How to Shrink C drive on Windows Server 2019 2022 2025

Introduction

A lot of people struggle to shrink the C drive on Server 2019, but the process is achievable if done properly. Whether you want to free up space or divide the C drive into multiple partitions, follow the steps below for a successful shrinking process. The key is to avoid the issues like the "Shrink Volume" option being grayed out. We will walk you through how to resolve that with both built-in tools and third-party software.

1. Shrink C Expand D or E on Server 2019

This following video shows how to shrink the C drive using Disk Management or Partition Resizer and then extend D or E on Windows Server 2019.

Note: Windows may display a false alarm error stating that your PC has encountered an issue and needs to shut down after Partition Resizer finishes shrinking the C: drive, moving, and extending other partitions. This occurs due to a service conflict in Windows Server Disk Management. Simply ignore the error, restart your computer, and the system will function normally—the partitions have been successfully modified.

2. Shrink C Server Partition with IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server

IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server edition is a reliable tool that allows you to resize partitions including the c drive without data loss. It can help when Disk Management or Diskpart doesn’t work as expected.

Follow these steps to resize a partition with IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server:

1. Download and install IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server.
2. Launch the application and select the partition (e.g., C drive) you want to shrink.
3. Right-click on the partition and select Shrink.
4. Choose the amount of space to shrink and click Apply to complete the process.

IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server is a great tool for managing disk partitions in Windows Server environments, and it makes partition resizing easier and safer than using the built-in tools.

The following video shows how to use Partition Resizer to shrink a drive in Windows 11/10, and it works the same in Windows Server:

With IM-Magic Partition Resizer Server edition, you can easily manage partitions without worrying about data loss. The process is quick, safe, and straightforward!

What's special: It offers roll-back protection to safeguard the computer, even in the event of an unexpected power surge during disk partition changes.

3. Shrink C Partition with Disk Management on Windows Server 2019 2022 2025

To shrink the C drive in Windows Server 2019 using Disk Management, follow these simple steps:

1. 1. Open Disk Management:

   • Right-click on the Start button and select Disk Management from the context menu, or press Windows + X and choose Disk Management.

2. 2. Locate the C: Drive:

   • In the Disk Management window, find the C: drive (it should be labeled as "Primary Partition" or "System Reserved" on Disk 0 or whichever disk is your main system drive).

3. 3. Check for Available Space:

   • Make sure there is enough unallocated space after the C: drive, or that the C: drive has enough free space to shrink. You can only shrink the drive if there is free space that is not in use by files or system processes.

4. 4. Right-click the C: Drive:

   • Right-click the C: drive partition and select Shrink Volume.

5. 5. Specify the Amount to Shrink:

   • The system will calculate how much space can be shrunk. In the "Enter the amount of space to shrink in MB" box, specify the amount of space you want to shrink the partition by.
   • For example, to shrink by 10 GB, enter 10240 MB.

6. 6. Click Shrink:

   • After specifying the amount of space, click Shrink. The process may take a few moments.

7. 7. Check the Result:

   • After the shrink operation completes, you’ll see that the C: drive has been resized, and there will be Unallocated space next to it. You can choose to create a new partition or extend another volume with this unallocated space.

Problem: Shrink volume is grayed out in Windows Server 2019.

Resolution: Disk Management cannot shrink FAT32 volumes or volumes with immovable files.

Solution:

• If the shrink option is grayed out or doesn’t allow shrinking as much as you'd like, it could be because of unmovable files (like the pagefile or system files). In that case, consider temporarily disabling pagefile or hibernation, or use a third-party tool like Magic Partition Resizer for more control.

Shrink volume grayed out server 2019 with Diskpart

If the shrink volume option in Disk Management is grayed out, you can use the command-line tool Diskpart, which offers more control.

Note: The shrink volume option is also not available on c FAT32 drive.

Follow these steps to shrink the C drive using Diskpart:

1. Press Windows + X and select Command Prompt (Admin) to open a command-line window with administrator privileges.
2. Type diskpart and press Enter to launch the Diskpart utility.
3. In the Diskpart prompt, type list volume and press Enter to display all available volumes.
4. Identify the volume number of your C drive, and then type select volume C and press Enter.
5. Now, type shrink desired=20480 to shrink the volume by 20GB (replace 20480 with the desired size in MB) and press Enter.
6. Diskpart will process the request and shrink the partition. If it fails, ensure there are no immovable files or try freeing up additional space.

These steps should help you shrink the system partition on Windows Server 2019 using Diskpart, but if this doesn't work, it's advisable to try using third-party software like IM-Magic Partition Resizer.