Best Partition Set Up

[Aleatoire]

Hi there, I just got a second 1TB HDD because I have a lot of stuff and I decided I might as well reformat my current HDD also because it hasn't been done in a while. I was wondering how I might partition both HDD's.

I was thinking of maybe splitting both HDD's into something like this:

C: OS and installed programs (small-medium size)
D: Installers and downloaded stuff (medium size)
E: Videos and music (large size)
F: Documents, other things and backups (large size)

Any suggestions?

 

[RazberyBandit]

Looks pretty good. I tend to partition like crazy, so I may not be an ideal model to follow. I'll explain.

I have about 1TB storage (3 x 640GB RAID-5) divided into 9 partitions. But, I have two OS's installed and two "images" of the OS installs. Each OS and each image is on it's own individual partition. (The images are used for hassle-free OS resets/reinstallations via partition copying software.) I also keep my SWAP/Pagefile on it's own partition. Here's a breakdown of my current setup:

C: OS 1 (50GB)
D: OS 2 (50GB)
E: OS 1 "image" (25GB)
F: OS 2 "image" (25GB)
G: Downloads, media, documents (300GB)
H: Steam Games (300GB)
I: Non-Steam Games & Large Programs (300GB)
J: Files, programs, and misc. 2nd OS-specific stuff (50GB)
K: SWAP/Pagefile (20GB)

Even with only one OS, I'd still have several partitions. It would mostly serve as a means of keeping completely different programs, files, and games isolated. It makes defragmenting an easier (and faster) task because you know exactly where you just installed that 16GB game or 4.5GB DVD image. (Without forcing you to defrag the OS, too.)

 

[Aleatoire]

Alright, thanks for the help. Do you think I should have my installed programs in a separate partition from my OS?

 

[Aleatoire]

Maybe even like this?

C: OS 1 (50GB)
D: Installed Programs (250GB)
E: Installed Games (350GB)
F: Installers (500GB)
G: Media (700GB)
H: Documents (100GB)
I: OS 2 (50GB)

By the way, do I need a pagefile partition?

EDIT: Added sizes.

 

[Aleatoire]

Ignore that. Got a new set up that I think will work. Thanks for the help Razberry.

 

[Aleatoire]

Best answer selected by aleatoire.

 

[RazberyBandit]

Alright, thanks for the help. Do you think I should have my installed programs in a separate partition from my OS?

Not necessarily. I install basic stuff on the OS partition, like browsers, media players, burning software, etc. What I don't install on the OS partition is office programs/suites or photo/video editing programs because those programs tend to require a lot of storage space.

As for separating the SWAP/Pagefile, no you don't have to, nor "should" you, really. Windows "prefers" it's on the OS partition, and can sometimes misbehave a little when it's not.

 

[Aleatoire]

Sweet thanks.