1 Topic by rtroth2946

  • rtroth2946
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  • Registered: 2011-09-09
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Topic: NT4 NTFS resize operation

Before everyone dies of laughter, bear with me.

I have an old NT4 PDC that I need to upgrade the OS on to get to 2003 minimum for an in place AD upgrade. 

I need to add 1.5GB to the C: I have the space on another partition(F:) that I can move over to C:

What I want to know is will the current release of GPARTED support doing this operation on such an archaic system?

Yes I know I need to backup all data before doing it, but I need to know if I drop in the live CD, resize both partitions will it simply go?

I believe the pagefile is on a different drive than the C:

The hardware is an old IBM system with plenty of memory. 

Any information would be appreciated.  Thanks!

2 Reply by class413

  • class413
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Re: NT4 NTFS resize operation

I don't laugh at all. I love to see old hardware to be operational and running! This old hardware could last forever.


It seems that ntfsresize (the specific tool that performs resizing operations on ntfs) is able to handle versions since NT3.1 up to now, so I think this will work.
Furthermore, you can use the GParted livecd to see if it detects well your partitions and hardware. The livecd detects every partition and allows the various operations if they are supported by the included tools.

What I don't know is how NT4 reacts after resizing. Windows2000, xp and vista run automatically a check when they boot for the first time after a partition modification. I have no experience from NT, to know if this runs the same manner. I think it is equivalent to the command "chkdsk /f <partition letter>: " scheduled on the next reboot.

It is safer to proceed step by step: F partition first, C later. If F is a logical partition, you need to resize the extended partition that contains it, in order to be allowed to include the free space to the first partition. In case of doubt, you can post a screenshot of the GParted screen, for further advice.

(moved to the Live Media section)

*** It is highly recommended to backup any important files before doing resize/move operations. ***

3 Reply by gedakc

  • gedakc
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Re: NT4 NTFS resize operation

Class413 is correct -- The GParted Live image should work with Windows NT 4.0, and it is best to proceed one step at at time, booting into Windows NT 4 between each step to ensure that all is well.