Reclaim hidden partition on T42

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fritz_the_blank · #1 Post by **fritz_the_blank** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:03 am

I am planning on creating restore disks to free up the 4.4 gigs of space that the restore file occupies on my hard disk.

I have a few questions, however. Currently, the IBM_Service partition as it is called is in the FAT 32 format and is invisible. When I right-click on it in the disk management snap in, I only get the help menu.

What do I need to do to reformat that partition in NTFS and make it visible? Can I do this without buying any extra software?

Thank you!

gpvillamil · #2 Post by **gpvillamil** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 8:23 pm

When you boot, go into the BIOS options by pressing the blue Access IBM button (or Enter). In one of the options menus, Disable the System Restore partition.

It should then be visible to Partition Manager, or to something like Partition Magic, and you can reclaim the space.

fritz_the_blank · #3 Post by **fritz_the_blank** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 2:57 pm

Thanks for responding.

I tried the bios bit and that worked fine. I was hoping that I would be able to use the disk management snap in to effect the change, but no luck.

Do I really need to buy partion magic or some such just to do this one thing once?

MadeInJapan · #4 Post by **MadeInJapan** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 9:00 pm

If you don't mind re-installing Windows (just once) you can, once the hidden partion is visible, boot with a Win98 disc and fdisk the drive, delete the partitions and then use the entire HDD as a single partition, after which you will install WindowsXP. This way you will use the entire drive and won't have to buy another program.

fritz_the_blank · #5 Post by **fritz_the_blank** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 10:24 am

Here is what I did:

I found an old windows 98 disk and booted from that in DOS. From there, I used FDisk to delete the partition and then set the other partion as the active partion. Next, I rebooted and used the disk management snap in to reformat the 4 gig partion and all was well. There was no need to reinstall the OS or anything like that.

Of course, that meant accepting the partitions the way that they were, but at least I reclaimed the drive space.

MadeInJapan · #6 Post by **MadeInJapan** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 6:30 pm

Cool! Fdisk still is the worth something!

rhema83 · #7 Post by **rhema83** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 9:15 pm

There is also a new version of fdisk called diskpart in Windows XP. You can access it from the installation CD by going into recovery console after booting from the CD.

MadeInJapan · #8 Post by **MadeInJapan** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 10:43 pm

Cool!
Now, with Partion Magic, one could combine the 2 partions without losing data. I would recommend this if you can get a hold of a copy from someone.

skanky · #9 Post by **skanky** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 5:40 am

so fdisk can delete the hidden partition even though its enabled in the bios?

if i use a set of recovery cds on a new hdd, will it create a "restore/hidden" partition for me automatically or will i have to run another program?

ashleys · #10 Post by **ashleys** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:22 am

Experiences from my T30 ...

1. Yes, fdisk (used by W2K setup in my case) was able to delete the hidden partition with no changes to the BIOS setting.

2. I had my HD partitioned with C: and two other normal partitions. Together these three partitions accounted for the whole of my HD. The recovery process just reformatted C: and (re)built the system there. The other two partitions were untouched. Therefore, it does not rebuild a hidden/service partition for you nor touch any other partitions you may have data on.

Zeitgeist · #11 Post by **Zeitgeist** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 10:21 am

skanky wrote: if i use a set of recovery cds on a new hdd, will it create a "restore/hidden" partition for me automatically or will i have to run another program?

The recovery CDs will create the hidden partition ONLY if there are no partitions on the hdd, if there is one than only a new system partition (C) will be created.

skanky · #12 Post by **skanky** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 3:41 pm

ok im in a bit of a pickle

i have a 7200rpm 60gb drive in an old toshiba which i want to swap over with my t40's 5400rpm 40gb drive --i like the speeed!

so i "unhid" the recovery partition in the bios then shut the t40 down (note i didnt boot into windows afterwards, just shut it right down) and swapped the hdd's over.

now in ghost and fdisk, the 40gb drive still only shows 35gb available!

do i need to move the 40gb drive back into the t40, boot into windows for it to recognise the partition or should simply unhiding it in the bios make the 5gb reappear?

help please!

fritz_the_blank · #13 Post by **fritz_the_blank** » Wed Oct 20, 2004 7:56 am

Even after I disabled the partition in the bios, it was still not visible. I had to use FDisk to delete the partition, and then used fdisk to recreate it. Once that was done, I needed to format the partition.

There may be a simpler way, but I am not sure.

kamikrazy · #14 Post by **kamikrazy** » Wed Oct 20, 2004 11:25 am

MadeInJapan wrote:Cool!
Now, with Partion Magic, one could combine the 2 partions without losing data. I would recommend this if you can get a hold of a copy from someone.

I've actually never used Partition Magic before. Can I find the steps to combine the two partitions together online anywhere? The hidden partition is a FAT while the main partition is NTFS. Thanks

dmcgibbo · #15 Post by **dmcgibbo** » Wed Oct 20, 2004 11:32 am

i have partition magic 8 and want to keep the service partition in case my PC craps out but i heard that the partition is way too big for what's on there. is it possible to use PM8 to decrease the size of the service partition to reclaim some space without affecting it for a restore?

uncu · #16 Post by **uncu** » Wed Nov 03, 2004 6:05 pm

I want to reclaim the unused space in the IBM_SERVICE partition. I tried to use PMv8 but it complained about the disk geometry and preferred to do nothing. Any other alternatives??

Another question: How can I erase the backup created by RapidRestore? I would like to keep the original IBM recovery portion of the partition. But I can get rid of the backups created for my own installations and files... Any ideas??

nikemen · #17 Post by **nikemen** » Wed Nov 03, 2004 6:16 pm

So, to reclaim the hidden partition. The unhide the hidden partition. The add the created partition back into the current C:\ partition.

I know there are many threads for this topic, but does someone have a little walk through for doing this?

What is the order to tasks, and what is the best software to use? Isn't PM like 80$ or more? Are there other cheap or free products that will allow one to do the doey?

Thanks
this might make a REALLY nice FAQ once out there.

dmcgibbo · #18 Post by **dmcgibbo** » Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:20 pm

or how to just reclaim some of the space but not get rid of it entirely

Reclaim hidden partition on T42

Reclaim hidden partition on T42

resize IBM_SERVICE partition... PM 8 does not work.

best product, cheapest product and walk through.

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