Having low storage on the installation drive (generally C:) will affect the performance of your computer. Therefore, moving installed apps from your computer’s system drive to a separate drive can help. You can quickly move the apps with the inbuilt Windows options. Alternatively, you can also use third-party applications available on the internet for this purpose. Here are options you can consider to move installed apps to another drive.
Moving Installed Apps from Windows Settings App
You can move the installed apps from system drive (C:) to any other drives like D: or E: depending on your hard drive’s hard drive’s partition. It is also recommended to install all your future applications in a more spacious disk to avoid system disk overwhelming.
Using Windows Settings in Windows 10
- Open Windows Settings using the “Windows Logo + I” shortcut keys and select the “System” tab.
- Go to “Storage” section on the sidebar and then select “Apps & features” option.
- Select the app you want to move and click the “Move” option. Remember that you cannot move the system applications or applications whose options are greyed out which is an indication that those apps should be installed on system drive.
- You will see a list of available drives from hard drive and select the drive to move the app. Click the “Move” button to confirm your action. It will take few seconds depending on the app size to finish the task.
All your application data will also be transferred to the target drive.
Moving Installed Apps in Windows 11
The process is same in Windows 11 though the interface will look different.
- Press “Windows Logo + I” keys to go to Windows Settings app.
- Navigate to Apps > Installed apps” section.
- Find the app that you want to move using the search box.
- Click on the three dots icon showing against the app and select “Move” option.
- Select the drive from the pop-up and click on the “Move” button.
Using Third-Party Applications
There are programs that you can use to move applications from system drive to a separate drive. Search on the internet for Application Mover or Steam Mover app. Install any of them and move your applications. As you can see in the below screenshot from Application Mover app, all you need is to simply select the current and new path to move you app.
However, if you fear about your data security, you can opt for another alternative.
Uninstall and Reinstall
If you find the first option is not working for you and the second option is risky, you can consider uninstalling and reinstalling the application. This option will take time but will prove to be the best. Also, all the data will be saved in your target drive properly. You can also access the apps without slowing down the system performance.
Set Installation Drive for Future Microsoft Store Applications
By default, Windows will install all applications in the system drive (C:). However, it is possible to change the default installation drive to D: or E: for all your future applications from Microsoft Store. In this way, you don’t have to worry about application’s location and computer storage in the future.
Set App Installation Drive in Windows 10
- Open the Windows Settings app, select the “System” option and navigate to the “Storage” section.
- Select the “Change where new content is saved” to open. You can now change the default saving drive for each option as you want. Select the drive and click the “Apply” option to confirm.
Set App Installation Drive in Windows 11
- Open Windows Settings and navigate to “System > Storage” section.
- Expand “Advanced storage settings” section and click “Where new content is saved” option.
- Click the dropdown below “New apps will save to” option and select your drive.
Remember this works only for the future apps you install from Microsoft Store. When you install applications from third-party websites, make sure to select the spacious drive on your hard drive. Follow the above mentioned options for moving an already installed app.
Note: It is also possible install future apps in an external har drive or USB. All you need is to connect the drive and then select it from Windows Settings app. But you should make sure the drive is connected every time when you download apps from Microsoft Store app.
Conclusion
Now you can move your applications to and from different drives. However, we do not recommend moving applications since there is a possibility of data loss and some residual files will always be there on the original installation drive. The best option is to uninstall the app and reinstall on a separate partition drive where you have sufficient space. Alternatively, you can increase the space of your system drive for the computer to run smoothly and setup the future installation drive to different partition on your hard drive.
