Windows "Volumes" versus "Partitions"

[SunnyD]

What is the distinction between a volume and a partition in Windows?

 

[xtknight]

From what I can tell, they're the same thing.

A drive is the physical device. The drive contains partitions (or, volumes). It's possible a "volume" only exists if the partition is mounted (given a letter, or mounted to a directory).

P.S. See this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volume_(computing)

A volume can fill the whole disk whereas a partition has to be only "part" of the disk and with partitions you have to have the partition table. Not so with volumes.

 

[SunnyD]

I am fairly certain that a volume can't contain another volume - physically. However in partition nomenclature, you have Extended Partitions, which in and of themselves are partitioned into logical ... um, partitions? I'll look at the wiki article though, maybe it will give me some inspiration.

 

[Aikouka]

From what I read...

A volume is a space with a file system for that space. A partition is a segment of a physical disk.

They gave a couple good examples in there. Kind of like how an ISO is a volume.

 

[xtknight]

Maybe Windows uses it incorrectly. When you press enumerate/populate volumes under the physical disk options, you just get a bunch of partitions.