I am guessing you are tired of using the same old Windows 8.1, Windows 8, or even worse Windows 7 and are thinking about upgrading to the latest version Windows 10. Windows 10 is not that new– by the way. It came out in 2015 and blew away all earlier versions of Windows. Your decision to upgrade your computer’s operating system is an excellent one and I am sure Windows 10 will not disappoint you.
Although, there are plenty of things you should know before you purchase the new version of Windows. You don’t want to waste $200+ on new software and find out later that your computer does not have the configuration required to run it smoothly.
Trust me, this happens a lot. People get too excited, buy new software and later feel sorry. One major determinant is “how much space does Windows take?”. This is what this post is all about.
How much space does Windows 10 take up?
The disk space requirements of Windows depends on a lot of factors. First, the version of your processor matters. Talking about the size of the actual Windows 10 ISO files(sizes are released by Microsoft), a 32 bit(x32) version is 2.9GB in size, while a 64 bit(x64) is 3.4GB.
Next, when it comes to the disk space required by Windows 10, you first need to be sure of what version of Windows 10 you need. Do you use your computer for office work? or do you use it at your home?
Once you are sure about the purpose of using a Windows PC, you can go ahead and select any of the Windows 10 versions(Home, Pro, Enterprise, etc). Next, you also need to check whether your computer is enabled with a hard drive or a solid-state drive. Generally speaking, Windows 10 installed on a solid-state drive takes up less space than it’s the counterpart.
So, for a laptop with a hard drive, Windows 10 will occupy 20 GB of space initially. Assuming you install other applications, clog up your desktop with unnecessary files, and also install high-end games on your Windows 10 PC, you will need to partition your C drive to have at least 70 GB space.
Now, if you consider yourself tech-savvy, you can reassign some folders like Program Files, Program Files (x86), ProgramData, and Users to another drive(let’s say D). This will prevent the space occupied on the C drive from growing. But, I have to warn you about the risks of the reassigning procedure. Miss one step and you may lose your data.
What you can Expect from the Future of Charging
What are the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 10 specified by Microsoft?
Here are the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 10 Microsoft has listed on their website:
- Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster compatible processor or System on a Chip (SoC)
- RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) for 32-bit or 2 GB for 64-bit
- Hard drive size: 32GB or larger hard disk
- Graphics card: Compatible with DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver
- Display: 800×600
- Internet Connection: A decent internet connection is required to download updates on bug fixes, new features and a lot more.
Also Read- Microsoft issues Important Windows 10 Update Warning for Users [Latest]
