Extend Volume Greyed Out? Fix Can't Extend Volume in Windows [New]

Are you having this error that the Extend Volume greyed out while trying to increase C drive or other partition space on Windows 11/10? On this page, we'll discuss why is the Extend Volume Option greyed out and how to fix the "can't extend volume" error on Windows 11/10/8/7, and even Windows Server computers

Check out and find the best solutions to enable extend volume in all your hard drive partitions now:

Can't Extend Partition, Extend Volume Grayed Out

"Hi there, do you know how to fix the problem that Extends Volume option is greyed out in Disk Management? I planned to expand my system C drive to speed up the computer with Windows 11/10. I opened the Disk Management tool, deleted an extended partition to leave unallocated space so to extend C drive?

But it won't allow me to do so. Why? The Extend Volume option is greyed out, and how can I fix this issue?"

Are you having the same issue on your PC that the Disk Management tool won't allow you to extend volume? Relax! Reading this tutorial, you will know why is Extend Volume grayed out. Besides, effective solutions are available right here to help you enable extend volume so as to extend partitions in Windows 10/8/7 for free now. How? Let's see.

NOTE: It's impossible to extend or add partition space with free space on a second basic disk. Therefore, please make sure that the free space or unallocated space and the volume which you want to extend are on the same disk.

Why Is Extend Volume Grayed Out

If you can't extend volume, like cannot extend volume in C drive, don't worry. Open Windows Disk Management, check the state of your disk partition, and the listed reasons below. You'll find why is the Extend Volume option greyed out on your computer:

There is no unallocated space on your hard drive.
There is no contiguous unallocated space or free space behind the partition you want to extend.
Windows can't extend is a FAT or other format partition.

The Extend Volume option in Disk Management only works to a RAW or NTFS partition. You can't extend FAT or other format partition on Windows PC.

Windows can't extend a primary partition with unallocated space in an extended partition, or vice versa.
The partition capacity as reached the 2TB limit on MBR disk.

Now that we know why is Extend Volume grayed out, so how to enable extend volume or increase partition under these circumstances? Here, we've picked up * reliable methods for you to try and apply to extend partition for free.

Your Most Reliable Tool for Extending Volume

As we've mentioned above, among the reasons why you can't extend volume, Windows limitation is the major reason. Windows disk management cannot extend a specific partition in situations.

In order to help you out of the "Extend Volume Greyed Out" error and successfully increase partition size, we'd like to recommend you try a reliable tool for extending volume - Qiling Partition Master.

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It's Resize/Move and Allocate Space feature will effectively fix all the issues, helping you effectively extend volume on Windows 11/10/8/7:

Fix Can't Extend Volume with no unallocated space

Fix Can't Extend Volume Error with no adjacent unallocated space

Fix Extend Volume Greyed Out on FAT or other format partition

Fix Can't Extend Primary Volume with space on extended partition or vice versa

Fix Extend Volume Option Greyed Out in MBR 2TB partition

If some of you still prefer to use Disk Management to fix this error, you may try Method 1 to enable Extend Volume and increase partition space now.

Method 1. Fix Can't Extend Volume Error without Unallocated Space

When your hard drive doesn't have unallocated space, you can't extend a volume. You can either apply Disk Management or apply Qiling partition manager for help.

You can follow either way to enlarge your target partition on Windows 11/10/8/7 now.

#1. Make Unallocated Space and Extend Volume in Disk Management

Note that if you can't extend C drive space, you can also enable Extend Volume in C drive with the same steps below:

Step 1. Make Free or Unallocated Space behind Target Volume

If you don't have free space or unallocated space on the computer drive, you must first delete an empty or useless partition, or shrink a partition to leave free/unallocated space next to the target volume.

1.Press "Windows + X" keys, click "Disk Management".

2.Right-click an empty partition next to the target volume, select "Delete Volume". Click "OK".

3. You can also right-click a neighbor partition that has enough free space, select "Shrink volume".

4. Specify the amount of space to shrink, click "Shrink" and "OK" to confirm.

You are now good to go and follow the steps below to enlarge a hard drive partition without the "can't extend volume" error any longer.

Step 2. Enable Extend Volume, Increase Partition Size

1. In Disk Management, right-click the target partition that you want to extend.

2.Select "Extend Volume" and adjust the size that you want to add to the target volume.

3.;Click "OK" to confirm.

#2. Fix Can't Extend Volume with No Unallocated Space via Qiling Partition Master

Qiling Partition Master with its Allocate Space feature enables you to flexibly move free space from other partitions to extend a target volume.

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1. Click on the D: partition and select "Resize/Move" in "Disk management" page.

2. Drag left pane of the D: partition into the D: partition so to decrease it's size. And click "Proceed" to start.

3. Click on the C: partition and select "Resize/Move" in "Disk management" page.

4. Drag the C: partition end into the unallocated space so to add it to the C: drive. And click "Proceed" to start.

Method 2. Fix Can't Extend Volume Error with No Adjacent Unallocated Space

If you have unallocated space on your disk but it's not next to your target volume, the Extend Volume option will display as greyed out in Disk Management. You can use Qiling Partition Master to extend the partition with its Resize/Move feature.

Step 1. Locate the Target Partition

To start extending partition, you should first locate the target partition and select "Resize/Move" in "Disk management" page.

Step 2. Extend the Target Partition

Drag the partition panel rightward or leftward to add unallocated space into your current partition and click "Proceed" to start extend the target partitio.

Method 3. Fix Extend Volume Greyed Out on FAT or Other Format Partition

Due to the Windows limitation, you can't directly use Disk Management to extend FAT, exFAT, EXT partitions. Here you have two options o fix this error:

#1. Extend FAT or Other Format Partition Using Qiling Partition Master

Qiling Partition Master breaks the limit in Windows PC, and you can directly follow steps in Method 1 or Method 2 to extend your target partition with ease.

#2. Convert FAT to NTFS and Extend Partition in Disk Management

To convert FAT partition to NTFS, you'll need to format or delete the partition, which will cause file loss. Therefore, we don't recommend you try this method. It's time-consuming and risky.

Method 4. Fix Can't Extend Primary Volume with Space on Extended Partition or Vice Versa

Windows also doesn't allow you to extend a primary partition with unallocated space in an extended partition, so it is to extend a logical partition with space in a primary partition.

Therefore, to fix this issue and extend a volume, you'll need to turn to third-party partition manager software for help. Qiling Partition Master can help.

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Method 5. Fix Extend Volume Option Greyed Out in MBR 2TB Partition

This is a rare case but happens sometimes on an MBR partition. If you create a single volume that reaches 2TB capacity, you can't continue extending the partition. Then the Extend Volume Option will grey out.

In this case, you can convert the MBR disk to GPT disk to break the limit. We don't suggest you use Disk Management to execute the operation as it requires deleting all partitions to convert a disk.

Qiling Partition Master with its disk conversion feature will do the work. You may refer to Convert MBR to GPT for help.

Also Read: How to Partition A Hard Drive in Windows 10

Conclusion

On this page, we offered 6 reliable methods to help you fix the "Extend Volume greyed out" error and extend partitions successfully no matter whether you have free or unallocated space on your computer hard drive.

If you prefer a reliable & free tool to extend partition, Qiling Partition Master Free Edition is more reliable. As it doesn't require deleting partition even if you don't have unallocated space. Also, no data loss will occur by extending volume using this free partition tool.

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