Safely Transfer Programs from C Drive to D Drive in Windows 10/11

When your C drive gets a low disk space problem in Windows 10/11, it's a good idea to transfer installed programs from C drive to another drive. It can help you separate the installed application from the OS so as to free up and speed up the computer.

Follow this page, you'll learn how to effectively move programs from C drive to another drive, such as from C to D without reinstallation.

View the Necessary Information to Move Programs from C Drive to D Drive:

How Do I Move Programs from C Drive to D drive in Windows 10/11

"I am running Windows 10, and I find that my hard drive works slower and slower. Then I checked the hard disk and found that my C drive was full. Some friends recommend me to merge C and D drive in Windows 10 to fix this problem. But I prefer to transfer programs from C drive to D drive. Is there any safe way to do the job? Please help!"

Many Windows users may have the same issue on their computers. So how can you do that? According to Microsoft and professional administrators, there are basically two methods that can do the job - moving programs from C to another drive:

1. Use PC transfer tool or software

2. Use Windows settings - Apps & Features or Apps & games

Instead of manually uninstalling and reinstalling applications to a new drive, any smart Windows user would prefer to apply these two solutions for application migration. Follow on, we'll show you how to move installed applications, programs, software, and even games from C: to D: without reinstallation using PC transfer software or manual method with Windows settings.

Method 1. Transfer Programs from C: to D: Drive with PC Transfer Software

Applies to: Transfer installed applications, programs, software, and even games from C drive to another local drive in Windows 11/10/8/7/Vista/XP.

As a Professional Windows PC transfer software, EaseUS Todo PCTrans can make things easy for users to drag and drop programs with files from C drive to D drive safely and quickly. Free download this tool and follow the guide to transfer programs:

Main features of using PC transfer tool:

• Simple interface to allow users to transfer programs in a few clicks.
• Safe tool to avoid data loss or leakage in the transfer process.
• Precise migration arithmetic to save time and effort to transfer programs D drive.
• It supports to transfer applications, data, and settings between computers and drives.

Install the 100% secure tool on your computer, and learn how to execute this task on your own with simple steps.

Step 1. Run EaseUS Todo PCTrans on your PC

Go to "App Migration" and click "Start" to continue.

Step 2. Select programs to move from C drive to another drive

1. Tick the C drive and select programs (marked as "Yes") that you want to transfer.

2. Click the triangle icon to select another drive on your computer as the destination, and click "Transfer" to start the process.

Step 3. Finish the transferring

Wait patiently until the transferring process finishes and click "OK" to confirm. 

When it has done, you can restart PC if necessary. This will keep all changes on your PC and then you can run and programs from another hard drive without reinstallation.

Method 2. Move Programs from C Drive to D Drive with Windows Settings

Applies to: Move partial C drive installed applications and programs to D drive on Windows 10/11. It's not available to all installed programs.

According to the Microsoft support team and professional geeks online, Apps & Features and Apps & games in Windows Settings can help you transfer some installed programs from C drive to D drive.

Let's see the detailed steps:

Move Programs in Apps & Features

Follow the steps to move programs from C drive to D drive on Windows 11/10:

Step 1. Press Windows + R to open the Windows Settings.

Step 2. Find all Apps and programs by clicking Apps>Apps and Features,

Step 3. Select the programs you want to move: 

On Windows 10: directly select the App from the list.

On Windows 11: choose the three vertical dots.

Step 4. After choosing the target Apps, click Move.

Step 5. Select another hard drive, such as D: drive to move the selected app to, and click "Move" to confirm.

All you need is to wait for the process to finish.

Move Programs in Apps & games

Step 1. Open Storage settings by typing storage at the search bar and select "Storage" to open it.

Step 2. Click "This PC (C:) " to open the Storage usage of C: drive. And click "Apps & games" to continue.

Step 3. On Apps & games, scroll down to Apps & features, selected desired application or program and click the "Move" button.

Then select D: or another drive as the target location and click "Move" to transfer the selected program.

Step 4. Wait for the migration to finish.

After this, you can restart the moved program on your D drive and continue using it again.

Note: If there is only a Modify option next to the selected program, or the "Move", "Modify" options are greyed out next to the selected application, it means that the publisher doesn't allow you to move it to another location.

In a word, when there is no "Move" option next to the selected program, you can't move it to another drive in Windows settings.

Don't feel upset when the selected applications or programs are not available for transferring in Windows Settings. You still have an alternative solution, using reliable PC Transfer software - EaseUS Todo PCTrans for help. If you like this passage, click the social button to share with others and help them to transfer programs.

Bonus Tip: How to Move a Program to Another Drive with Registry

Applies to: Move programs from C drive to d drive in Windows by changing the storage path. Misuse Registry can cause a system crash.

In the following case, we will show you how to move programs to a different drive with another method. This method is mentioned by Microsoft. However, if you misuse the registry, the system breakdown will happen.

Step 1. Create a folder named "Program Files (86)" in the C drive or another external drive.

Step 2. For copying and pasting the Programs folder to the new location, Type CMD on the search box. Run CMD as administrator.

Type the following command line and press Enter:

• Robocopy" C：\ Program Files" " D：\ Program Files" / mir
• Robocopy" C：\ Program Files（x86）" " D：\ Program Files（x86）" / mir

Step 3. Run Regedit.exe by press "Windows + R".

Step 4. Find the folder path and change the C to another drive.

For Windows 7/8/8.1: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion"

For Windows 10: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Wow6432Node \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion"

Bottom Line

When you find the Windows Settings can't help you move the selected program to another non-system drive, let EaseUS PC transfer software - EaseUS Todo PCTrans help. With this tool, you can also move downloads from C drive to D drive without reinstallation.

It supports to transfer more C drive installed programs, applications, and software to a non-system partition. To migrate the C drive installed programs to D: or other drives, revet to Method 1 for a detailed guide.

Even if your selected program is currently not supported by EaseUS Todo PCTrans, you can submit a request. EaseUS Todo PCTrans engineers will collect your feedback and add it to the supporting list, helping more people to move desired applications, freeing up C drive space.

Transfer Programs from C Drive to D Drive FAQs

This part provides additional information on moving programs from C drive to D drive. If you have similar questions, check the answers and solve your confusion.

1. How can I move installed programs to another drive Windows 7?

To quickly and safely transfer installed programs, we recommend you use a professional and reliable transfer tool - EaseUS Todo PCTrans. Here is a brief step guide for moving installed programs on Windows 7:

Step 1. Launch EaseUS Todo PCTrans and turn to "App Migration."

Step 2. Choose the target drive on the left side and the installed Apps on the right side.

Step 3. Click "Transfer" to apply the settings.

2. How to transfer Windows 10 to a new PC?

You can transfer Windows 10 license to a new PC by following the simple steps:

Step 1. Save your Windows license and deactivate your old computer.

Step 2. Activate new computer setup.

Step 3. Install Windows license with command prompt and Microsoft support.

3. Can I move data from C drive to D drive?

Of course, you can easily move data and files from C drive to D drive using several solutions. You can use a third-party tool, such as EaseUS Todo PCTran. This tool can help you move data, files, and programs quickly and automatically. Or you can try File Explorer, which needs you to copy and paste the files manually.