How Do I Check My Hard Drive Size on My Laptop?
By Lysis
Every laptop and desktop computer has a hard drive installed. It's beneficial for users to keep track of how much free space is available on the hard drive. If the hard drive fills to capacity, Windows can act erratically and performance will suffer. You can view the total size of your hard drive along with the total free and used storage space on the laptop. This will help you determine if you need more storage space.
Double-click the "My Computer" icon on your desktop. If you have Windows Vista or Windows 7, the icon is labeled "Computer."
View the list of hard drives in the new window. For most people, the main hard drive is labeled as "C." The "D" drive is the CD-ROM or DVD drive and other drives listed are network drives.
Right-click the drive you want to view and select "Properties." View the "Capacity" section. This gives you a pie chart of your used and free space, but it also gives you the total amount of storage space for the hard drive.
View the sections labeled "Used Space" and "Free Space." This tells you how much space you've used and how much is free for more programs and document storage.
References
Tips
- You can defrag the hard drive from this window. Click the "Tools" tab and select "Defrag Now" to perform maintenance on the hard drive.
Writer Bio
Lysis is the pen name for a former computer programmer and network administrator who now studies biochemistry and biology while ghostwriting for clients. She currently studies health, medicine and autoimmune disorders. Lysis is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in genetic engineering.