{"id":561385,"date":"2023-03-08T17:00:18","date_gmt":"2023-03-08T14:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/"},"modified":"2023-03-08T17:00:18","modified_gmt":"2023-03-08T14:00:18","slug":"why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/","title":{"rendered":"#Why Does a Formatted Drive Have Less Space Than Advertised?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a28ffbc8a2c7\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a28ffbc8a2c7\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#%E2%80%9CWhy_Does_a_Formatted_Drive_Have_Less_Space_Than_Advertised%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Why Does a Formatted Drive Have Less Space Than Advertised?&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#The_Most_Common_Reason_Different_Counting_Methods\" >The Most Common Reason: Different Counting Methods!<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#Hidden_Partitions\" >Hidden Partitions<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#SSD_Overprovisioning\" >SSD Overprovisioning<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#Bloatware\" >Bloatware<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/#Youre_Not_Being_Cheated\" >You\u2019re Not Being Cheated<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CWhy_Does_a_Formatted_Drive_Have_Less_Space_Than_Advertised%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Why Does a Formatted Drive Have Less Space Than Advertised?&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width: 1920px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage size-full wp-image-876127\" data-pagespeed-no-defer=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/52651182119_9fce065dfa_o.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"Samsung 850 EVO SSD with M.2 SSD and SATA hard drive 2\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\">Corbin Davenport \/ How-To Geek<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Formatted drives can <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ear to have less space than advertised because of differing byte sizes, hidden partitions, SSD overprovisioning, and pre-installed bloatware.<\/p>\n<p>A gallon of milk is a gallon of milk, but a terabyte of hard drive space may not be what it says on the box! The difference between advertised and reported drive capacities is easy to explain.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Most_Common_Reason_Different_Counting_Methods\"><\/span>The Most Common Reason: Different Counting Methods!<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Drive manufacturers use a different way of calculating storage capacity than some operating systems. Specifically, Microsoft Windows (along with many other programs) counts storage space in binary bytes, whereas drive makers use decimal bytes.<\/p>\n<p>The difference between decimal and binary bytes is that decimal bytes are based on the decimal (base-10) system, whereas binary bytes are based on the binary (base-2) system. In the decimal system, the basic unit of measurement for digital data storage is the decimal kilobyte, which is equal to 1,000 bytes. In the binary system, there are 1024 bytes in a binary kilobyte.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, 1 GB may be slightly less than 1 GB when displayed in Windows. That\u2019s because 1 GB in the decimal system equals 1000 megabytes, but in the binary system, it equals 1024 megabytes. When displayed on a Windows computer, this would be rounded down to a value slightly less than 1GB. When you add all those 24-megabyte differences together, Windows reports the formatted size for a 1TB drive as 931GB.<\/p>\n<p>Incidentally, the terms kibibyte, mebibyte, and gibibyte, are used to specifically denote binary units.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hidden_Partitions\"><\/span>Hidden Partitions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Hidden drive partitions are portions of a drive that are set aside for specific purposes, such as storing operating system and system files or for creating a recovery partition. When displayed in the operating system, these partitions are invisible to the user and are not included in the drive\u2019s available capacity.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, when a drive is formatted, the capacity of any hidden partitions is not included in the total available capacity, which means that the formatted drive may appear to have less space than advertised. For example, suppose a drive with a 1 TB capacity has a hidden partition that takes up 500 GB of space. The formatted drive will only appear to have 500 GB of available space, even though the advertised capacity was 1 TB.<\/p>\n<p>Some manufacturers may create hidden partitions on the drive for pre-installed software or other files, which will also reduce the available capacity of the formatted drive.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"SSD_Overprovisioning\"><\/span>SSD Overprovisioning<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>SSD (solid-state drive) overprovisioning is the practice of reserving a portion of the drive\u2019s capacity for use by the drive\u2019s internal processes, such as garbage collection, wear leveling, and bad block management. This reserved portion of the drive is invisible to you and is not included in the drive\u2019s available capacity when displayed in the operating system.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes, your SSD will have utility software that lets you change the level of overprovisioning and even turn it off.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Bloatware\"><\/span>Bloatware<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The advertised capacity of the drive may not include the space used by any pre-installed software or other files that come with the drive. If the drive has such files, they will take up some of the available space, resulting in a formatted drive with less capacity than advertised.<\/p>\n<p>This is more common with external hard drives that come with various software packages pre-installed, often in a partition you can\u2019t easily delete. However, any pre-built computer or laptop will likely have more than just the operating system installed.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Youre_Not_Being_Cheated\"><\/span>You\u2019re Not Being Cheated<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>While you may not have access to all the room on your hard drives, there\u2019s no conspiracy to steal your drive space here. However drive sizes are reported, the actual number of bits you get doesn\u2019t change. It\u2019s only how they are grouped into larger units that\u2019s different.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <strong><em>Remove Your PC\u2019s Recovery Partition and Take Control of Your Hard Drive<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As for hidden partitions and bloatware, you can always remove both and claim your space back. It\u2019s your computer, after all\u2014you can make the rules!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/854685\/why-does-a-formatted-drive-have-less-space-than-advertised\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Why Does a Formatted Drive Have Less Space Than Advertised?&#8221; Corbin Davenport \/ How-To Geek Formatted drives can appear to have less space than advertised because of differing byte sizes, hidden partitions, SSD overprovisioning, and pre-installed bloatware. A gallon of milk is a gallon of milk, but a terabyte of hard drive space may not&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":561386,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/52651182119_9fce065dfa_o.jpg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-561385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=561385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561385\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/561386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=561385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=561385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=561385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}