PartitionMagic

PartitionMagic

Main window of Norton PartitionMagic 8.05
Stable release	8.05 (Build 1371) / May 5, 2004; 7 years ago (2004-05-05)
Development status	Discontinued
Operating system	DOS, Microsoft Windows (excluding Vista and later versions), WinPE
Type	Partition editor
License	Proprietary

PartitionMagic was a computer program for hard disk drive partitioning originally made by the PowerQuest corporation but now owned by Symantec. As of December 8, 2009, the Symantec website stated that they no longer offer Partition Magic. The program runs on Microsoft Windows operating systems including Windows 2000 and Windows XP, but is incompatible with Windows Vista or Windows 7. The utility can also be run from a bootable CD-ROM and enables creation and modification of partitions. Existing partitions can be resized without loss of data.

Details

PartitionMagic is capable of resizing NTFS or FAT (16 or 32) partitions without data loss, and can copy and move partitions, including to other disks. It also has various other features, including being able to convert between FAT16, FAT32 and NTFS, modify the cluster size of FAT16/32 and NTFS filesystems, and merge adjacent FAT or NTFS filesystems (all without data loss, though some NTFS-only metadata is lost on conversion to FAT). Additionally, it had somewhat limited support for ext2 and ext3 partitions.

PartitionMagic releases 1–3 were offered in DOS, OS/2 and Windows versions. Symantec's PartitionMagic version 8 dropped the OS/2 version. A server version was also offered under the name Server Magic for Windows and Novell Netware servers.

Future versions

PartitionMagic, while under PowerQuest, was updated regularly, adding new and useful features. Since Symantec purchased the application in 2003,^[1] there has not been a new release, and Symantec has stated that it has no plans on releasing a new version.^[2]

As of October 13, 2011, the Symantec website states, "Sorry, we no longer offer Norton Partition Magic."

Compatibility issues

PartitionMagic is compatible with Windows NT, 95/98, ME, 2000, and XP desktop editions. However, it is not compatible with server editions of Windows NT, 2000, nor 2003 by design — a more expensive product from the same manufacturer, ServerMagic, would handle these - nor does it run on Windows Vista or Windows 7. It can however manage/modify Windows Vista or Windows 7 partitions when started from a compatible operating system such as Windows XP.

PartitionMagic 2.0.5, VolumeManager 7 and VolumeManager 8 can not resize dynamic disks.^[3]

See also

• Disk partitioning
• List of disk partitioning software
• resize2fs, a utility to resize ext2 file systems was written in part by PowerQuest, the original makers of PartitionMagic.

References

1. ^ "Symantec to Acquire PowerQuest" (Press release). Symantec. 23 September 2003. http://www.symantec.com/press/2003/n030923.html. Retrieved 7 July 2011. 
2. ^ Nistor, Codrut (4 August 2006). "Ever Thought About Slicing Your Hard Drive?". Softpedia. http://www.partition-magic-windows7.com/res/split-partition-windows-7.html. Retrieved 7 July 2011. 
3. ^ "Changing volume sizes on dynamic disks". Tom's Hardware. 2005. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/215314-46-changing-volume-sizes-dynamic-disks. Retrieved 7 July 2011. 

External links

• Partition Magic home page