VHD or VHDX File - Create and Attach in Windows 8

How to Create and Attach a VHD or VHDX File in Windows 8

information   Information
This tutorial will show you how to create a fixed or dynamically expanding VHD or VHDX file any size you like saved to where you like, and to attach/mount it as a drive in the Computer window for all users in Windows 8.

You must be signed in as an administrator to be able to create and attach a VHD or VHDX file in Windows 8.

Note   Note
VHD (Virtual Hard Disk) - Supports virtual disks up to 2400 GB in size. For more details and information, see: Download: VHD Specs - Microsoft Download Center - Download Details

VHDX (Hyper-V Virtual Hard Disk) - Supports virtual disks up to 64 TB (65536 GB) in size, and is resilient to power failure events. This format is not supported in operating systems earlier than Windows 8. For more details and information, see: Download: VHDX Format Specification v1.00 - Microsoft Download Center - Confirmation

warning   Warning
Mounted VHD or VHDX files will only stay attached as a drive for the current session of Windows 8. When you restart or shut down the computer, any attached VHD or VHDX files will automatically be unmounted/detached as a drive from Computer.

You will just need to mount/attach the VHD or VHDX file(s) again to have it displayed as a drive in the Computer window again until the next restart. No need to create another new VHD or VHDX file.

Signing off or switching user, will not affect any mounted/attached VHD or VHDX file(s).



Here's How:

1. Open the WIN+X Power User Tasks menu, and click/tap on Disk Management. (see screenshot below)
WIN+X.jpg

2. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on Yes.

3. In Disk Management (diskmgmt.msc), click/tap on Action (menu bar) and on Create VHD. (see screenshot below)
Create-1.jpg

4. Select (dot) if you want to create a VHD or VHDX file, click/tap on the Browse button. (see screenshot below)
Create-2.jpg

5. Navigate to and open the folder or drive that you would like to save the VHD or VHDX file to, type in a name you want fo the VHD or VHDX file, and click/tap on Open. (see screenshot below)
Create-3.jpg

6. Type in the maximum size you want the VHD or VHDX file to be, select the size to be MB, GB, or TB (1024 MB = 1 GB, 1024 GB = 1 TB), select (dot) if you want the new VHD or VHDX file to be Dynamically expanding or a Fixed size,and click/tap on OK.. (see screenshot below)
Create-4.jpg

7. In Disk Management, right click or press and hold on the new "Unknown" Disk # (ex: Disk 1), and click/tap on Initialize Disk. (see screenshot below)
Create-5.jpg

8. Select (dot) MBR (Master Boot Record) or GPT (GUID Partition Table) for what partition you would like the attached VHD or VHDX file to have, and click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below)
Create-6.jpg

9. In Disk Management, right click or press and hold on the new "Unallocated" space (ex: on Disk 1), and click/tap on New Simple Volume. (see screenshot below)
Create-7.jpg

10. Click/tap on the Next button. (see screenshot below)
Create-8.jpg

11. Click/tap on the Next button to create a partition using all of the available "Unallocated" space. (see screenshot below)
Create-9.jpg

12. Select what drive letter you would like to be assigned to the attached VHD or VHDX file, and click/tap on Next. (see screenshot below)
Create-10.jpg

13. Type in a volume label you want to be displayed for the drive (attached VHD or VHDX file) in Computer, and click/tap on Next. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: It is recommened to leave the Perform a quick format box checked to save time.
Create-11.jpg

14. Click/tap on the Finish button. (see screenshot below)
Create-12.jpg

15. The new VHD or VHDX file is now created and attached as drive for all users to be able to use. (see screenshot below)
Create-13.jpg

16. If the disk has been successfully formatted and ready for use like in step 15, then you could just click/tap on Cancel. (see screenshot below)
Create-14.jpg


That's it,
Shawn


 

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Last edited:
Thank you Shawn for tutorial .It's great.
if I install another windows(Example:windows 7 ) in Attached vhd ,Can I Access to my hard drive(D,E)?
Thank you very much:thumb:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64 Bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus-IBM
    CPU
    Intel core i7
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    4G
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia Gforce 610 m 2G
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Intel Graphic 3000 HD

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
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