What is the System Reserved Partition, and how to delete it [Windows 11]

Updated by

Tracy King 

Written by

Linda 

Last updated on April 22, 2024

Please provide the English content you would like translated, and I will do my best to translate it into Chinese.

This page contains all the learning content about System Reserved Partition. On this page, we will show you:

1. What is a System Reserved Partition? 2. What is the purpose of a System Reserved Partition? 3. How can I check my System Reserved Partition? 4. What happens if I delete the System Reserved Partition? 5. How do I manage the System Reserved Partition? 6. How can I remove the System Reserved Partition?

Warning: What you are about to do is dangerous, and if done incorrectly, can render your system unbootable. Please make sure you have backed up your system before proceeding.

Overview of the System Reserved Partition

In this section, we will explain everything about the System Reserved Partition:

1. What is a System Reserved Partition?

The System Reserved Partition is a data storage partition found before the system C drive. It is created during a clean installation of the Windows operating system to allocate a portion of the disk space for future use. Typically, Windows does not assign a drive letter to the System Reserved Partition.

It started with Windows 7, which took up 100MB of space, and continued with Windows 8 and Windows 10, which take up even more – 350MB. Sometimes, the Windows operating system saves some of its boot components to the System Reserved Partition so that it can start up your PC.

2. What is the System Reserved partition for?

It can be used as a regular data storage partition. Sometimes, Windows uses it as a boot partition to load the information needed to start up your computer.

3. What happens if you delete the System Reserved Partition?

Essentially, if the system reserved partition contains OS information or boot files, deleting it directly will render the OS unbootable. In other words, if you delete the system reserved partition without checking if it's safe to do so, your computer won't start up.

In the next part, we'll show you how to deal with the System Reserved Partition. You can share this article by clicking on one of the buttons below.

How to Handle System Reserved Partition - Check If You Can Delete It

Most computer users, while using Windows 7, 8, 10, or 11, may not notice a partition without a drive letter assigned called "System Reserved" unless they open Disk Management.

In this article, we will show you how to check the System Reserved partition and help you determine if you can delete it. It is very important to examine the partition as shown in the tutorial before proceeding to delete it. Follow the instructions on how to proceed with the System Reserved partition here:

Step 1: Right-click on the "This PC" or "My Computer" icon on your desktop, and then select "Manage".

Step 2: Click "Disk Management" in the pop-up window.

Step 3. Check if the "System Reserved" partition has "System" listed next to its Status.

Step 4: Decide what to do with the highlighted region.

• If your System Reserved partition contains Boot files, we recommend that you do not delete it, as the system needs this partition to boot your computer.

• If the System Reserved partition does not contain boot information, you can safely delete it. • You might also choose to delete it if you want to remove both the System Reserved and OS partitions so that the operating system disk can be used as a normal data drive.

Now, how to delete the partition from your computer? In the next part, you will learn how to remove the System Reserved Partition on Windows 11/10/8/7.

How to Recover Deleted Files from Recycling Bin?

Looking for ways to recover files from recycle bin? Read on to learn how to instantly restore deleted files from recycle bin.

How to Free Up Space on the System Reserved Partition

While this system reserved partition is important for booting Windows, if it doesn't contain any boot components or information, and you don't want to see it on your drive, you can delete it.

However, you can't delete it from Disk Management, because Windows' protective mechanisms tell the tool not to remove this partition.

Then, you need the best Windows disk management alternative – tools Partition Master Free. It's a reliable and powerful free partition manager that helps you delete the system reserved partition easily and safely.

Note: If you prefer to use the OS drive as a data disk and tend to delete the system reserved partition and other existing drives, make sure that you have installed the OS to the new HDD/SSD or migrated the operating system to the new HDD/SSD. Besides, back up important data on this partition to another drive or location in case of any unexpected data loss.

"Guide to Remove Reserved System Partition in Windows 11/10/8/7"

Now let's go ahead and delete the System Reserved partition from your disk:

Step 1: Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant and click "Manage Partition". Right-click the recovered partition and choose "Delete".

Step 2: Click "OK" to confirm the removal of the selected disk.

Step 3: Click on Run Task, and then click Apply in the new window to completely remove the recovery partition.

The following video tutorial shows you how to delete, create, and resize partitions in Windows 11/10/8/7. You can learn how to delete the System Reserved Partition.

Aside from that, Partition Master Free can also help you with:

• Recover deleted System Reserved Partition
• Clone System Reserved Partition
• Fix insufficient space on System Reserved Partition error
• Solve Windows 10 could not update System Reserved Partition issue

Conclusions

In this article, we explained what a System Reserved Partition is and its main purpose. If you want to delete the System Reserved Partition, we advise you to first check whether it's safe to remove it.

If it contains system files, do not delete it, or you may render Windows or your computer inoperable. If it does not contain system files, you can delete it.

For the partition deletion tool, the first choice is the powerful partition management software – Partition Master. It always comes in handy.