DiskPart Tutorial — Windows Disk & Volume Management

DiskPart is a low-level command-line tool used to manage disks, partitions, and volumes. It is commonly used in recovery environments, server troubleshooting, and OS deployment. 
 ⚠ Warning: DiskPart can permanently destroy data. Always confirm disk numbers before making changes. 
 
 When to Use DiskPart 
 
 Windows won’t boot 
 Disk or volume not visible 
 Partition repair or cleanup 
 Formatting drives 
 Preparing disks for OS install 
 Checking RAID / NVMe detection 
 
 
 Launching DiskPart 
 diskpart 
 You’ll see: 
 DISKPART> 
 
 Basic Navigation Commands 
 List all disks 
 list disk 
 Shows all physical disks detected by the system. 
 Select a disk 
 select disk 0 
 Replace 0 with the correct disk number. 
 View disk details 
 detail disk 
 
 Working with Volumes 
 List volumes 
 list volume 
 Displays partitions and drive letters. 
 Select a volume 
 select volume 2 
 View volume details 
 detail volume 
 
 Assign or Change Drive Letter 
 assign letter=D 
 Useful when Windows Recovery doesn’t mount drives correctly. 
 
 Rescan Storage Devices 
 rescan 
 Forces DiskPart to re-detect disks. Useful after loading drivers. 
 
 Clear Read-Only Disk State 
 attributes disk clear readonly 
 Fixes disks stuck in read-only mode. 
 
 Create New Partition (Dangerous) 
 ⚠ Erases existing partition layout. 
 clean
create partition primary
format fs=ntfs quick
assign 
 Only use when preparing a disk for fresh installation. 
 
 Repair Scenario — Disk Visible but No Volume 
 
 Run list disk 
 Select disk 
 Run detail disk 
 Run rescan 
 Check volumes again 
 
 If volumes still missing, partition table may be corrupted. Stop and switch to recovery tools. 
 
 Exit DiskPart 
 exit 
 
 Common Mistakes to Avoid 
 
 Running clean on wrong disk 
 Formatting system disk accidentally 
 Assuming disk numbers are same as BIOS 
 Ignoring read-only attributes 
 Writing new partitions before recovery attempt 
 
 
 Recovery Best Practice 
 
 Always document disk numbers first 
 Never modify disk until data is backed up 
 Use read-only inspection before repair 
 If unsure — stop and escalate 
 
 
 Summary 
 
 DiskPart is powerful and dangerous 
 Use it for inspection first, repair second 
 Always confirm disk identity 
 Never rush destructive commands 
 
 DiskPart is a surgical tool — treat it like one.