How to use SD Card as internal storage on Windows 11? This article gives you to a complete guide to using SD cards as internal storage. Also, you can learn a quick way to transfer files to the SD card.
“I am using a laptop with only 32GB of primary storage. Unfortunately, if I will install a lot of programs and add some cloud storage to it, this capacity will be filled up very quickly. Fortunately, this computer has a microSD card slot that I can use to expand my storage, but I can't install programs on it or put my cloud storage directory on it because it is not recognized by Windows as internal storage or permanent storage space.”
When you want more space on your computer, you can choose a spare SD card. It saves more money compared to other hard drives. It can serve the same purpose as the hard drive on your computer. The only difference is that a local hard drive is permanent in your laptop, while an SD card is a portable solid state memory for you to store your data and take it with you.
Like the user in the case above, there are many others who would like to expand their computer storage space by using SD cards. It is possible to do this. However, before showing how to make the SD card the internal storage of Windows 11, please understand the benefits and drawbacks of your doing so.
π Benefits of Using SD Card as Internal Storage on Windows 11
π Drawbacks of Using SD Card as Internal Storage on Windows 11
After understanding the above, if you still want to use SD card as permanent storage for Windows 11, you need to follow these steps.
In order to be able to mount your SD card as permanent storage for Windows 11, it must be formatted with the same file system as your computer's primary storage file system. For Windows 11 it says that the primary file system is NTFS. Usually, SD cards are formatted in FAT32, but let's check that first.
π Note: This step will delete all files from your SD card. Before doing this step, be sure to make a backup of your SD card if you have important files on it.
To use SD card as internal storage on Windows 11, you will also need to create a folder in the C: drive and then mount it. You can do this by following the steps below.
After setting the SD card as internal storage, you can install the software on it. You can also save files, etc. in it. If you want to move files from another drive to your SD card to free up its storage space, what is the fastest and safest way to do it?
You can quickly sync your files from other locations to your SD card with the help of free sync software - AOMEI Backupper Standard. The whole operation is very easy with just a few clicks. Even if you are a computer novice, you can quickly get started. It can help you sync files to a cloud drive, a USB drive, network location, or NAS device. It can run automatic sync for data that are changed frequently.
First download this software to your computer and open it. To move files from other locations to SD card folder, you just need to click Sync -> Basic Sync. Then select the files you want to transfer and the destination separately. Finally, click Start Sync to complete this operation.
This article gives you details on how to use SD card as internal storage on Windows 11 so that you can use it to save space on your computer's disk. You can also download applications to the SD card.
AOMEI Backupper Standard can help you not only to transfer files, but also to migrate your system or your entire disk. You can use the cloning function it provides to do this. This will be very useful when you want to upgrade your computer's hard disk. Just download it and try it out!