Virtual hard disks are virtual hard disk files that, when connected, display and function almost identically to a physical hard disk.
Virtual hard disks are displayed in the disk management tool in the same way as physical disks.
After connecting (providing the system for use), the virtual hard disk is highlighted in blue. If the disk is disabled (becomes unavailable), its icon turns gray.
To create a virtual disk:
- Press “Win+R” and execute “diskmgmt.msc”.
- In the “Disk Management” window that opens, select “Create a virtual hard disk” in the “Action” menu.
- In the dialog box, specify the location on the physical computer where you want to store the virtual hard disk file, as well as the size of the virtual hard disk.
- In the “Virtual Hard Disk format” field, select “Dynamically expandable” or “Fixed size” and click OK.
To make a virtual hard disk (newly created or another existing virtual hard disk) available for use, select “Connect Virtual Hard Disk” in the Action menu and specify the full path to the virtual hard disk.
It should be noted that the location of the virtual hard disk must be specified using a full path that does not lead to the \Windows directory.