my pc has 160GB hard drive but it only shows 152GB?

Question

is that normal , were is the other 8GB?

Answer 1

The main difference is the way the manufacturers measure gigabytes.
Kilo means 1,000 but in computereze a kilobyte has actually 1024 bytes.
Thus, one gigabyte (one million kilobytes) in fact has 1,024,000,000 bytes, not 1,000,000,000.
If the hard drive has 160,000,000,000 actual bytes, the manufacturer tells you it has 160 kilobytes (160,000,000,000 divided by 1,000,000,000), when in fact in computer terms it has 156.25GB (160,000,000,000 divided by 1,024,000,000). The difference between that and the reported size is the space already used in formatting (boot sector, system fyles, etc.).

Answer 2

Well the others almost had it, but not quite. It does have to do with the naming convention. Everything in computers is done in binaries, hence 1KB is actuall 1024 B, 1MB is 1024KB, etc. When manufacturers list drive sizes, they don't use binaries, so 160GB means 160,000,000,000 bytes. But the computer will use binaries, so you have to convert. But here is the thing the last guy missed, you have to multiply by 1024 at each stage. 1KB is 1024 bytes, 1MB is 1024KB, and 1GB is 1024MB. So 1GB equals 1024*1024*1024, which comes out to 1,073,741,824 bytes. Take the 160,000,000,000 and divide it by that, and that gives you how many actual GB you have, which comes out to 149GB. The reason yours is reporting 152GB is because you actually got a little extra for your money, due to the way hard drives are designed, it would be impossible to get exactly 160,000,000,000 bytes, so companies will go a little bit over that, but never under that.

As for the stuff about formatting and system files, not true. The space used for system files is not subtracted from the total before it lists the 152GB, it is subtracted from the free space remaining just like any other file is. You do lose a very small amount from formatting, but nothing that is even noticeable at all when you consider the massive size of the drive.

Answer 3

Yes, it's normal. The difference between the two numbers is due to (1) overhead required for partitioning and formatting the drive, and (2) the naming convention used.

(By "naming convention," what I mean is that 1k is 1000 meters, but 1024 bytes. 1M is 1024 kilobytes. 1G is 1024 megabytes. People sometimes refer to drive capacity using the 1000 number, sometimes using the 1024 number. Makes a difference ...)

No matter, you got the proper size drive AFTER formatting and accounting for the weird naming conventions.

Enjoy!

Answer 4

Yes, it is typical - the rest is used in formatting the hard drive. We could call it a "Windows thing." :)

Answer 5

yeah its normal the gb is just the memory that comes with the computer