How to Rename a Drive

Computers typically use drive letters to name and organize storage volumes. This is true whether the volume is internal storage (HDD or SDD), a USB drive, or a CD/DVD drive. To keep things organized, you can name a drive yourself. On Windows, you can also reassign the drive letter. This How.com.vn article teaches you how to rename a drive on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Renaming a Drive in Windows

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It has an icon that resembles a yellow folder with a blue clip on it. You can either click that icon or press the Windows key and E at the same time to open File Explorer.
It's in the panel to the left. This displays all drives currently available on your Windows operating system.
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Drives are listed below "Devices and Drives." This highlights the drive, which indicates that it is selected.
It's the second tab at the top of File Explorer. This displays the computer management options panel at the top of the screen.
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Click Rename. It's the third option at the top of the page. It has an icon that resembles a blue bar graph with a text cursor over it.
- Alternatively, you can right-click the drive and click Rename.
This changes the name of the drive.^{[1]XResearch source}

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Assigning a New Drive Letter in Windows

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1
Right-click the Windows Start menu
. Right-clicking the Windows Start menu displays the alternate context menu.
- Warning: Changing the drive letter for a drive that has apps installed on it may prevent those apps from functioning.
It's in the alternate Start context menu. This opens the Disk Management wizard.
Drives are usually labeled by their name followed by the drive letter. Right-click the drive that has a drive letter you want to reassign. This displays a context menu for that drive.
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Click Change. It's the second option below the window that has the drive listed.
- If the drive does not have a drive letter assigned, click Add instead.
It's the first option in the pop-up menu.
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Use the drop-down menu to select a drive letter. It's to the right of the radio option that says "Assign the following drive letter." You can select any drive letter that hasn't already been taken by another drive or the system.
- Drive letters "A" and "B" are reserved for floppy disk drives.
- The drive with the Windows installation (usually "C:") cannot be modified or changed.^{[2]XResearch source}
This reassigns the drive letter.^{[3]XResearch source}

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Renaming a Drive on Mac

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It's the icon that resembles a magnifying glass in the upper-right corner of your desktop. This displays the spotlight search bar.
This displays a list of matching search results on your system.
It's the app that has an icon that resembles a hard drive with a stethoscope over it. This opens the Disk Utility app.
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Right-click the drive you want to rename. All drives are listed in the panel to the left.
- If you are using a magic mouse or a trackpad that doesn't have a right mouse button, you can right-click by clicking with two fingers, or by holding Control while clicking.^{[4]XResearch source}^{[5]XResearch source}
It's in the context menu that appears when you right-click a drive in the menu to the left.
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Type a new name and press ↵ Enter. This reassigns the drive a new name.
- macOS does not assign drive letters the way Windows does. Drives are labeled by their name.^{[6]XResearch source}

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Renaming a Disk Drive in Linux

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1
Click the Apps menu
. It's typically an icon that resembles nine tiny squares. Click the Apps icon to display all apps on your system. On Ubuntu, it's in the lower-left corner.
- Each Linux distribution is a little different. The following steps may be a little different, depending on your version of Linux. However, they should be pretty similar.
2
Open the "Disks" app. It typically has an icon that resembles a hard disk. Click the "Disks" app icon to open Disks.
- Disks should be available on most Linux distributions.^{[7]XResearch source}
- If you are unable to find the "Disks" app, use the search function at the top of your Apps menu to search for "Disks".
All drives are listed in the panel to the left. Linux may have extra partitions of Swap, Boot, Home etc. Select appropriate partition.
It's the third button below the "Volumes" label. This displays the "Additional Partition Options" menu.
This opens a dialogue box that allows you to change the drive name.
Enter the new name for the drive next to "Label." Then click the button that says Change in the lower-right corner. This changes the name of the disk drive.

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Tips

Primary system and boot partition drive letters, typically assigned as the "C" drive, cannot be reassigned.
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If an error message is received when attempting to assign a new drive letter, close any applications that may be running from the selected volume and try again.
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