GParted facts for kids
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GParted 1.3.1 showing a GPT-partitioned hard disk
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| Developer(s) | GParted developers |
|---|---|
| Initial release | August 26, 2004 |
| Stable release |
1.6.0
 / 26 February 2024 |
| Written in | C++ (gtkmm), C |
| Operating system | Linux |
| Type | Partition editor |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later |
GParted (which stands for GNOME Partition Editor) is a free computer program. It helps you manage the storage space on your computer's hard drive or other storage devices. Think of your hard drive as a big closet. GParted helps you create, change, or remove different sections (called partitions) within that closet.
This tool is super useful for many things. You can make space for new operating systems, like installing Linux alongside Windows. You can also organize your disk space better or copy important data from one part of your drive to another. It can even help you format a USB drive so it's ready to use.
How GParted Works
GParted uses a special library called libparted to find and work with your computer's storage devices. It also uses other tools to support many different file systems. A file system is like the way files are organized on a disk. GParted can work with popular file systems such as Ext4, NTFS, and FAT32.
GParted is written in C++, which is a programming language. It has a simple and easy-to-use GUI, or graphical user interface. This means you can click buttons and see what you're doing, instead of typing complicated commands.
You can get GParted in a few ways. There's a special version called a "live operating system." This means you can put it on a CD or USB drive. Then, you can start your computer from that CD or USB. This lets you change your hard drive partitions without needing to install GParted on your computer first. GParted is also included in many other Linux tools, like Ubuntu's installation media.
Another program that does similar things is GNOME Disks.
What GParted Can Do
GParted can perform many operations on different file systems. The table below shows some of the things it can do.
- Detect: Can GParted find and recognize this file system?
- Read: Can GParted look at the information on this file system?
- Create: Can GParted make a new partition with this file system?
- Grow: Can GParted make an existing partition bigger?
- Shrink: Can GParted make an existing partition smaller?
- Move: Can GParted move a partition to a different spot on the disk?
- Copy: Can GParted make an exact copy of a partition?
- Check: Can GParted look for errors in the file system?
- Label: Can GParted add a name to the partition?
- UUID: Can GParted see or change the unique ID number of the partition?
| Detect | Read | Create | Grow | Shrink | Move | Copy | Check | Label | UUID | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| APFS | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| BitLocker | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Btrfs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| crypt / LUKS | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| exFAT | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ext2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ext3 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ext4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| F2FS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| FAT16 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| FAT32 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| HFS | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| HFS+ | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| JFS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| swap | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| LVM2 PV | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No |
| NILFS2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| NTFS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ReFS | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Reiser4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| ReiserFS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| UDF | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| UFS | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| XFS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ZFS | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Copying with GParted
GParted can copy partitions, much like you copy and paste files. However, it can only copy one partition at a time, not an entire disk. When you copy a partition, the original partition should not be in use.
GParted copies the data based on how the files are organized. This means you can copy a partition to a new space that is either the same size or larger. The important thing is that the data you are copying must fit into the new space.
See also
In Spanish: GParted para niños
