How to Partition an SSD on Windows 11? 5 Things You Need to Know

Updated by

Tracy King 

Last updated on April 22, 2024

Do you know how to partition an SSD on a new Windows 11 computer? If the SSD came with Windows 11 and you currently have only one drive – the system drive – how would you separate the operating system from your documents and personal files? What if you added a new SSD to a Windows 11 computer? How would you partition that?

5 Things You Should Know About Partitioning an SSD

When you buy a new computer with Windows 11, it typically comes with an SSD, and the manufacturer will have set up just one drive on the disk. Several people replied that they had accidentally muddled the operating-system files with their documents.

As such, the need to partition an SSD to separately store the operating system and personal data is on the rise. So, how much do you know about SSDs? Here, we have listed 5 key points about partitioning an SSD in Windows 11. Read on for more details:

#1. Can an SSD be partitioned?
#2. Does partitioning slow down an SSD?
#3. Is partitioning harmful to an SSD?
#4. Should I partition my SSD for Windows 11?
#5. How to partition an SSD in Windows 11?

Note: If you have a second SSD in your Windows 11 and want to move it to that drive, you can refer to How to Install Windows 11 on SSD.

If you are already familiar with SSD partitioning, feel free to share this article with others who might need it!

#1. Can an SSD be partitioned?

Yes, SSD stands for Solid State Drive, which is a type of physical hard drive. Similar to a mechanical hard disk drive, it provides storage space for users to install operating systems, applications, software, and save personal files and documents.

If you need to create two or more partitions on the drive, you can also partition and reallocate the SSD.

请注意，不同类型的磁盘有不同的分区编号：

• MBR - 3 primary partitions + 1 extended partition.
• GPT - 128 partitions.

Question #2: Does partitioning slow down an SSD?

Nope. Partitioning an SSD won't slow down the SSD drive. Neither the number of partitions you create on an SSD nor the frequency of erasing or deleting them will affect the read and write speeds of the SSD.

There are two factors that can affect the speed of a disk:

• Bad sectors
• 4K alignment

Then, how to check bad sectors on SSD or check if the SSD is 4K aligned? Here, I recommend you try Partition Master Professional. Its Surface Test and 4K alignment features can test the speed of SSD. When SSD speed is affected by these two factors, you can use this tool to optimize its performance.

#3. Is Partitioning an SSD a Bad Idea?

No, it won't. Just like an HDD, an SSD supports creating and repartitioning. So, there's no harm to the SSD itself.

Partitioning an SSD can help you make the most out of your disk space, as well as organize and manage your operating system, installed programs, and personal data in a logical way.

However, be careful when you are about to delete or format a volume on an SSD or HDD, as this will result in data loss.

Note: Make sure to back up all important files before deleting, formatting, or erasing the existing partition on your SSD drive.

#4. Should I partition my SSD for Windows 11?

It depends.

- If your SSD is on the smaller side, 120GB or less, and you have a larger HDD in your computer, you can use the 120GB SSD for the operating system and store your files on the second HDD. - If your SSD is 250GB or larger, or if your Windows 11 computer has only one drive, it's recommended to separate the operating system drive from the data drive. Generally, we advise reserving about 100GB or 120GB for the operating system drive.

Also, when your system drive or data drive doesn't have enough space, Windows 11 will pop up the low disk space error. In this case, you need to repartition SSD to add more unallocated free space to the target volume.

In short, allocating enough SSD space for the operating-system drive is essential to maintaining a computer's peak performance.

#5. How Can I Partition My SSD in Windows 11?

This guide will walk you through using these tools to partition an SSD on Windows 11 in two ways:

1. Partition existing SSD drive 2. Partition second and new SSD drives

How to Partition an Existing/Used SSD in Windows 11

请注意，在Windows 11里，您有三种工具可以用来分区SSD：1. Third-party partition management software - like Partition Master; 2. Disk Management; 3. Using CMD commands.

Method 1: Using Partition Management Software - Partition Master Tool:

"Partition Master tool, with its advanced disk partitioning features, enables users of all levels to partition SSD hard drives in Windows 11 effortlessly."

Step 1: Launch Partition Master. On the main interface, right-click on the “Unallocated” space on the hard drive or external storage device and then choose “Create”.

Step 2: Resize the new partition, choose a file system (depending on your needs), a label, and so on, then click OK to continue.

Step 3. Click the Run 1 Task button, and then click Apply to create the new partition.

Watch the following video tutorial to learn how to create partitions on an NTFS, FAT, or EXT file system.

2. Disk Management:

Step 1: Press Windows + S, type partition, and select Create and format hard disk partitions.

Step 2: After Disk Management opens, check the status of your SSD hard drive and partition it following this guide.

Step 3: Create a new partition on the SSD

Free space on SSD:

• Right-click on the unallocated space. • Select "New Simple Volume." • Assign a name, size, and file system for the new volume. • Click "Next" and then "Finish."

No unallocated space:

• Right-click on a partition with enough free space. • Select “Shrink Volume.” • Enter the amount of space you want to shrink by, and click “Shrink.”

• Right-click on the “Unallocated” space and select “New Simple Volume”. • Assign a name, size, and file system to the new drive, then click “Next” and “Finish”.

Method 3: Using the DiskPart Command

Step 1: Press Windows+S, type diskpart, and click the result to open it.

Step 2. Create a Simple Volume on the SSD:

"There's unallocated space."

Here are the translations of the sentences into American English, as if they were commands in the DiskPart utility:
• List disks
• Select disk 1
• Create partition primary size=####
• Assign letter=*
• Format fs=ntfs quick
In this context, "####" represents the size of the partition you want to allocate, in numbers (for example, 10240 for 10 GB). "*" stands for the drive letter you want to assign (like D:, E:, etc.). This appears to be a sequence of commands for managing and formatting disks using the DiskPart tool in a command line interface.

The next sentence only needs to be translated into American English: ""

No unallocated space:

• List Disks
• Select Disk *
• List Volumes
• Select Volume * (next to target volume)
• Shrink = ###
• Create Primary Partition Size = ###
• Assign Letter = *
• Format fs=ntfs Quick

After completing the operation, type exit to close the Command Prompt window.

How to Partition a New/Second SSD on Windows 11

Method 1: Using Disk Management

Step 1. Press Windows + S, type partitions, and then select Create and format hard disk partitions from the search results.

Step 2: Once Disk Management opens, locate the new SSD, right-click on it, and select Initialize Disk.

Step 3. Choose the disk type. If you plan to use an SSD as your system disk, it's recommended that you select GPT.

Step 4. Right-click on the unallocated space and select New Simple Volume. Follow the wizard to give the new volume a name, file system, and size.

Create a simple volume on the new SSD

Step 5: Click Next and then Finish.

Repeat the process of creating a new simple volume as needed to create additional partitions.

Method 2: Using the Partition Master Tool

First, initialize the SSD

Step 1: Launch Partition Master and enter the “Partition Management” interface.

Step 2. Right-click on the target disk - HDD or SSD, and choose "Initialize as MBR" or "Initialize as GPT". Click "Perform Tasks" and "Apply" to save the changes.

0:00-0:18 Initialize as MBR; 0:19-0:44 Initialize as GPT;

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Next, we'll tweak the SSD's disk layout with a single click.

Step 1: Launch Partition Master, go to “Partition Management” and then click “Allocate this disk” in the newly popped up New Disk Wizard window.

Step 2. Choose the number of partitions you want to create and the disk partitioning style – MBR or GPT.

Alternatively, you can accept the defaults offered by Partition Wizard. When ready, click “Proceed.”

Step 3. Click “Run 1 Task” and “Apply” to partition the new HDD/SSD or external drive.

Method 3: Using the DiskPart Command

Step 1: Press Windows + S, type "cmd" in the search bar, right-click on "Command Prompt," and select "Run as administrator."

Step 2: Type diskpart, and press Enter.

Step 3: Enter each of the following commands one at a time, pressing Enter after each one:

• List disks
• Select disk #
• Convert to GPT format

Step 4. Enter each of the following lines one at a time, followed by Enter:

• List disks
• Select disk
• Create primary partition size=###
• Assign drive letter=*
• Format fs=ntfs quick

Repeat this process to create additional volumes on the new SSD.

Step 5: Type exit to close the Command Prompt window.

An SSD is ideal for running Windows 11, so partition your drive for the new OS now.

On this page, we list 5 things you should know about partitioning an SSD in Windows 11. Note that SSDs are great for running Windows 11, and you can expect more manufacturers to ship them preinstalled on computers as a trend.

If necessary, partition the new SSD now. Of the three SSD partitioning tools we've shown you, we recommend Partition Master, as it's the simplest SSD management and partitioning tool.

Frequently Asked Questions on How to Partition an SSD on Windows 11

Here, we've also gathered some popular topics on how to partition an SSD on Windows 11. If you're interested, follow along and find the answers right here:

**1. How to partition a hard drive in Windows 11?** Follow these steps to partition a hard drive in Windows 11: 1. **Open Disk Management**: Press `Win + X` and select "Disk Management." 2. **View current disk layout**: The system will display all connected hard drives and their partitions. 3. **Select the disk to partition**: Find the hard drive you want to partition, typically unallocated space will be shown in black. 4. **Create a new partition**: - Right-click on the unallocated space and choose "New Simple Volume." - Follow the wizard's instructions, assigning a size, setting a drive letter, and selecting a file system (such as NTFS) and allocation unit size. It's usually recommended to keep the default settings. - Click "Next" until the process is complete. 5. **Format the partition**: The newly created partition might need formatting. Right-click the new partition, select "Format," and confirm the file system, allocation unit size, and other settings. Make sure to check "Quick Format" and then click "Start" to format. 6. **Completion**: Once formatted, the new partition is now ready for use. Please note that partitioning may result in data loss, so ensure you back up important files before proceeding.

To partition a hard drive in Windows 11, you can turn directly to “Disk Management.”

1. Open Disk Management, right-click on the target hard drive with unallocated space, and select "New Simple Volume." 2. Assign a new drive letter to the partition, format it as NTFS, and specify its size. 3. Click "OK," then "Next." Finally, click "Finish" to complete the process.

2. How to partition SSD into two parts?

Fire up Partition Master on your computer. Right-click on the SSD drive's partition, and select "Split." Set the partition number to 2, then hit "OK." Click "Execute Task."

**3. How to partition C drive in Windows 11 without losing data?**

When you have only one C drive on your Windows 11 operating system disk and wish to create more partitions on it to store personal data or game files, you can follow these steps to partition the C drive:

1. Launch Disk Management and right-click on the C drive, selecting "Compress Volume." 2. Specify the amount of space you want to allocate from the C drive to create a new volume. 3. Click "OK" to confirm. 4. Right-click on the newly created unallocated space and select "New Simple Volume." 5. Assign a drive letter, such as D, set the file system to NTFS, and specify the size you want for the new partition. 6. Click "OK," then "Next," and finally "Finish."

If you want to create more partitions from the C: drive, repeat this process to create more unallocated space and make a new volume.