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| PartitionMagic 8.0 |
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Applications July 2003 • Vol.7 Issue 3 Page(s) 210-211 in print issue |
PartitionMagic 8.0 Requires Pentium-Compatible CPU & Windows 95 Or Later Operating System | ||
 Install The Software 1. Start From Scratch. Before installing Par-titionMagic 8.0, PowerQuest recommends that you uninstall any previous versions of the program that exist on your hard drive to avoid complications. 2. Run Your Checklist. Before installing PartitionMagic 8.0, you should perform some tasks to ensure the software will work as well as possible. First, make sure you have the latest updates and service packs for your operating system. Second, run a disk-scanning program to make sure you have no errors on the hard drive. Finally, close all other programs. 3. Do Your Backups. Before installing any software, you should always back up your data. Performing a backup is especially important before using software such as PartitionMagic 8.0. Creating partitions on a hard drive potentially can damage any data you might have on the drive. 4. Where's The Undo Button? If you change your mind about using PartitionMagic 8.0 and want to return your hard drive to its original state, you'll have to use the software to reset the hard drive to the desired configuration before uninstalling it. PartitionMagic 8.0 has no undo feature, unfortunately. Booting Issues 5. Disable Boot-Sector Protection. If Parti-tionMagic 8.0 seems to be behaving strangely whenever you run a function, causing system beeps or a black rectangle on the screen, your computer probably has boot-sector protection activated. You'll need to enter the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System)—check your computer's users manual for directions—and disable boot-sector protection. 6. Help, Rescue Me. If you experience problems with running PartitionMagic 8.0, you'll want to have rescue diskettes available. You can boot the PC from the rescue diskettes, which you can create at the end of the installation program. If you need to create rescue diskettes after installing PartitionMagic 8.0, click the Tools menu and Create Rescue Disks from the software's main screen. 7. Booting Is Primary. If you're booting a Windows OS on your hard drive partitioned with PartitionMagic 8.0, you'll have to make sure the main OS files are on the primary partition, or Windows won't boot properly. However, Windows NT, Windows 2000, and Windows XP only need a few key files in the primary partition; the bulk of the OS files can reside in another partition. (See your Windows users guide for more information on this option.) Manage Partitions 8. Delete Without DoD Specs. When you delete a partition using PartitionMagic 8.0 (by clicking the Partition menu and Delete), you'll also delete any data stored on the partition. PartitionMagic 8.0 will delete and overwrite the data if you choose the Delete And Secure Erase option in the Delete Partition window. However, be aware that this option doesn't meet Department of Defense specifications for deleting data, meaning an expert could potentially retrieve the deleted data. 9. Speed Is Key To Undelete. If you inadvertently delete a partition or change your mind about deleting one, PartitionMagic 8.0 does offer an Undelete command under the Partition menu. However, you should attempt to undelete a partition as soon as possible after you deleted it to improve the chances of preserving the integrity of the data. If you have more than one partition to undelete, you should undelete the most important partition first to improve the chances of regaining access to the data. 10. Merge Carefully. Merging partitions can give you the ability to create a new partition once you've reached the maximum number of partitions for the hard drive. However, PartitionMagic 8.0 has a few rules you must follow before merging partitions. First, never merge partitions that are compressed or that contain OSes. Second, to merge two NTFS (NT file system) partitions, they must have the same version type and cluster size. Finally, merging partitions is a lengthy process that can take several hours; if you turn off your PC while PartitionMagic 8.0 is merging partitions, you'll probably damage your hard drive's file system, resulting in data loss. 11. Merge Options. If you decide to merge two different partitions, PartitionMagic 8.0 uses the Merge Adjacent Partitions window to give you a list of your merge options. In the Merge Options area of the window, PartitionMagic 8.0 will let you choose how you'd like the merge function to occur. Click on the button of the option that you'd like to use. Finally, you'll need to have PartitionMagic 8.0 create a folder in which to store the data from the partition that will be merged. 12. Split Carefully. PartitionMagic 8.0 makes it easy to take a single partition and split it into two partitions, even if you have data on the original partition. However, PowerQuest recommends you follow a few rules before splitting a partition. First, the partition you want to split must be at least 100MB in size. Second, the original partition must have at least 5% free space for a FAT (file allocation table) file system and at least 10% free space for a FAT32 (32-bit FAT) file system. Finally, don't split a partition containing your operating system.
14. Hide Partitions Carefully. Although PartitionMagic 8.0 gives you the option of hiding partitions—meaning they don't appear with a drive letter in your My Computer window—those who are using Win9x or WinMe should avoid this option because it could cause problems with booting your PC. Work With OSes 15. Run Multiple OSes. PartitionMagic 8.0 includes a program called BootMagic that lets you run multiple OSes from different partitions. To manage your multiple OSes, open the BootMagic Runtime Menu window by clicking the Tools menu and BootMagic Configuration from the PartitionMagic 8.0 main screen. From here, you can use the Add or Delete buttons to change the OS menu. Use the Startup Delay area of the window to have the PC pause while booting, allowing you time to select the OS you want to use. 16. Maintain Optical Drive Letters. As you create partitions, Win9x will adjust the drive letters of your optical drives, such as DVD-ROMs and CD-RWs (CD-rewriteables). This may present a headache if you don't want your optical drive letters to change each time you create a partition. You should try to assign a high letter to your optical drive, such as N: or O:, and Win9x will maintain the drive letter, even if you add several partitions. 17. Manage Linux From Afar. Though you cannot run PartitionMagic 8.0 under Linux, you can use the software to control any Linux partitions on your hard drive. Just run PartitionMagic 8.0 from a partition containing one of the OSes it does support (nearly any version of Windows) and then manipulate the Linux partition. Advanced Options 18. Watch Large Hard Drives. If you have a hard drive larger than 160GB, you'll want to keep an eye on how Partition-Magic 8.0 behaves. PowerQuest says it has tested PartitionMagic 8.0 with hard drives as big as 160GB, so it's possible that larger hard drives could experience problems. However, PowerQuest says users haven't reported any problems with using the software on larger hard drives. 19. Error Messages You Can Ignore. If you attempt to use Partit-ionMagic 8.0 to convert a partition using the NTFS file system to the FAT or FAT32 file systems, you'll probably encounter error messages 1680, 1681, and 1687. These errors are PartitionMagic 8.0 telling you that you're losing some advantages of NTFS; the errors aren't indicative of a problem with the process.
21. Bad Sector Dangers. If you have sectors on your hard drive the OS has marked as bad, PartitionMagic 8.0 gives you the option of retesting them (click the Partition menu, Advanced, and Bad Sector Retest). You might find PartitionMagic 8.0 can reclaim the bad sectors for data storage. However, use this command carefully; some sectors the OS marks as bad actually may be unstable, meaning they're able to store data for a short time, but they later go bad, losing the data. Reclaiming these unstable sectors could cause you data loss down the road. 22. Pssst, The Password Is. . . . If you are running PartitionMagic 8.0 on a shared computer and you don't want others to have access to the software's features, you can lock out PartitionMagic 8.0 through a password. From the main screen, click the General menu and Set Password to start the process. The software lets you enter a hint phrase, just in case you forget the password. Also, if you want to remove the password protection feature, reset the password to a blank field from the Set Password window.  by Kyle Schurman |
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