Greetings,

I just ordered a 320G 7200 rpm hard drive for my new T60 (came without hard drive)
Installing XP Pro, (gonna wait on Vista)
Wondering about partitioning:

How many partitions?
What size?
. . . .What size is needed for OS install,
. . . .with or without programs,
. . . .is optimal sector size important

Should I
Install OS in 1 partition, Programs or Data in 2nd/3rd
Backup (Ghost) of full install in yet another
. . Does this mean just clean OS install w/o programs?
What backup/ghost programs work best?

Can/should you copy XP install CD image to a partition

Hard drive mechanical failure means loss of everything
. . . I know there is a need for other backup

I have some older games / programs long gone, should I think about dual boot?
Is there a Partitioning / Dual Boot for Dummies.

There are lots of ideas out there
How would YOU proceed if you could start from scratch?

I'm not a complete novice, but have not kept up as I would have liked. Sometimes terminology escapes me. I Googled and searched the forums and found bits of info but would like to have a more comprehensive picture. Most information I've found is several years old and wondering if wisdom changes. I'm just looking for insight, perhaps links to cohesive outside articles.

Thanks
Rich

For XP and the basic program load, a partition of 20GB is more than adequate.
You could split the rest (ca. 150GB each) up between a partition for data, and a partition for games/music/photos.
Use an external HD for backups. Easiest is to take a regular image of a partition (or even the whole HD), using something like Acronis TruImage.
Use a 1TB external HD so you have ample space.

And do yourself a favor: skip Vista and go straight to Windows 7, when you are ready to upgrade.

So here it is a year and a half later and I have discovered that a 20 gig drive for windows is not adequate. The problem is that windows does its updates and stores the backup files on the C drive. I have to regularly move the files to another partition as the C drive is perpetually 99% full. There are also programs that write data, and older programs only know how to install to the C drive.

So how can I deleted and join partitions, move data and programs around, find a way to stablize my system?
Do I just need to reistall windows and everything else?

At least my data is safe

Thanks for the help
Rich

Obviously you are/were not following my advice to use an extra partition for data.
Meaning, you should install programs not in C:\Program Files, but in (D:, E: or whatever Partition for Data).
A relatively easy way around some data shortage would be to move "My Documents/My Pictures/My Music" to your Data partition.
http://www.mydigitallife.info/change-my ... and-vista/
Furthermore, use a program like CCleaner, to empty your (probably overstuffed) temp files and IE/FF caches.
You can happily delete all the $NTuninstall... files, along with all the KBxxxxx.log files from your Windows directory.
That should give you a quick breather.

With programs like GParted or Parted Magic you can expand existing partitions, but you need to make space for expansion first.
Assume you have C (20GB), D (150GB), and E (150GB).
You need to create 30GB extra space for C between C and D. Use the partitioning software to 'shrink'/resize the D partition from 150GB to 120GB, leaving space BEFORE the D partition.
When done reboot (this is important, do not skip!).
Now 'expand'/resize your C partition, using the empty space that was freed up above.
Reboot again.
Enjoy.

My original plan was to allocate...
54 GB in C: IBM_PRELOAD for Windows XP, program files, and downloaded install programs
36 GB in E: DOCUMENTS for user data
1.658 GB in hidden partition IBM_SERVICE for Windows XP recovery.

I never use folders "My Documents" "My Photos" "Desktop". Perhaps, I ought to stop using "Program Files", as well.

Lately, I have been keeping my data on 5400 rpm HDs (acquired from my local recycling center) in my Ultrabay.

I keep two spare 4200 rpm 40 GB HD squirred away in my closet.
One contains a fresh install of Windows XP with SP3.
The second contains a fresh install of Windows XP with SP3 and fresh installs of my most frequently used programs.

I use Acronis True Image Home v11 to clone onto a 7200 rpm 100 GB HD.