1ntfsresize(1M) System Administration Commands ntfsresize(1M)
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6 ntfsresize - resize an NTFS file system without data loss
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9 ntfsresize [options] --info device
10 ntfsresize [options] [--size size[k|M|G]] device
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16 The ntfsresize program safely resizes Windows XP, Windows Server 2003,
17 Windows 2000, Windows NT4 and Longhorn NTFS filesystems without data
18 loss. All NTFS versions used by 32-bit and 64-bit Windows "operating
19 systems" are supported. Defragmentation is not required prior to resiz‐
20 ing, because ntfsresize can relocate any data if needed, without risk‐
21 ing data integrity.
22 ntfsresize can be used to shrink or enlarge any NTFS file system
25 located on an unmounted device (usually a disk partition). The new file
26 system will have a size that you specify. The size parameter can have
27 one of the optional modifiers k, M, G, denoting, respectively, kilo‐
28 bytes, megabytes, or gigabytes. ntfsresize conforms to the SI, ATA, an
29 IEEE standards and the disk manufacturers by supporting k=10^3, M=10^6
30 and G=10^9.
31 If both ---info and ---size options are omitted then the NTFS file sys‐
34 tem will be enlarged to the underlying device size.
35 To resize a file system on a partition, you must resize both the file
38 system and the partition, by editing the partition table on the disk.
39 Similarly to other command-line file system resizers, ntfsresize does
40 not manipulate the size of the partitions. To do that you must use a
41 disk partitioning tool, such as fdisk(1M). Alternatively, you could
42 use one of the many user friendly partitioners that uses ntfsresize
43 internally. Such partitioners include, among others, Mandriva's
44 DiskDrake, QTParted, SUSE/Novell's YaST Partitioner, IBM's EVMS,
45 GParted, or Debian/Ubuntu's Partman.
46 Back up your data and your partition table before using any partition‐
49 ing tool. For an NTFS file system, you can use ntfsclone(1M) as a means
50 of backup.
51 To shrink an NTFS partition, first use ntfsresize to shrink the size of
54 the file system. Then use a utility such as fdisk(1M) to shrink the
55 size of the partition by deleting the partition and recreating it with
56 the smaller size. Do not make the partition smaller than the new size
57 of NTFS; otherwise, you will not be able to boot from that partition.
58 If you mistakenly made a too-small partition, you would have to recre‐
59 ate the partition to be as large as newly sized NTFS file system.
60 To enlarge an NTFS file system, you must first enlarge the size of the
63 underlying partition. You can use fdisk(1M) to delete the partition and
64 recreate it with a larger size. Make sure the newly sized partition
65 does not overlap with any other partition. Then use ntfsresize to
66 enlarge the file system.
67 When recreating a partition, make sure you create it at the same start‐
70 ing sector and with the same partition type as was used in the parti‐
71 tion you are replacing. Otherwise, you will not be able to access your
72 file system. Use the fdisk u command to switch from the default cylin‐
73 der unit to the reliable sector unit. Also, if the bootable flag was
74 set in the old partition, make sure to set it in the recreated parti‐
75 ton. Otherwise, you might not be able to boot from the new partition.
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78 There are a handful of very rarely met restrictions in the use of ntfs‐
79 resize. An example of such a restriction occurs with a file system
80 stored on a disk having unknown bad sectors. Relocation of the first
81 MFT extent and resizing into the middle of a $MFTMirr extent are not
82 supported. These cases are detected and resizing is restricted to a
83 safe size or the closest safe size is displayed.
84 Upon completion of a resizing, ntfsresize schedules an NTFS consistency
87 check. In Windows, this check is performed by chkdsk. Upon the first
88 subsequent reboot into Windows, you will note chkdsk running in a blue
89 background. This is normal. Windows might force a quick reboot after
90 the consistency check. Depending on your hardware configuration, Win‐
91 dows might alert you to a systems setting change and recommend or
92 require a reboot. Acknowledge the message and reboot a second time.
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95 Supported options are listed below. Most options have both single-let‐
96 ter and full-name forms. Multiple single-letter options that do not
97 take an argument can be combined. For example, -fv is the equivalent of
98 -f -v. A full-name option can be abbreviated to a unique prefix of its
99 name.
100 -b, --bad-sectors
102 By default, ntfsresize exits upon encountering bad sectors. This
104 option allows the utility to proceed in spite of such sectors.
105 Prior using this option, it is strongly recommended that you use
107 ntfsclone(1M) with the --rescue option to make a backup, then, in
108 Windows, run chkdsk /f /r volume: from the command line. If the
109 disk guarantee displays as valid, then replace it, as it is defec‐
110 tive. Note that no software can repair bad sector errors. The most
111 that can be done is to work around these defects.
112 This option has no effect if a disk has no bad sectors.
114 -f, --force
117 ntfsresize always marks a file system for consistency check before
119 a real (not using --no-action) resize operation and it leaves that
120 way for extra safety. Thus, if an NTFS file system was marked by
121 ntfsresize, it is safe to use this option. You must use this
122 option, if you need to resize several times without booting into
123 Windows between each resizing step.
124 -h, --help
127 Display usage information and exit.
129 -i, --info
132 Used when you want to shrink a file system. Causes ntfsresize to
134 determine the smallest shrunken file system size supported. Most of
135 the time the smallest size is the space already used on the file
136 system. ntfsresize does not shrink a file system to a smaller size
137 than what is returned by this option. Depending on several factors,
138 it might be unable to shrink to this theoretical size. Although the
139 integrity of your data should be never at risk, it is nevertheless
140 strongly recommended to make a test run by using the --no-action
141 option before actual resizing.
142 Based on testing, the smallest attainable size is approximately
144 space used in the file system plus 20-200 MB. Note also that Win‐
145 dows might need an additional 50-100 MB to boot safely.
146 This option never causes any changes to the file system; the parti‐
148 tion is opened read-only.
149 -n, --no-action
152 Use this option to make a test run before doing the resize opera‐
154 tion. Volume will be opened read-only and ntfsresize displays what
155 it would do if it were to resize the file system. Proceed with the
156 actual resizing only if the test run passed.
157 -P, --no-progress-bar
160 Do not display progress bars during ntfsresize operation.
162 -s, --size size[k|M|G]]
165 Resize file system to size bytes. The new file system will have a
167 size that you specify. The size parameter can have one of the
168 optional modifiers k, M, G, denoting, respectively, kilobytes,
169 megabytes, or gigabytes. ntfsresize conforms to the SI, ATA, an
170 IEEE standards and the disk manufacturers by supporting k=10^3,
171 M=10^6 and G=10^9. Before performing an actual resizing, run ntfs‐
172 resize with the --no-action option, along with this option, first.
173 -v, --verbose
176 Display copious output.
178 -V, --version
181 Display the version number of ntfsresize.
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186 Display zero on success, non-zero otherwise.
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189 See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:
190 ┌─────────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────┐
195 │ ATTRIBUTE TYPE │ ATTRIBUTE VALUE │
196 ├─────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────┤
197 │Availability │SUNWntfsprogs │
198 ├─────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────┤
199 │Interface Stability │Uncommitted │
200 └─────────────────────────────┴─────────────────────────────┘
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203 fdisk(1M), ntfsclone(1M), parted(1M), attributes(5)
204 http://wiki.linux-ntfs.org
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209 In Linux version 2.6, with partitions that have been manipulated by
210 parted(1M), use of ntfsresize preceded corruption of partition tables,
211 which resulted in unbootable Windows systems. This occurred even if the
212 NTFS file system was consistent. This problem is independent of NTFS
213 and, thus, ntfsresize. Moreover, ntfsresize never touches the partition
214 table. Under the conditions just described, you can, in the BIOS,
215 change Disk Access Mode to LBA to regain the ability to boot. For fur‐
216 ther discussion of this condition see the ntfsresize FAQ at:
217 http://mlf.linux.rulez.org/mlf/ezaz/ntfsresize.html.
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220 ntfsresize was written by Szabolcs Szakacsits, with contributions from
221 Anton Altaparmakov and Richard Russon.
222SunOS 5.11 21 May 2009 ntfsresize(1M)