Acer Drive D - Files - What are they, can I delete?

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tfastg

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Hi all,

So yes, I did search the existing answers and found one similar to what I'm asking, but my focus is a bit different and I'm looking for a different answer.

I have an Acer 6530G notebook. It came with a single hard drive partitioned in half -- 143 GB to Local Disk (C) and 139 GB to Data (D).

I've almost filled up the (C) partition, and haven't touched the (D) one since I got the computer. So now I'm eyeing to use that extra space.

However, I'm confused. It says 53.4GB is being used on (D), but when I look inside, it only has a couple dozen files adding up to a few MB. (I have it set to show hidden files and folders).

I'm assuming all that data is hidden in some other way I don't know about, and that it holds data for a system restore or something. (Is that right? Details?)

Thing is, this laptop is old -- it came with Vista, and since then I've gotten windows 7 and keep my own collection of system image backups and file backups on an external drive. So do I even have a reason to keep that 50 GB of old Vista stuff anymore?

I'd also like to delete the files I CAN see. What are these even for? Here's a screenshot:



On a side note, what was Acer even thinking with such a weird partition set-up? Was I supposed to keep my personal data in drive (D) and only system files in (C)? To me it just seems pointless.

At the end of the day, I'm basically trying to make sure it's safe for me to either delete everything off (D) or get rid of the partition altogether.

Thanks so much, I really appreciate it.

PS this is my first post to any forum so sorry if I did anything unorthodox
 

tfastg

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Okay wow thanks rdg1101, that link was just what I needed -- deleted those files.

As far as the folder options, I already had it set to "Show hidden files, folders, or drives" but now I've unchecked another box that said "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)." Doing so pops up a warning that says I can make my system inoperable if I modify or delete any of them.

Now three folders come up in drive D, titled like this:

$RECYCLE.BIN
found.000
System Volume Information

The first one is 129 bytes, the next two say 0 bytes. So first off, can I delete these safely too? Second off, I still don't know how to see those 50 GB of data. Any ideas?

danny2000: Yes I do have the Recovery disks for the original Vista
 

tfastg

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Okay I won't touch those.

That app is pretty great.
Here's what came up with it:



Does this mean that all of the 50 GB is from really old backups of personal files? And does that mean it's safe to delete the found.000 folder?
 
You can safely delete "$RECYCLE.BIN".. that folder is where the files you already deleted from partition D went. so to permanently delete them delete RECYCLE.

You can also delete System Volume Information which is where the System Restore saves files from partition D, but since you probably don't want to restore partition D to a previous date, deleting System Volume Information wont cause problems. Better yet disable System Restore supervision of partition D (from the control panel) and the contained files will be deleted.

As for the folder named found.000, click here, and here for information relative to found.000. The folder contains backups apparently made by checkdisk so you have to investigate what's goin on with it, if you have hard disk issues and if the folder contains files you lost and never missed. Once that’s done you can delete the folder.

Run Hard Disk Sentinel to know your Hard Disk's condition.
 


You mentioned that you have since installed Windows 7. Not knowing what methods you did this (upgrade or full reinstall), you probably have removed the ability to create recovery media or boot to the hidden partition (which would be D: ).

Once you check the condition of your drive as recommended, you could go as far as deleting the partition altogether from Disk Management and it should come up as Unallocated Space. You could then just create you a new partition from there.
 

tfastg

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Okay thanks for the input Chicano, it was helpful.

Problem is, I'm an idiot and messed things up now...

I ran Hark Disk Sentinel and it reported that my drive is very healthy - no problems there. Part where I'm an idiot is that I ran chkdsk on Drive D afterwards, and then I cancelled it. Now whenever I click on the drive from Explorer it says "D:\ is not accessible. Access is denied."

The way I see it -- I know my hard drive is healthy now; I've never felt like I was missing any files before so I'll apparently never miss any of those backups; and you say that I can delete those two other folders anyway.

So, my only question now is, should I run chkdsk again on D and let it finish, or should I just format drive D and start putting my files in it?
 


I just read your second post.

If you are comfortable with the way your computer is, yes. Nuke the partition from within Disk Management and recreate it and use it to your hearts content. If it gives you an error, let us know because there are 3rd party alternatives that will get it done.
 

tfastg

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Okay cool. Can't I just right-click the drive and click format? Or is there a good reason to go through the trouble of recreating the partition altogether?
 

OK, so if you don't need any file in the Partition you can go ahead and delete all it's contents.. When chkdsk runs it locks a partition so when you cancelled it, it probably kept the partition locked (inaccessible) so you need to let chkdsk finish, or format the partition, running chkdsk is probably better so it won't want to run when you start the computer the next time... when it's finished then format the partition, and following that, disable System Restore supervision on that partition.
 


Deleting and recreating the partition is probably better, it can be created healthier if it's been giving problems. If chkdsk has asked to check it, it's better that you delete it and recreate it new with a slow format... and if not, just go ahead and format it in quick format... after all it seems that you never used the files stored there, so the partition is most likely in healthy condition.
 




+1+1


 
Hi,
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-CA/windows7/Restore-your-computer-from-a-system-image-backup

If you have a USB hard drive you can do the following:

1. Make a Windows 7 IMAGE backup to the hard drive.

2. Create the "System Repair Disc".

3. Use a boot CD ( www.ultimatebootcd.com ) to FORMAT your main drive completely thus erasing your second and HIDDEN partitions.

4. Insert the Windows 7 RESTORE DVD you made and recover the backup IMAGE.

Other:
It's not difficult, but make sure you read up on it first and understand. You'll eliminate the hidden partition with a backup Image of your Windows installation so don't delete that Image file you make.

*If you can't BOOT to the DVD:
Make sure you can boot to a disc before even trying this. You need to anyway for the ultimatebootcd; if it just boots to Windows then go into your BIOS and change the boot order so the DVD drive is first.

Summary:
One option is to make a backup of Windows 7, FORMAT the drive, then recover the backup. That eliminates the hidden and second partitions nicely.
 
Seems more convenient for me to have no less than two partitions... if you ever have trouble with Windows and have an unbootable situation, you can always install a copy or image of Windows 7, or a previous version of Windows on the second partition, particularly if you don't want to format and lose your files and programs.
 

jesferkicks

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As far as your list of files is concerned they are remnants of installing the Visual C++ 2008 Redistributable Package for Visual Studio 2008 RTM.

At least they were from my installation. It's cool to delete them.
 

tfastg

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So I did go into disk management, and I found that I have 4 partitions altogether - C, D, and two hidden partitions.



One says it's the Recovery Partition. As I said before, I upgraded from Vista and I have recovery CDs that came with the computer. Do those CDs contain the same data as this Recovery partition? And does that mean I can delete this partition?

The other partition says OEM partition. I don't even know what that would hold. What's on that one and do I need it?
 



Well, in one of the situations above (reinstalling Windows), you would also have to reinstall your programs.

I personally have never been a fan of using multiple partitions, other than for dual-booting.

 

Reinstalling.. meaning repair-reinstallation of Windows only replaces OS files and programs, so it doesn't require reinstalling third party programs. You would have to format and clean install Windows to have to reinstall programs... and also if doing a new installation (without formatting).. that may be what you mean by reinstalling Windows(?). BTW; by second partition (if that's what you mean by "situation above"), I meant partition D, not counting hidden partitions.

Based on what I read time ago from Microsoft MVPs, the larger a partition or drive is, the more files Windows has to keep tabs on, therefore the slower it can get... and the smaller the partition the opposite would be true.. besides a smaller partition is faster to scan with antivirus or malware software, the smaller the System Volume Information (System Restore folder) can be, and SR doesn't have to supervise the entire hard disk so you can turn it off in non-system partitions. Disk fragmentation is another inconvenience, files can fragment and spread all over the hard disk and the larger it is, the longer Windows can take to find all the pieces and present the file on the display.

So, two partitions are better than one, three better than two and four better than three (particularly when it comes to large hard drives). You can better organise your files and file types, etc. I've seen people's computers that have a single partition and a big mess in drive C.. the more folders on it the longer it takes to find the default folders (Programs, Documents, and System)... and if you want to avoid the mess you can store folders in your user profile folder, but then your user account becomes slower... I could go making a recount of the inconveniences but as some say; Few words to the wise. Computer sellers don't usually partition hard disks because it takes time and for them time is money, so they pass the problem on to the customer... but if you can partition your hard disk, you can make computing easier on yourself.
 


Recovery CDs do not contain the same data a Windows Vista or 7 installation DVD. They are only for recovery not for repair or clean installation... so better leave that Recovery partition alone. The last partition, OEM Reserved partition holds proprietary computer manufacturer's software probably for recovery purposes also. Click the links to read detailed information. Both are relatively small partitions so there's no point in deleting them at least not both. You may be able to move the OEM partition contents to the Recovery Partition or the other way around... but to find what the inconveniences are, may take some research.

Windows Recovery Environment
http://www.windowsreinstall.com/winre/createfromiso/

Windows 7 - OEM (Reserved) Partition
http://www.sevenforums.com/installation-setup/100997-oem-reserved-partition-what.html

What are these partitions on my hard drive?
http://ask-leo.com/what_are_these_partitions_on_my_hard_drive.html
 

tfastg

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I gonna take the liberty of deleting the 2 hidden partitions. I found the recovery CDs I have and it explicitly says that they are the same as what is on the recovery partition, so I'm not worried about that now.

When I moved up to Windows 7, I did a clean install on partition C, so I think whatever was on the other OEM partition is irrelevant anyway. If I ever need to restore my system, I'll use either my Windows 7 disc or a system image.

So, two partitions are better than one, three better than two and four better than three (particularly when it comes to large hard drives). You can better organise your files and file types, etc. I've seen people's computers that have a single partition and a big mess in drive C.. the more folders on it the longer it takes to find the default folders (Programs, Documents, and System)... and if you want to avoid the mess you can store folders in your user profile folder, but then your user account becomes slower...

So Chicano, what would you recommend? Is it better to store only my Windows files and settings in C? Would I leave all my other 3rd party programs on the same partition? I wouldn't even know how to separate them. How could I keep the My Documents, Pictures, Videos, etc. set-up that I'm comfortable with if my files are not in C?
 
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