Datasheet

Preparing to Install Windows Vista
19
Installation Options
You will need to make many choices during the Windows Vista installation process. The fol-
lowing are some of the options that you will configure:
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How your hard disk space will be partitioned
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Windows Update and security settings
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The language and locale for the computer’s settings
Before you start the installation, you should know which choices you will select. The fol-
lowing sections describe the options and offer considerations for picking the best ones for your
installation.
Disk Space Partitioning
Disk partitioning is the act of taking the physical hard drive and creating logical partitions. A
logical drive is how space is allocated to the drive’s primary and logical partitions. For example,
if you have a 200GB hard drive, you might partition it into two logical drives: a C: drive, which
might be 50GB, and a D: drive, which might be 150GB.
The following are some of the major considerations for disk partitioning:
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The amount of space required
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The location of the system and boot partition
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Any special disk configurations you will use
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The utility you will use to set up the partitions
These considerations are covered in detail in the following sections.
Partition Size
One important consideration in your disk-partitioning scheme is determining the partition
size. You need to consider the amount of space taken up by your operating system, the appli-
cations that will be installed, and the amount of stored data. It is also important to consider
the amount of space required in the future.
Microsoft recommends that you allocate at least 20GB of disk space for Windows Vista.
This allows room for the operating system files and for future growth in terms of upgrades and
installation files that are placed with the operating system files.
The System and Boot Partitions
When you install Windows Vista, files will be stored in two locations: the system partition and
the boot partition. The system partition and the boot partition can be the same partition.
The system partition contains the files needed to boot the Windows Vista operating system.
The system partition contains the Master Boot Record (MBR) and boot sector of the active
drive partition. It is often the first physical hard drive in the computer and normally contains
the necessary files to boot the computer. The files stored on the system partition do not take any
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