I'm trying to dual boot my system with Windows and Linux Mint, but I'm running into trouble while attempting to allocate disk space for Linux. Windows is only allowing me to shrink the Windows partition down to 42GB, even though I actually have 220GB of free space available. I've already tried disabling Fast Startup and Hibernation, as well as defragmenting the drive, but the limit remains. Are there any reliable third-party tools or other methods that I can use to shrink the partition beyond what Windows allows?
2 Answers
A good option is to try using the built-in disk management tool in Windows to shrink the partition. But be cautious—it's better to have backups before doing this, as altering partitions can be risky. GParted is also an excellent third-party tool, but it might not be as precise for specific types of partitions. Once you shrink it in Windows, the Linux installer should see the extra space. Just remember that Windows can be a bit unpredictable during this process!
You might want to try temporarily disabling the pagefile and system restore options. After that, run the command `defrag C: /x` (just remember to check your actual disk letter). Once you've done that, try resizing the partition again. If it still doesn't work, you could create a bootable USB stick with GParted, which is pretty handy for this kind of situation! If you have any questions about Linux or need further help, feel free to ask!
I did shrink the partition through Windows Disk Management, but it still only allowed about 42GB max. I'm consider GParted or some software recommended by ChatGPT.