Method 2: Use DiskGenius Free Edition to delete the recovery partition
Therefore, we recommend you use more professional but simpler disk partition management software to delete the recovery partition! Since the operation cannot be undone, it is easy to fail the operation task or delete the wrong partition due to improper operations. The command prompt is still too difficult for many computer users. Select volume # (replace # with the number of the recovery partition) List volume (list all volumes on the selected disk) Enter the following commands in sequence and press Enter once after each line of commands to execute. Enter cmd in the search box and run Command Prompt as administrator. Windows' built-in disk management tool doesn't allow you to delete the recovery partition, but you can also use the command prompt to delete it, please follow the process below. Method 1: Use diskpart command to delete the recovery partition Thus, you can restore computer to the working status once something unexpected occurs.
Important: Do create a full backup for Windows OS and the recovery partition in advance. While deleting the recovery partition may prevent you from using some of the built-in recovery features in all recent versions of the Windows operating system, there are many other ways to repair your computer, many of which are far less destructive than doing a full system recovery. Windows Recovery Environment, or WinRE for short, is a recovery environment that fixes common problems that prevent an operating system from starting.Īlthough Windows considers the recovery partition very important, you can actually delete the recovery partition without any harm. This partition is usually around 12-18 GB, much larger than the Windows recovery partition. The OEM recovery partition allows you to press a specific key (usually F9 for HP and F12 for Dell) to restore your computer to factory default settings. The Windows Recovery Partition allows you to boot into the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) to recover your computer if something goes wrong. In Windows 10, you can have a Windows recovery partition or a computer manufacturer's OEM factory recovery partition on your Windows disk.
Thanks to the recovery partition, the Windows operating system can restore itself to factory settings in the event of critical system problems, saving you from reinstalling the entire system. The recovery partition is a special section on the system hard drive that is reserved for system recovery purposes.
Whether you want to merge partitions or save some space, the following describes how to delete recovery partition in Windows. This restriction can be particularly annoying when you have a larger disk and you want to merge partitions.
When you try to right-click it, the option to delete the volume is grayed out. Windows won't let you delete the recovery partition in Disk Management. However, if you already have a full backup image on an external drive, you may need to delete the recovery partition to save space. Windows or your computer manufacturer put this partition there to restore the system to its original state in an emergency. If you have ever looked at your hard drive or solid-state drive in Windows disk manager and saw a partition described as "Health (recovery partition)", it is your recovery partition.