Under the virtual hard drive(VZhD) OS Windows 7 refers to the space on the physical media (it is also disk, hard drive, HDD) created by means of the operating system (OS) for the user's daily tasks. This concept also includes an image, or cast, file structure, content taken from physical media: flash drive, DVD, HDD. The difference between virtual media and physical media is that the former can be turned off at will, thus turning it into an encrypted storage of information.
Answering the question why you need a virtual disk in Windows 7, let's talk about its use and benefits. The first advantage is the expansion of storage space. Since the virtual disk is perceived by the OS on the same level as the physical one, it operates with it as a "real" hard drive.
The second positive quality is that the installation of a drive is often accompanied by the transfer of an operating system image to it. Users note the acceleration of the boot procedure (boot), although this is not confirmed by the official tests of the developer.
A useful feature for those users who have a lot of multimedia flexible media is the creation of an image on the VZD, that is, an exact "cast" of the media. When working with it, you do not need an external DVD-ROM, flash drive, etc.
With frequent reinstalling windows create and store a system image with related drivers, utilities and programs specifically on the VZhD. After the drive is started, the procedures are carried out in automatic mode. To create such a drive, you do not need special knowledge, it is available even to an inexperienced user. Since the drive is no different from a hard drive, the same operations are performed with it, information is stored, including encrypted.
How to create a virtual disk on Windows 7? Using the built-in tools (tool) of Windows and third-party emulator applications. In this article, we will consider the first method in detail.
The easiest way for a person who is not familiar with the depths of administration is to use the diskmgmt.msc command. Open the Start menu, type this command in the command line, press Enter.
The "Management Manager" section will open. Here we select the "Disk Management" tab.
Click the "Action" item, go to the option, as shown in the figure below.
A window will open in which the user specifies the location, that is, the area on one of the logical partitions of the physical hard drive.
Important! A virtual disk is created not in some ephemeral space, but on one of the HDD logical partitions. It takes away from it the amount of memory that the user determines.
Then we select the type of information storage: with dynamic expansion or fixed. The second type is recommended by default and is characterized by a fixed virtual drive size that cannot be changed. In contrast, VZhD with a dynamic format changes the volume as it is filled with information. However, if the user deletes the data, the freed up space will not be automatically compressed.
When choosing a fixed format, specify the size in Mb, Gb or Tb in the dialog box without leaving this menu. We press "Next".
If done correctly, a virtual drive will be created with the drive letter assigned. But for now it is in the "Undefined" state. To run, you need an initialization procedure.
Right click on the letter, open context menu. The first tab from the top is "Initialize Disk". We press.
The following window opens, where nothing needs to be changed. We check that the mark is on the line "Master Boot Record", then click OK.
We click anywhere in the field of the created drive. Go to the top tab "Create a simple volume". This type of partition (volume) is suitable for most users.
The Creation Wizard starts. The next window prompts you to specify the capacity of the volume. A range of figures is given: from the maximum capacity of the VZhD to the minimum. After specifying the volume size, click on the "Next" button. The window for assigning an alphabetic letter to the new drive will open. It's simple here: select a letter from the drop-down menu, click "Next".
Among the two options to choose from, NTFS suits modern drives and a 64-bit operating system. FAT 32, as the name implies, is used on low-capacity HDDs and on 32-bit Windows 7. Leave the cluster size at the default. Here we specify the volume label (optional).
Then we move on to formatting the volume. The default is quick formatting. Then click "Next". The procedure takes a fraction of a second, and then the final window of the wizard appears. Click "Finish" to finish its work.
Now the virtual disk has taken its rightful place in menus such as My Computer, Explorer. When you press right click mouse on the VZhD field, a menu opens where operations are listed, for example, the volume can be made bootable (active), change the designation letter, etc.
The removal procedure is useful when you need to clean up your computer. Consider step by step instructions. Recommended reliable way deleting a virtual disk from Windows OS. The steps are the same as for creation. Our task is to get to the virtual disk menu.
Note! The method of deleting VHD via cmd by entering the subst [X]: /D command, where X is the letter of the virtual partition to be deleted, cannot be recommended for ordinary users. Windows 7 "swears" at such an operation, often blocks it. Therefore, you need to go into the registry, look for a line with an entry about a virtual disk and manually delete it. But this can only do advanced user, which clearly controls the actions. Wrong actions in system registry can crash the OS!
Here is given general characteristics. The programs used to create a virtual disk are called emulators for their ability to display virtual copies carrier. These programs (Alcohol, Daemon, 120, Ultraiso, etc.) run virtual optical drives, the scope of which is identical to the virtual ones created in the OS environment. The difference is that the existence of a virtual optical drive is possible only during a session with the emulator. That is, until the emulator program is running on the computer, the virtual disk will not be activated. When you disable the emulator, the created virtual drive disappears.
Emulators are popular for their ability to handle an unlimited number of virtual drives. This function is used to emulate images of programs, games, applications and, of course, a snapshot of virtual or hard media. Archives with the *.iso extension, etc. are used as processed files.
We have examined in detail step by step process how to create virtual hard disk in Windows 7. The built-in tools of Seven allow you to create virtual disks with which they perform the same operations as with regular hard disks. In case of uselessness, VZD is easily removed from the OS. Emulators perform the same functions, that is, they operate with virtual drives in the Windows environment.
However, the specifics of their work is that the created images exist only when the program is running. When the emulator is disabled, the virtual optical drive disappears. Because of this, it is hardly acceptable to use it as information storage, as is the case with a virtual drive under Windows control 7. Therefore, emulators are used, as a rule, to activate ready-made casts from a carrier that are suitable for one session of working with them.
Hello.
In this article, I would like to touch on two things at once: a virtual disk and a disk drive. In fact, they are interconnected, a little lower we will immediately make a short footnote to make it clearer what will be discussed in the article ...
Virtual Disk(the name “disc image” is popular on the net) - a file whose size is usually equal to or slightly larger than a real CD / DVD disc from which this image was obtained. Often images are made not only from CDs, but also from hard drives or flash drives.
Virtual drive(CD-Rom, disk drive emulator) - roughly speaking, this is a program that can open an image and present you with information on it, as if it were a real disk. There are many such programs.
Link to the lite version: http://www.daemon-tools.cc/rus/products/dtLite#features
One of the best programs for creating and emulating images. Supported emulation formats: *.mdx, *.mds/*.mdf, *.iso, *.b5t, *.b6t, *.bwt, *.ccd, *.cdi, *.bin/*.cue, * .ape/*.cue, *.flac/*.cue, *.nrg, *.isz.
You can create only three image formats: *.mdx, *.iso, *.mds. You can use the light version of the program for free at home (for non-commercial purposes). The link is above.
After installing the program, another CD-Rom (virtual) appears in your system, which can open any images(see above) which you can only find on the Internet.
To mount the image: run the program, then right-click on the CD-Rom, and select the "mount" command from the menu.
To create an image just run the program and select the "create a disk image" function.
After that, a window will pop up in which you need to select three things:
The disk whose image will be obtained;
Image format (iso, mdf or mds);
The location where the virtual disk (i.e. image) will be saved.
Conclusions:
One of the best programs for working with virtual disks and drives. Its capabilities will be enough, probably, for the absolute majority of users. The program works very quickly, does not load the system, supports all the most popular versions of Windows: XP, 7, 8.
Link: http://trial.alcohol-soft.com/en/downloadtrial.php
(to download Alcohol 52%, when you follow the link above, look for the download link at the very bottom of the page)
A direct competitor to Daemon tools, and many rate Alcohol even higher. In general, in terms of functionality, Alcohol is not inferior to Daemon Tools: the program can also create virtual disks, emulate them, burn them.
Why 52% and 120%? It's about the number of options. If in 120% it is possible to create 31 virtual drives, then in 52% - only 6 (although 1-2 is more than enough for me), plus 52% cannot burn images to CD / DVD discs. Well, of course, 52% is free, and 120% is the paid version of the program. But, by the way, at the time of writing, the 120% version is given for 15 days for trial use.
Personally, I have the 52% version installed on my computer. A screenshot of the window is shown below. The main functions are all there, you can quickly make any image and use it. There is also an audio converter, but I have never used it ...
Link: https://www.ashampoo.com/en/usd/pin/7110/burning-software/Ashampoo-Burning-Studio-FREE
This is one of the best programs for home use (and free). What can she do?
Work with audio discs, video, create and burn images, create images from files, burn to any (CD / DVD-R and RW) discs, etc.
For example, when working with an audio format, you can:
Create Audio CD;
Create an MP3 disc (https://website/kak-zapisat-mp3-disk/);
Copy music files to disk;
Transfer files from an audio disc to a hard drive in a compressed format.
With video discs, too, more than worthy: Video DVD, Video CD, Super Video CD.
Conclusions:
An excellent harvester, which may well replace a whole range of utilities of this kind. What is called - once installed - and always use. Of the main drawbacks, there is only one: you cannot open images in a virtual drive (it simply does not exist).
Website: http://www.nero.com/rus/products/nero-burning-rom/free-trial-download.php
I could not ignore such a legendary package for burning discs, working with images, and in general, everything related to audio-video files.
With this package, you can do everything: create, burn, erase, edit, convert video-audio (almost any format), even print covers for recordable discs.
Minuses:
A huge package, in which everything you need and do not need, many even 10 parts do not use the program's capabilities;
Paid program (free test is possible for the first two weeks of use);
Heavy load on the computer.
Conclusions:
Personally, I have not used this package for a long time (which has already turned into a big “harvester”). But in general - the program is very worthy, suitable for both beginners and experienced users.
Website: http://imgburn.com/index.php?act=download
The program pleases from the very beginning of acquaintance: the site contains 5-6 links so that any user can easily download it (from whatever country he is). Plus, add to this a dozen or three different languages supported by the program, among which there is Russian.
Basically, without even knowing in English, this program will not be difficult to understand even for novice users. After starting, you will see a window with all the features and functions that the program has. See screenshot below.
Allows you to create images of three types: iso, bin, img.
Conclusions:
Good free program. If you use it in a compartment, for example, with Daemon Tools, then there will be enough opportunities “for the eyes” ...
Website: http://www.slysoft.com/en/download.html
Greetings, dear readers!
Today we will talk about what a Windows virtual disk is and how to create it using the Daemon Tools program. Why did I decide to write this manual? The fact is that for several years now my free course on configuring routers has been actively distributed and downloaded on the network, and during this time many different letters have come from readers - both grateful and containing some suggestions for explaining its use. And one of the common snags was the .ISO file in which this course is made.
The technology lies in the fact that first with the help of special program a course developer or those who upload a copy of a DVD disc to the network, for example, with a recording of their solo concert (namely, their own, since we are against the distribution of non-licensed products), a virtual disc image is created - a file with the .ISO extension, which, as it were, is a digital substitute real hard drive.
And then you need to create a virtual disk in Windows using a special program, on which you can then write this image. That is, the file is on the hard drive, and the program deceives Windows in such a way that it seems to the system that there is another drive on the computer - I hope I explained it clearly enough.
The program for creating a virtual disk is called Daemon Tools. suits us Lite version It is free for home non-commercial use. Download it and install it. I will be showing you how to make a Windows 7 virtual disk, but this will work for all versions of windows.
Another way is to double-click on the Daemon Tools icon to open another menu. In it you will see a list of all ever mounted files, a list of virtual drives and a menu bar. Click on the item where the disk with a plus is drawn and add a video course here.
As I said, the computer perceives it as a DVD inserted into the drive, that is, now you can open it and use it like any ordinary laser disc.
This is how easy it is to create Windows virtual disk on a virtual drive using a special Daemon Tools program, which can be downloaded for free on the net.
Thank you! Did not help
In Windows 7, any user can easily create a virtual disk without using third-party software. At the same time, its structure is no different from the physical carrier, as well as the principle of operation. Since all information will be stored in one file, confusion can be avoided. In addition, it quickly connects to a virtual machine, which will be appreciated by programmers and system administrators.
There are two ways to achieve your goal in the "seven". One of them is somewhat more complicated, since it involves the use command line. However, it provides the user with several more options.
First you need to go to the main menu of the "Start" operating system and enter the word "control" in the search bar. After completion of the operation a window will appear where you need to click on Computer Management. Expanding the drop-down menu "Storage Device", the option "Disk Management" is selected. In the central part of the window, all logical drives into which the hard drive is divided will be displayed.
To create a virtual disk on Windows 7, go to the "Action" tab located on the top panel. After that, select the appropriate item in the drop-down menu. A new window will appear asking you to configure the parameters of the future disk- the user must specify the file location, size and name. When performing these actions, you need to follow two simple rules:
When choosing a format, you should prefer "Fixed", which will allow the partition to immediately occupy all the free space allotted to it and thereby reduce system load. If you use a dynamic disk, then its size will gradually increase as new information is added. As a result, when the physical partition fills up, you may experience problems with the performance of the computer.
When all the necessary settings are completed, it remains to click on OK. For creating Windows disk it will take some time. When it is displayed in the central part of the window, you need to right-click and select "Initialize". To be again make a few tweaks, and the first choice will be the type of main boot area. If its size is less than 2 TB, then you can give preference to MBR. If desired, the user can quickly convert it to GPT while there is no data on the disk.
After initialization, the new disk will not have an allocated area, and this situation needs to be corrected. Right-click and select "Create Simple Volume". As a result, the volume creation wizard will be launched and the user must again set several parameters:
After completing all the operations, you should click on "Finish", and the disk can be used. If the virtual disk is no longer needed, then removing it is easy - just right-click and select the appropriate item. Checking the checkbox " Delete virtual disk”, it will not only be disabled, but also deleted along with all the information it contains. Similarly, you can delete a virtual disk in Windows 10.
It not only allows you to create a hard drive, but also offers a few more options than the first method. First, the utility must be found through the Start menu by typing diskpart in the search bar. On the line with the found utility, you need to right-click and run it on behalf of the admin.
To create a virtual partition 1. vhd of a fixed size (2000 MB) at the root of the logical D partition, you must enter the following command - create vdisk file= D:\1.vhd type=fixed maximum=2000. After that, you need to press Enter. To select a created disc the command must be entered - select vdisk file = D:\1. vhd. Then a few more commands are written:
Windows will then prompt you to format the drive. This can be done from the command line or use the appropriate operating system wizard. This completes the process of creating a virtual disk in Windows 7 and you can start using it, for example, install a second OS from a USB flash drive.
Often there is a need to create a virtual drive. Today, many users exchange ISO images on the Internet. To use the information contained in them, it is convenient to make a virtual drive. Exists a large number of programs to solve this problem.
A good program for creating a virtual disk that supports not only ISO, but also other popular formats. You can easily install an image into the created drive, and its contents will be displayed in Windows Explorer or another file manager. The application can also create images and write them to optical or flash drives.
It should be noted that the program has its own file manager. The utility has become popular due to its simple interface. Developers offer PC users to create images in Gdrive format. With his help you can simulate the work of a physical hard drive with the possibility of compression and encryption. When working with a virtual DVD drive, the system memory which greatly improves the data transfer rate.
The program has been very popular among PC users for many years and is one of the leaders in its class. With her help you can create a maximum of four drives. It should be noted that many competitors in this regard offer more opportunities. Daemon Tools is intended for ordinary users, who should have enough of the number of disks proposed by the developer.
Particular attention should be paid to the application interface, which is as simplified as possible. It allows you to quickly open desired image and mount it. In some similar programs virtual drive after reboot may disappear. Similar problem not seen in the Daemon Tool. If the user does not have enough functionality of the free utility, you can purchase a paid one. The only drawback of the program can be considered the presence in latest versions advertising.
There are much more programs for emulating optical drives, for example, the same UltraISO. However, it is paid, and this is definitely a serious drawback.
Creating a virtual hard disk in Windows 10 (VHDX or VHD) is the process of creating a file that can use the ".vhdx" or ".vhd" extension and acts like a physical HDD, but with the difference that it is stored on a real hard drive. Using any format (.vhdx or .vhd) for virtual disk, you can store any files including documents, images, videos, boot files and the entire OS installation. The only differences between the two formats are that the .vhdx file supports a maximum size of 64TB, has power failure fault tolerance, and provides better performance. As a rule, VHD is useful for adding additional storage to a virtual Hyper-V machine, and due to its ability to support other OS installations, this storage virtualization technology can be used to create a dual-boot system without changing the existing partition.
Working with virtual disks in Windows.
As more and more data began to be stored on a computer, tablet or phone, which replaced filing cabinets, bookshelves, photo albums and CD holders, we quickly had to deal with the fact that there may not be enough space on the device for all information, including a collection of movies or games. One solution is a hard drive. Virtual hard drive partitions take digital data storage to the next level. First, we will consider what we are talking about when we mean a virtual image. And one of the most important points: The terms "virtual disks" and "virtual machines" can be used interchangeably. The digital storage space and high demand for it will continue to grow. Many web services that offer a virtual image in the cloud are subject to scrutiny of their privacy policies. As opposed to keeping all your files on your own computer or physical external storage, with the virtual disk you upload your files to the server. This means that technically you won't be the only one with access to them.
A virtual disk is a type of logical partition that is used in virtualization solutions. It looks like a regular one, but installed on a virtual machine or virtual server. The virtual image performs the same task as a hard drive for a computer, except that it does this for virtual machine. It is created by the virtualization manager by logically partitioning and distributing space among one or more virtual machines. The virtual disk can be used to install guest operating systems, applications, and virtual machine data. Virtual storage capacity depends on the base physical storage capacity requirements. In memory virtualization, a virtual disk is a logically isolated storage unit on top of a storage area network. Cloud storage solution installed on local computer, also used as a virtual hard drive.
You can create a virtual drive on a Windows 7 image using one of the many imaging applications and virtual drives. Consider the process using the example of PowerISO, WinISO and WinCDEmu.
PowerISO can create an ISO file from a CD, DVD, or Blu-ray by copying it in stages. All information, including download data, will be copied. You can launch ISO maker using the main program or the shell context menu. ISO file using the main program:
ISO file via shell context menu:
WinISO can meet your needs for all image formats such as .ISO, .BIN, .CUE, .NRG (Nero), .MDF, .MDS, .CCD, .IMG and .DVD.
You can optimize the storage of data, applications, and anything else that can be burned to CD/DVD by creating ISO images and storing them on your hard drive. Installing a program from an ISO image is much faster than using a real one optical disc. Double-clicking an image to mount it is faster than inserting it into a drive, and finding the correct image with Windows Search is much more convenient than finding the right CD on a shelf. To create an ISO image using WinCDEmu, follow these steps:
In Windows 7, Microsoft introduced new way Reserve copy of your data called "Backup and Restore". It allows you to backup all data to another location and provides the ability to create a system image. A system image is a large document with a VHD extension. It can be used to restore the entire system. In windows 7, the imaging program was so popular that it survived in Windows 8 and Windows 10. The tool is located in the control panel - Backup and Restore (Windows 7). The convenience of backing up your computer using this method, apart from being able to completely restore it later, is that you can transfer the file to any Windows 7, 8 or 10 computer and access the data just like you would from a regular hard drive. So if you only need to copy a few files from your backup, it's much easier to make the virtual hard disk use a VHD rather than restore backup, which will first completely delete the data, and then copy the data saved in the image.
To mount the image in Windows, click "Start" and type "Computer Management" in the search box. You can also go to Control Panel, then System and Security, then click Administrative Tools and then Computer Management. If you are in the Icons view, click Administrative Tools. Now in the menu on the left, click "Disk Management", and wait for the list of disks and partitions to appear. Then right-click Disk Management and select "Mount VHD". In the dialog box, click Browse, navigate to the location of the file you want to include, and click OK.
ATTENTION. If you do not check the "Read Only" box, you will be able to add, modify or delete files/folders from the virtual hard drive. This is really useful because you can attach your file, add some more data you want to copy, and then just extract it.
Once the system finishes mounting, you will see that the drive will show up as a new device in My Computer. Windows will automatically assign a drive letter. Otherwise, right-click on the Primary Partition and select Change Drive Letter. To remove a VHD, right-click on the gray area with the disk name and select "Eject VHD".
You can save a copy of the operating system and all personal data in a document using a free tool from Microsoft. Go to Computer Management, click Disk Management, and then right-click Disk Management. Instead of choosing Mount, click Create VHD. This will bring up a window where you need to specify the document size, format, and location. We recommend choosing the VHDX file format as it is less prone to hacking and can support large file sizes. If you choose the VHD file format, it will recommend a fixed size. If you select VHDX, you will be prompted for dynamic expansion. It's best to leave the default settings. Be sure to enter the size of your virtual disk. You can change it to GB or TB from the dropdown.
Now another device will appear in disk management - marked "Unallocated". In the gray section for the new image, right-click and select Enable Disk. Then you need to choose what to use - MBR or GPT. For compatibility with Windows versions older than Vista select MBR. For new features and larger hard drives use GPT. Now right-click on the unallocated area and select New Simple Volume. This will bring up the New Volume Wizard. First, you must choose the size of the new volume. It cannot be the size of the unallocated space.
Click "Next" and select a drive letter to assign to the partition. Then choose a formatting method. It is set to NTFS by default, but FAT32 can also be selected. Select NTFS if you are using virtual media to back up files from your computer. Click "Next" and "Finish" and that's it! The new device will now show up in Disk Management.
The extension stands for virtual hard drive. This is a format that is structured to represent a standard hard drive and allows the operating system and data to be encapsulated in a single file. This document supports all standard operations. The document is on our hard drive, but all content is written inside the document. All sections, data, and the entire file system are stored in the document that is used for loading. Note that an extension may include an operating system and/or data. The name can be chosen during the setup process, but its extension will always be .vhd. You can create a new document using the available disk space.
The image looks like an unused hard drive. After creating a VHD, you can create one or more partitions in it and format them using file system FAT, ExFAT or NTFS. When it comes to size, a VHD can be fixed in size, or it can expand dynamically. A fixed VHD has a predetermined amount of space that is reserved on the physical media. This reservation also includes white space. Creating a VHD takes longer, but its performance is better because it's all a single block. A dynamically expanding VHD allocates physical disk space as virtual memory is used by the virtual machine. This means that the size of the .vhd file grows as our virtual machine is used. Also, dynamically expanding VHD files do not get smaller when files are deleted.
An existing image can be mounted (attached) so that it appears on our existing operating system. You can also mount the image as a readable drive. Thus, the contents of the image cannot be changed. Mounted images can be extracted (dismantled) or deleted. The advantage of using a VHD is the ability to load and configure multiple versions of the operating system. When setting up multiboot using standard options, you need to create a new partition and install Windows there. Using images simply creates a new VHD. This means that it is possible to have one partition with multiple files (multiple operating systems). Installing a virtual disk also offers a lot of flexibility when it comes to disaster recovery. We can copy an image from one computer that has been damaged to another with similar hardware. Users will have access to the same OS and data as on the old computer.
You can use DiskPart, Windows Disk Management, WIM2VHD, and BCDEdit to manage the VHD. The Disk Management MMC allows you to create, mount and extract images. With DiskPart, you can create, mount, extract, compress, expand, and view image details. Common diskpart commands used for virtual disk:
Complete with automatic Windows installation(Windows AIK) includes a WIM2VHD emulator utility that can be used to create an image from a Windows installation source. Using WIM2VHD, you can create a new image of the specified type and size, apply the WIM, use the Unattend file to automate the Out Of Box part of Windows when you run the generalized image for the first time and apply updates to it.
