1 Rookie
•
2 Posts
0
23
September 12th, 2025 02:37
C & D Drive Storage Imbalance
Hi there,
I have a 5-year old Inspiron 3793, running Windows 10, which I need to upgrade to 11 in a month or so.
I believe the C & D drive are just logical partitions of a single drive, but the C Drive is practically at capacity.
I want to know if I need to move some storage space to C prior to the upgrade (maybe 100 GB or so) and, if so, how to do it.
Here's how it shakes out right now...
Thank you!
No Events found!
DELL-Jesse L
Moderator
•
17.7K Posts
0
September 12th, 2025 05:07
Windows 11 requires a minimum of 64 GB of free disk space for installation and updates, with the OS itself taking approximately 20-30 GB for a fresh install. However, it is recommended to have at least a 128 GB SSD for the best performance, and even more space if you plan to install applications or store large files, as temporary files, drivers, and future updates also consume significant space.
To receive assistance from Dell chat support, they need to verify the warranty status and ownership. Then you must troubleshoot with them. Click the "Get Help Now" icon on the right to start a live chat session. If already out of warranty, click here for the Dell out of warranty offering.
anne_droid
3 Apprentice
•
840 Posts
0
September 12th, 2025 10:24
Hi
The above is excellent advice, a large SSD seems essential.
IF you are going to expand C:, it is important to ascertain if it is Legacy/MBR or uEFI/GPT, as W11 would want the uEFI/GPT.
I use https://www.paragon-software.com/free/pm-express/#features
It can
Convert MBR disk to GPT and vice versa
Resize/format/delete/check partitions
and lots more.
The expansion can take many hours to achieve, and obviously backups in good working order are needed.
Also I use Belarc Advisor and 'print out' all the Licence details and configs as insurance.
If in doubt please ask.
FTW43
1 Rookie
•
2 Posts
1
September 12th, 2025 14:35
Thank you both for the prompt, detailed responses! I am going to go with the suggestion for out-of-warranty support from Dell.
I appreciate you both taking the time to help me.
anne_droid
3 Apprentice
•
840 Posts
1
September 12th, 2025 15:17
Prego.
bencutting51
1 Rookie
•
4 Posts
1
September 13th, 2025 14:03
Yeah, looks like you’ll definitely want to free up some space on C before upgrading. Windows 11 needs breathing room for the install and updates, so shifting some of that D drive space over to C (via Disk Management or a partition tool) is the way to go.