Why Is Shrink a Partition Taking So Long? What Should I Do?
The disk I'm trying to partition has two 1TB partitions and is 2TB in size. My second one should be divided into a 600GB and a 400GB version. I instructed the drive to be shrunk by 600GB when I went to shrink it. This does not work. When hovering in the Disk Management, I only receive the loading cursor. I've been acting in this way for a while.
Best Answered by
Cici· Answered on Apr 01, 2025
Why Does Partition Shrinking Take So Long?
Partition shrinking is a process that resizes the partition's space and makes it smaller. However, there are several types of data, like fragmentation, restoration points, hibernation files, and pagefiles, that cannot be deleted. Thus, when you use Disk Management to shrink the partitions that contain the above irremovable data, you will cost a lot of time. Furthermore, you may fail to shrink your partition due to this reason.
Best Alternative to Disk Management - EaseUS Partition Master
Disk Management in Windows cannot resize the partition that has unmovable files. Fortunately, EaseUS Partition Master can cover you in this scenario. This program is designed to manage disk and partition, and it can empower users to resize, delete, and create partitions on their hard drives. Here is how to do it:
Step 1. Locate the C drive in the "Partition Manager" section and choose "Resize/Move."
Step 2. Write the shrink size in MB or manually adjust the shrink size while holding down the mouse. When finished, click "OK" to continue.
Step 3. To complete the procedure, click the "Execute Task" and "Apply" buttons.
Bonus Tip: Check the File System Error
Besides the file types, some file system errors may cause a shrinking partition process to take a long time. Thus, you can explore the applicable solutions in the post below：
Further Reading: Cannot Shrink Partition Even I Have Unallocated Space
