Difference Between Primary Partition and Extended Partition

Primary Partition vs Extended Partition

A tough disk drive will be divided in to a number of storage models. These storage models are referred to as partitions. Creating partitions would make a single bodily disk drive seem as a number of disks. Software program that can be utilized to create, delete and modify partitions is known as a partition editor. Creating partitions would enable the consumer recordsdata to be resided individually from the operating system and different program recordsdata. Moreover, partitions would enable the consumer to have a number of operating systems to be put in in numerous partitions of the identical onerous disk. Initially, a hard disk drive could possibly be divided in to 2 partitions referred to as the first partition and prolonged partition. Details about the partitions in a computer is included in the Partition table, which is situated within the Grasp Boot Document.

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Extended Partition

What’s Primary Partition?

A disk drive can comprise a most of 4 main partitions or three main partitions and a single prolonged partition. One file system is contained in a main partition. In contrast to earlier variations of Microsoft Windows systems, newer Home windows working techniques similar to Home windows XP, Home windows 7 could possibly be positioned on any partition. However the boot recordsdata needs to be situated in a main partition. Partition kind code of a main partition signifies information about the file system contained within the main partition or the whether or not the partition has a particular utilization. When there are a number of main partitions in a hard disk, solely a single partition will be energetic at any given time and the opposite partitions can be hidden. If a drive must be bootable, it must be a main partition.

What’s Extended Partition?

Solely a single prolonged partition will be contained in a tough disk. However the prolonged partition could possibly be subdivided in to a number of partitions referred to as logical partitions. Extended partition acts as a container for logical partitions. The construction of the prolonged partition (concerning the logical partitons contained throughout the prolonged partition) is described within the Extended Boot Document (EBR). After the logical partitions within the prolonged partition are formatted utilizing an appropriate file system they are going to change into seen. Extended partition can be utilized for storing consumer knowledge. This may shield the info from working system crashes or corruptions.

What’s the distinction between Primary Partition and Extended Partition?

Primary partition is a bootable partition and it incorporates the working system/s of the pc, whereas prolonged partition is a partition that isn’t bootable. Extended partition usually incorporates a number of logical partitions and it’s used to retailer knowledge. A disk drive can comprise a number of main partitions, however it will possibly comprise solely a single prolonged partition. Multi – boot system will be created utilizing a number of main partitions. Usually, main partitions are assigned the primary letters within the alphabet as drive letters (similar to C, D) whereas logical drives within the prolonged partition get the opposite letters (similar to E, F, G).