to partition or not?

[martyn_wheeler]

Just about to put together my new pc. Before i install everything I would like opinions on whether it is a good idea to partition a drive or not.

In the past I have created a windows partition for OS/Programs/etc and a second partition for data.

Just wondering if this still has any merits and whether people think it is a good idea?

Martyn

PS it will be a 1TB drive on Win 7

 

[EndlessWaves]

Vista and Seven seem to have massively improved stability so they're no longer guaranteed to crash and burn after a few years like 2000/XP did but as long as you don't mind having to point things to the other partition rather than accept the default for everything then there's no reason not to do it.

 

[Ryles]

I'm not sure it's really worth it anymore, one of the best things to come out of Windows 7 is scheduled drive defrags, and unlike XP they don't bring your whole system to a crawl when running, I hardly notice mine. anyway can't you partition it later now with dynamic disks should the need arise? or go all high tech and use virtual drives!

 

[abraxus]

I tend to prefer partitioning a drive to have the operating system and programmes on one partition and all my data on the other.

This is not so much for performance issues but more for backup. Done this way I can image my C drive when it's set up and whenever I add new programmes and so if I ever do get any problems I can easily restore in a few minutes without having to mess with my data, which I back up seperately.

 

[Berties]

Can't see the point of putting applications on another partition, it's not like the DOS days the game was seperate to Windows. When you install progs it usually puts things in registry so you need to reinstall it. Also on seperate partition it'll be slower. Keep Windows & Applications on the same partition. But save My Documents on the other partition. Swap file on same drive as Windows/Applications partition.

If you really need to restore data, can use a Ubuntu Live CD. Then format the primary partition prior to Windows install.

I'd install games on another physical HD though, as that gives a performance increase.