How to Change Drive Letters in Windows 11

This post shows students and new users how to change or assign a drive letter to an external or internal storage device in Windows 11.

Windows 11 automatically assigns available letters to connected internal or external hard drives. Letters from A through Z are used to identify and name storage devices attached to Windows.

By default, a and B have been permanently assigned to floppy disk drives. However, you probably will never see a computer with a slot for a floppy disk. In this case, you can assign A or B to another storage device connected to your computer.

Letter C is assigned to the System’s main drive, where the Windows operating system is installed. In a multi-drive computer, the letter D is transferred to the second hard drive or CD/DVD drive if a second drive isn’t available.

Letters E, F, G, and so forth are assigned based on devices connected, with the first device being assigned the following unassigned letter in the alphabet.

If you’d like to name a drive other than what is automatically assigned, the steps below will show you how to do that.

To get started with assigning a drive letter to connected storage devices, follow the steps below:

How to change drive letter in Windows 11

Again, letters are automatically assigned to the storage device to identify them as they’re connected to Windows. If you want to assign a letter different from the one automatically assigned, use the steps below.

Windows 11 has a centralized location for the majority of its settings. Everything can be done, from system configurations to creating new users and updating Windows from its System Settings pane.

To get to System Settings, you can use the Windows key + I shortcut or click on Start ==> Settings, as shown in the image below:

Alternatively, you can use the search box on the taskbar to search for Settings. Then select to open it.

Windows Settings pane should look similar to the image below. In Windows Settings, SystemSystem, select Storage on your screen’s right pane, as shown in the image below.

On the Storage settings pane, click on Advanced storage settings to expand.

Then select Disks & volumes as highlighted below.

On the Disks & Volumes settings pane, select the disk drive you want to rename or change its letter. Then select Properties.

On the drive Properties pane, Windows automatically assigned an available letter. However, we want to change the letter from the one assigned to a different one.

Click on the Change drive letter button to change it.

Choose any available letter for the drive on the pop-up screen.

Then click OK to apply.

The drive will immediately be changed to the special letter you chose. File Explorer will now reference the drive by the new letter.

That should do it!

Conclusion:

• Changing or assigning a drive letter in Windows 11 is a straightforward process that can be done through the System Settings.
• Windows automatically assigns drive letters, but users have the flexibility to customize them as needed.
• This customization helps in better organization and easy identification of storage devices.
• Following the outlined steps will allow users to quickly change the drive letter for any connected internal or external device.
• Always remember to select an available letter to avoid conflicts with existing drives.