[Peter]

How could I go about to partition my iBook hard drive? I have a 20Gb hard drive and would like to have a 5Gb partition, a partition for music and apps which i wish to be placed on an iPod. So how do i partition it, can it be done without special programs?

[Camelot]

Mac OS X or Mac OS 9.x?

Both systems ship with basic hard drive formatting/partitioning applications you can use.

Typically, since you can't repartition an active drive you'll need to boot off the System CD and run the disk utility to format and partition the drive (after backing up your important files, of course).

Once partitioned you'll need to reinstall the OS, applications and data, etc.

In my opinion, it's not worth the bother. While the idea of having a partition in sync with the iPod is nice, what happens if you upgrade the iPod to the 10gb version?

If what you're most concerned about is not being able to put more on the partition than you could fit on the iPod, a simple Folder Action script could alert you to when you're approaching the limit.

[Peter]

That was one of the reasons I want a partition, but having a partition would be very useful. I am running OS X.2.3 - you mean there is no way to partition a hard drive whilst you are using it, as I do not want to forumat my Hard drive.

[typoon]

Yes you can partition while using it. It's called FWB partition tool kit. If you are familiar with the PC it is similar to Partition Magic on the PC. Unfortunately you need to make a bootable Disk for it in order to partition your main HD. I would also suggest backing everything up before doing this.

I know I have this program. www.fwb.com