Are you thinking about partitioning your computer’s storage drive? By partitioning it, you can split up a single storage drive into multiple “virtual” storage drives. Partitioning is a native feature of Windows. If your computer runs the Windows operating system (OS), you can partition your storage drive without downloading any extra software. But there are several partitioning-related myths that you should ignore.
#1) Increases Storage Space
Partitioning won’t increase your computer’s storage space. If you need more storage space, you should consider installing a second storage drive. There are internal storage drives, and there are external storage drives, the latter of which support Universal Serial Bus (USB) connections. Partitioning will only create segments of your computer’s storage drive; it won’t actually increase the total amount of storage space.
#2) Protects Against Viruses
Some people assume that partitioning will protect against viruses. A virus, of course, is a form of malware that can replicate and spread. While partitioning can offer some level of protection against various cyber threats, it won’t make your computer immune to viruses. If a virus infects a particular partition, it may spread to other partitions of that same storage drive.
#3) Must Use a Single OS
You don’t have to use a single OS if you partition your computer’s storage drive. Instead, you can use two or more difficult OSs. Each partition can have its own OS. You may want to Windows 11 on one partition and Windows 10 on another partition. Partitioning your computer’s storage drive will split it up into multiple segments. Each of these segments or partitions is treated like a unique storage drive. Therefore, you don’t have to use a single OS when partitoning your computer’s storage drive.
#4) Doesn’t Affect Performance
Partitioning can absolutely affect your computer’s performance. Hard disk drives (HDDs) consist of magnetic platters. When you attempt to load a program or file saved on a HDD, it must spin up to locate the program or file. This process can take a while. And the more stuff you have saved on the HDD, the longer it will take. Partitioning, though, will allow you to create multiple, smaller segments of your computer’s HDD. The end result is faster load times when accessing programs and files saved on a given partition.
#5) Only Works for HDDs
Another common myth is that partitioning only works for HDDs. The truth his that partitioning works for both HDDs and solid-state drives (SSDs). Granted, partitioning a SDD won’t affect its performance, but it will still allow you to organize your files on multiple partitions rather than a single storage drive.