Windows XP Professional supports two types of disk storage space: basic and dynamic. Basic disk storage uses partition-oriented disks in it. A basic disk mainly encloses of basic volumes (primary partitions, extended partitions, and logical drives).

Dynamic disk storage make use of volume-oriented disks, and this too includes features that basic disks which do not have, such as the capability to produce volumes that span multiple disks (spanned and striped volumes).

General Notes

Before you modify a basic disk to a dynamic disk, note the following steps:

Firstly you must have as a minimum of 1 megabyte (MB) of free space on any master boot record (MBR) disk which you prefer to convert. This space is automatically set aside when the partition or volume is produced in Microsoft Windows 2000 or Windows XP Professional. But, it may not be available on partitions or volumes which are being formed by other operating systems.

When you are converting to a dynamic disk, the present partitions or the logical drives on your basic disk are been converted to simple volumes on the dynamic disk.

After you have converted to a dynamic disk, the dynamic volumes cannot be altered back to the partitions. You must first only delete all the dynamic volumes from the disk, and then convert the dynamic disk back to a basic disk. If you prefer to keep your data, you must first only kept a back up or move all the data required to another volume.

After you are done with converting to a dynamic disk, local access to the dynamic disk will be limited to Windows XP Professional and Windows 2000.

If your disk includes several installations of Windows XP Professional or Windows 2000, do not convert to a dynamic disk. The transfer operation takes out the partition entries for all partitions on the disk with the exemption of the system and boot volumes for the current operating system.

Dynamic disks are not supported on handy computers or Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition.

Before you modify a dynamic disk back to a basic disk, note that all the existing volumes must be deleted from the disk prior to you can convert it back to a basic disk. If you want to keep your data, then back up all the data required, or move your data to another storage device.

How to Convert a Basic Disk to a Dynamic Disk

Log in computer as Admin or as a member of the Administrators group. Click at Start, and then click at the Control Panel.

Click at the Performance and Maintenance, Administrative Tools, and then lastly double-click on Computer Management.

On the left pane, click at Disk Management.

In the lower-right pane, right-click on the basic disk which you prefer to convert, and then click at Convert to Dynamic Disk.

NOTE: You must also right-click at the gray area which contains the disk title on the left side of the Details pane. For example, right-click at Disk 0.

First select the check box which is located next to the disk which you prefer to convert (if it is not by now selected), and then click at OK.

Click on Details if you wish to have a look on the list of volumes available in the disk.

Then click at the Convert option.

Click Yes when you are been provoked to convert, and then click OK from the prompted message.

How to Convert a Dynamic Disk to a Basic Disk

First Back up all the data which is required by you on all the volumes on the disk and also which you desire to convert to a basic disk.

You must be log on as Administration or as a member of the Administrators group. Click at Start, and then click at the Control Panel.

After clicking the Control Panel, then click at Performance and Maintenance, followed by Administrative Tools, then double-click on Computer Management.

In the left pane, just click at the Disk Management.

Right-click on the volume of the dynamic disk which you prefer to alter to a basic disk, and then click at the Delete Volume.

Click Yes when you are been incited to delete the volume.Repeat steps 4 and 5 for every volume on the dynamic disk.

After you have deleted all the volumes from the dynamic disk, just right-click on the dynamic disk that you would like to change to a basic disk, and then click Convert to Basic Disk.

NOTE: You can also right-click on the gray area which contains the disk title on the left side of the Details pane. For illustration, right-click Disk 1.