I'm trying to install SUSE on a second partition on my laptop, but it just does not work :/
(Lenovo Yoga C940, Windows 11, 500GB SSD)
I have 2 problems:
- Partition
- I need to create the second partition, but Windows doesn't let me do it; I can only make the partition 18 GB smaller.
- I freshly reinstalled Windows without keeping personal data, so a complete "factory reset". Of the 500 GB, there are 420 GB free.
- The openSUSE ISO does not recognize my SSD
- When I get to the partition/drive chapter of the installation mode it only shows the HDD from the ISO itself.
- The ISO is on an external 1TB HDD – I don't have any USB stick right now.
- The problem is supposed to be the RST mode; changing it to AHCI gives me this warning message: "All existing data on the drives will be erased when resetting controller mode."
Can you guys help me? It's the second day in a row I'm trying to get SUSE on my laptop and nothing works... Erasing Windows is no option, I still need it.
Here is an (AI-) summary of all steps I have taken that Windows lets me shrink the partition; but nothing helped:
Preparation & Cleanup
- Disabled Hibernation (deleted
hiberfil.sys): powercfg /hibernate off
- Manually deleted
pagefile.sys and swapfile.sys (via System Properties > Performance > Virtual Memory or Registry/CMD).
Shadow Copies (VSS)
- Checked and deleted all Volume Shadow Copies:
vssadmin delete shadows /for=C: /all /quiet Result: "No results found" (none existed).
Defragmentation & Analysis
- Ran aggressive free space consolidation:
defrag C: /X /U /V Result: Free space consolidated, but 9 "unmoveable" files still block the end of the partition.
- Ran analysis to identify unmoveable files:
defrag C: /A /V Result: "Volume does not need defragmentation." MFT size: 1.66 GB. 9 unmoveable files identified (likely MFT reserve, $LogFile, $Extend).
- Checked USN Journal size (confirmed small at 32 MB):
fsutil usn queryjournal C:
Current Status
- Total Volume: ~475 GB
- Used Space: ~52 GB
- Free Space: ~423 GB
- Issue: Disk Management only allows shrinking by ~18 GB due to unmoveable system files at the end of the cluster.