Partitioning your hard drive lets you make optimum use of its space by storing different types of data in separate sections, but the partition manager in Windows (called Disk Management) is basic and confusing. Macrorit Partition Expert is a more sophisticated alternative, which packs lots of useful features into an easy-to-understand interface.
The free version offers everything you need to manage partitions on your PC, from creating and deleting them to moving and resizing them without losing any data. You can reformat an NTFS partition to FAT32; merge and split partitions (which Macrorit calls ‘volumes’); scan partitions for bad sectors and corrupt files; and fix errors to improve performance.
Most interesting are the options you’d usually expect to pay for, such as cloning a whole drive and creating a bootable version of the program on a USB stick (see screenshot). The program provides helpful ‘wizards’ to guide you through these tasks, and provides clear warnings about carrying out risky actions.
Because the Free edition is so comprehensive, upgrading to Pro doesn’t give you a great deal more, other than an instant ‘roll-back’ option if something goes wrong and no restriction on the size of drives (the free version has a still-generous 32TB limit). Even Macrorit admits on its website that Partition Expert Free has “almost every function” of the paid-for edition. Both versions trigger a SmartScreen security warning, but they’re completely safe to use.
OUR VERDICT: Don’t pay for it
For home users, Macrorit Partition Expert Free offers more than enough tools to confidently manage partitions. Other than an Upgrade button on its toolbar, it doesn’t nag you to upgrade to the Pro version, so save your money and stick with the free one.
