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conversations Partitioning Advice Requested

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    • CommentAuthorJusMe
    • CommentTimeFeb 10th 2010
     
    I'd like to repartition my external hard drive, but don't want to screw things up, so I'm coming to the 'luckers as experts for some advice.

    What I currently have: a 500 gb Maxtor external drive with three partitions (in this order when I see them in the Finder - using Disc Utility shows a different sequence)

    Finder: Files (which is my collection of movies, etc, and music) 198.987 gb, with only 2.82 available
    Backups 284.41 gb with 95.07 gb available
    Snow (which is the install disc for Snow Leopard) 12.98 gb with 6.31 available

    Disc Utility lists them as Backups, Snow, Files - in that order


    What I would like: as I don't need that install disc at all any more, and my backups partition is bootable if there's a problem with my main desktop)

    Remove that Snow partition completely and let Files have its space
    Reduce the size of the Backups partition, as my main drive is only 250 gb, so there's not much point in having a backup drive almost 14% larger, and give the extra space to the Files partition

    I can see in Disc Utility in the Partition menu, that I can resize a partition by grabbing the bottom right corner, and I can even add or delete a partition by using the + and - signs. However, in Disc Utility, the partition, Files, has no corner gizmo available.

    If I use the corner gizmo to make Backups smaller, does that space go to one of the other partitions? Or do I simply lose it?

    If I delete the Snow partition, do I lose that space, or can I find it somewhere - where? how? - to add that space to the Files partition?

    The Volume Scheme says Current, but it can obviously be changed. Would that mean reformatting the drive? Sure don't want to lose the stuff that's on it, as I've listed above.


    Advice humbly requested. Hope I've provided enough information. If not, please ask! Gratitude offered in anticipation.
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      CommentAuthorflak
    • CommentTimeFeb 10th 2010
     
    Yeah, resizing and reallocating partitions is a little weird. The upside is that it's possible now! Apple added that support for adding, removing, and resizing partitions (without erasing the whole HD) when Boot Camp required it.

    Downside is, though, there's no telling where that space will go. If you can't give it to another partition directly within Disk Utility, you'll need to use something like iPartition to do it. I've successfully removed an extra partition with Disk Utility, and given that space to another partition via iPartition. Otherwise, I would have had to make a new partition with that meager amount of space, which was a waste.

    It took a few hours, but it did work.
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      CommentAuthorzippie
    • CommentTimeFeb 10th 2010
     
    Create a ubuntu usb disk, and partion with that far easier. Then use disk utility to reformat your new partions
    • CommentAuthorJusMe
    • CommentTimeFeb 10th 2010
     
    Holy Geez! All that sounds complex. Maybe I'll just use some of that space on the partitions as storage by getting rid of what's there. Be nice if it would all stay together, though.

    On a related subject, I've got another external drive, an Acer 1 terrabyte. Lots of space there. It's formatted with MS-DOS Fat 32.

    I don't mind that apparently file sizes are limited, as mine don't come out too big anyway. And it seems I probably need that formatting so I can connect it to my DVD player with the USB connection. Although, ....

    However, occasionally one file won't play properly. For example, a 13 part tv series, each a separate .avi file - all play fine except one. Last night, all I could get from it was sound, no picture. And yet, that exact same file on my Maxtor storage hard drive played perfectly using VLC on the iMac.

    Do you think I can reformat that big drive to something other than MS-DOS FAT 32 (obviously, Mac formatting won't work with the DVD player) so I can keep all my movies and music there and still play them on the big screen?

    I've also noticed that with that format, I can copy files to and from the disc, but can't make any changes on the disc, such as titles or sequence of files. Curious.
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      CommentAuthorblueshead
    • CommentTimeFeb 10th 2010 edited
     
    why cant you use a hub for the dvd player and hardrive?
    • CommentAuthorJusMe
    • CommentTimeFeb 11th 2010
     
    Not quite sure what you mean by using a hub for the dvd player and hardrive.

    My computer is in one room, the external drive is connected by a short USB cable to the dvd player in another room. Whenever I want to increase my backup of movies and/or music, I take the drive into the computer room and connect to copy there. But for watching, it's in the dvd player room.

    So, maybe it's a very simple and basic dvd player (it was cheapish) and will only handle the MS-DOS Fat 32 format?

    As for the repartitioning: I deleted the files on Snow, created a new partition from the Backup partition which I named Storage, then deleted the Snow partition and expanded the Storage partition. I know have three partitions there: Backups @ 200 gb, Storage @ 100, and Files @ 200 Seems to be working fine.

    Now it's just the big one that I've got to get formatted properly so I can both use it as a backup for movies and music, and also connect to my dvd player.

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