To change a dynamic disk back to a basic disk

Using the Windows interface

1.	Back up all volumes on the disk you want to convert from dynamic to basic. For more information about backing up volumes, see Related Topics.
2.	Open Computer Management (Local)
3.	In the console tree, click Disk Management. Where? Computer Management (Local) > Storage > Disk Management
4.	Right-click the dynamic disk you want to convert to a basic disk, and then click Delete Volume for each volume on the disk.
5.	When all volumes on the disk have been deleted, right-click the disk, and then click Convert To Basic Disk.

Note

•	To open Computer Management, click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and Maintenance, click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Computer Management.
•	You must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group in order to complete this procedure. If your computer is connected to a network, network policy settings may also prevent you from completing this procedure.
•	The disk must be empty before you can change it back to a basic disk. If you want to keep your data, back it up or move it to another volume before you convert the disk to a basic disk.
•	Once you change a dynamic disk back to a basic disk, you can create only partitions and logical drives on that disk.

Using a command line

1.	Back up all volumes on the disk you want to convert from dynamic to basic. For more information about backing up volumes, see Related Topics.
2.	Open Command Prompt
3.	Type: diskpart
4.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: list volume Make note of the volume(s) you want to delete.
5.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: select volume=n
6.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: delete volume
7.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: list disk Make note of the disk number of the disk that you want to convert to a basic disk.
8.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: select disk n
9.	At the DISKPART prompt, type: convert basic

Value	Description
list volume	Displays a list of basic and dynamic volumes on all disks.
select volume	Selects the specified volume, where n is the volume number, and shifts the focus to it. If no volume is specified, the select command lists the current volume with focus. You can specify the volume by number, drive letter, or mount point path. On a basic disk, selecting a volume also gives the corresponding partition focus.
delete volume	Deletes the selected volume. You cannot delete the system volume, boot volume, or any volume that contains the active paging file or crash dump (memory dump).
list disk	Displays a list of disks and information about them, such as their size, amount of available free space, whether the disk is a basic or dynamic disk, and whether the disk uses the master boot record (MBR) or GUID partition table (GPT) partition style. The disk marked with an asterisk (*) has focus.
select disk	Selects the specified disk, where n is the disk number, and shifts the focus to it.
convert basic	Converts an empty dynamic disk into a basic disk

Note

•	To open command prompt, click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
•	You must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group in order to complete this procedure. If your computer is connected to a network, network policy settings may also prevent you from completing this procedure.
•	The disk must be empty before you can change it back to a basic disk. If you want to keep your data, back it up or move it to another volume before you convert the disk to a basic disk.
•	Once you change a dynamic disk back to a basic disk, you can create only partitions and logical drives on that disk.
•	For more information about DiskPart, see Related Topics.

Related Topics

•	Back up files to a file or a tape
•	Backup overview
•	DiskPart
•	Storage types and partition styles