, $1,400; 2.4, $1,799; refurb 2.33, $1,799; 2.5, $1,899; new, $1,900; refurb 2.6, $2,299.
- Best Power Mac G5 Deals, 01.07. Used 1.8 GHz single, $500; dual, $629, 2.0, $700; dual-core, $929; 2.3, $999; 2.5 dual, $900; 2.7, $1,089; 2.5 Quad, $1,399.
- Best iPod shuffle Deals, 01.07. Refurb 1 GB '07, $39 shipped; new, $43; '08, $45; refurb 2 GB '07, $59 shipped; new, $58; '08, $63.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 01.06. Used 1.83 GHz, $900; 2.16, $1,090; 2.33, $1,295; new 2.4 Penryn, $1,350 after rebate; 2.5, $1,485 a/r; 2.6, $1,649; new 2.4 Unibody, $1,824 a/r.
- Best G3 iMac Deals, 01.06. Used 350 MHz CD, $42; 500 MHz, $59; 450 MHz DVD, $60; 600 MHz CD-RW, $200 shipped; 700 MHz Combo, $379 shipped.
- Best Mac OS X 10.5 'Leopard' Deals, 01.06. Mac OS X 10.5, single user, $104 shipped; 5 users, $148 shipped; 10.5 Server, 10 users, $363 shipped; unlimited users, $752 shipped.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 01.05. Used 400 MHz, $50; 733, $166; 800, $199; 1 GHz, $290; 867 MHz dual, $200, 1 GHz, $300; 1.25, $450; 1.42, $599.
- Best classic iPod Deals, 01.05. Used 40 GB 4G, $135 shipped; new 80 GB iPod classic, $160 shipped; 120 GB, $225 shipped; refurb 160 GB, $249 shipped; new, $280 shipped.
- Best titanium PowerBook G4 Deals, 01.05. Used 400 MHz DVD, $320; 550 MHz, $480; 867 MHz Combo, $500; 1 GHz Combo, $590; SuperDrive, $900.
- More deals in our archive.
About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts
Have a question?
Ask an expert!
Navigation
Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum
Favorite Sites
MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System
6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Affiliates
The Apple
Store
Mac
Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial
Memory
batteries.com
Advertise
