A hard drive is a computer’s storage facility. The space available for storage of items, such as programs, videos, and documents, is often called memory. When a person uses most or all of this space, she may not be able to save files and her computer may begin to operate much slower. To increase hard drive memory, a person can use external storage devices, add an additional hard drive, and delete unwanted files.
A simple way to increase hard drive memory is to use portable storage devices. The space on a hard drive must be considered in much the same way as any other type of space. When a person is shopping, every item stored in the shopping cart reduces the available space for new items. Likewise, every item person a wishes to save on a computer’s hard drive consumes space. Using a device such as a portable hard drive or a flash drive allows a person to store her files and obtain them when necessary without consuming space on her hard drive.
If a person does not want to deal with portable storage devices, she could install an additional hard drive. Much like getting a second shopping cart or adding an addition to a house, an additional hard drive provides a new allotment of space, but it remains within the computer. Thereafter, when a person saves something, she will generally be given an option of which hard drive she would like to use for storage.
It is beneficial to note that hard drives are available in various sizes. When a person installs an additional hard drive it can be either larger or smaller than the original hard drive. Furthermore, if a person does not want two hard drives, she can purchase a hard drive that is large enough to suit her needs and she can remove the original hard drive.
Another strategy for increasing drive memory is deleting programs and other files that are not needed. Many people think hard drive memory is only affected by items they save. However, the programs already on a computer when it is purchased consume space. Anything that is unneeded can be deleted to increase hard drive memory.
In some cases, deletion is not necessary. Instead, people can increase memory by turning off functions they do not use or those they are willing to sacrifice. One example of this is hibernation, which allows a computer to save information, shut down the computer, and reopen the information when the computer is restarted. If a person disables the hibernate function she can increase her hard drive memory. She will simply have to reopen documents and programs herself when she restarts her computer.
