Windows 11 creates a Dev Drive by formatting a ReFS volume with the developer designation. You can create one from Settings as a new VHD, from newly unallocated space, or by resizing an existing volume; you need a supported Windows build, administrator access, and at least 50 GB of available capacity.
What a Dev Drive is—and what it is not
A Dev Drive is a Windows 11 storage volume formatted with ReFS and optimized for development workloads. Microsoft identifies source-code repositories, project files, package caches, build output, and intermediate files as suitable contents. The designation is applied when the volume is formatted, not later as a switch you can safely add to an existing data volume. See Microsoft’s setup documentation for the supported workflow: Set up a Dev Drive on Windows 11.
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Use it as a workspace alongside the system drive, not as a replacement for the system drive. Microsoft does not recommend installing applications on a Dev Drive. Keep developer tools, SDKs, and ordinary applications on C:; put the repositories, dependency caches, generated artifacts, and temporary build data that benefit from the development-oriented file-system behavior on the Dev Drive.
Creating or formatting the target volume erases the data currently stored on that volume. There is no in-place conversion that preserves its contents. Back up anything important before selecting a volume for formatting, or create the Dev Drive only in newly unallocated space or a new VHD.
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Check the prerequisites before you begin
| Requirement | What Microsoft lists | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Windows version | Windows 11 build 10.0.22621.2338 or later |
Older builds may not show the Dev Drive controls. |
| Memory | At least 8 GB; 16 GB recommended | The recommendation is for the Windows development environment as a whole, not a Dev Drive capacity requirement. |
| Free storage | At least 50 GB | The Dev Drive wizard requires a minimum target size of 50 GB. |
| Permissions | Local administrator privileges | Creating, resizing, and formatting storage requires elevation. |
| Managed computers | Business or enterprise policy may be controlled by a security administrator | Group Policy can limit custom settings even when the feature is present. |
Install pending Windows updates and restart once more if the option is absent immediately afterward. Dev Drives are available across Windows SKU versions, but an organization can hide or restrict the feature through its management policy. Microsoft describes the policy boundary this way: “Dev Drive is intended only for key developer scenarios and any custom settings will still be covered by Group Policy settings in Business or Enterprise work environments.” Microsoft’s Dev Drive documentation explains the administrative caveat.
Choose the storage type before creating anything
The Settings wizard offers three ways to supply space. Decide based on whether you value direct disk access, flexibility, or a clean separation from existing partitions.
| Choice | Best fit | Important trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| New VHD or VHDX | A portable development workspace, repeatable setups, or a machine where repartitioning is undesirable | Virtual-disk overhead is possible. A VHDX is the recommended format; trust status and filter policies must be reassessed if the file is moved to another computer. |
| Resize an existing volume | A computer with at least 50 GB that can spare capacity from an existing partition | The freed area becomes a new volume. Shrinking a volume changes its layout, so make a backup and ensure the source volume has enough free space. |
| Use unallocated disk space | A new disk or an area already shown as unallocated in Windows | It uses physical disk space directly, but the capacity is tied to that disk and cannot be moved like a VHD file. |
When a partition is the better choice
A partition has less virtualization overhead and may provide the most direct disk performance. It is also tied to the physical disk and is less convenient to resize or move. Choose this route when the computer has stable internal storage and the Dev Drive will remain on that machine.
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Microsoft recommends VHDX over the older VHD format. VHDX supports virtual disks up to 64 TB and includes more resilient protection against unexpected I/O failures. VHD is limited to 2,040 GB. A dynamically expanding virtual disk grows as data is written; a fixed-size disk allocates its maximum size at creation. Dynamic growth saves space initially, while fixed allocation gives a predictable footprint and avoids later expansion work.
Use a per-user VHD location to avoid unintentional sharing. A VHD is easy to copy, back up, or move, but those advantages do not make it machine-neutral: trust status and file-system filter policies are stored per machine. If you copy a VHD hosted on a fixed disk to another computer, reassess its trust and configure the security policy there rather than assuming the original settings follow the file.
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Create a Dev Drive in Settings
This is the supported graphical route and works for a new VHD, a resized volume, or existing unallocated space.
- Sign in with an account that has local administrator rights. If the computer is managed, confirm that your administrator permits Dev Drive creation.
- Open Settings.
- Go to System > Storage > Advanced Storage Settings > Disks & volumes.
- Select Create dev drive. If the command is missing, install Windows updates, restart, and confirm that the build is at least
10.0.22621.2338. - Choose the storage source offered by the wizard: Create new VHD, Resize an existing volume, or Use unallocated disk space.
Option 1: create a new VHDX
- Choose Create new VHD.
- Enter a name and a path. A per-user location is Microsoft’s recommendation when the file should not be shared unintentionally.
- Set the virtual disk size to at least 50 GB. Select VHDX unless you have a specific compatibility reason to use VHD.
- Choose Dynamically expanding if you want the file to grow with the data stored in it, or Fixed size if you want the full allocation reserved immediately.
- Complete the wizard, then provide a volume label and an available drive letter when prompted.
- Review the final summary carefully. Confirm the path, size, and drive letter before accepting the format.
The wizard formats the new virtual disk as ReFS and applies the Dev Drive designation. The VHDX file itself remains ordinary host storage; the Dev Drive is the volume mounted from it.
Option 2: resize an existing volume
- Choose Resize an existing volume and select the volume that can spare capacity.
- Free enough space for a target of at least 50 GB. Close applications that may be using the volume and make a current backup before changing its size.
- Confirm the amount to shrink. Windows creates newly unallocated space from the reduction.
- Select that unallocated space in the next step, then set the Dev Drive’s label, drive letter, and allocation size.
- Check that you are formatting the new unallocated area—not the original volume containing your files—and finish the wizard.
Resizing does not turn the original volume into a Dev Drive. It creates room for a separate volume that is formatted and designated as a Dev Drive.
Option 3: use unallocated disk space
- Choose Use unallocated disk space.
- Select the unallocated region with at least 50 GB available.
- Specify the allocation size, a recognizable volume label, and an unused drive letter.
- Review the disk and size shown by the wizard, then confirm the format.
Because this path starts with space that has no files or volume, it avoids the data-loss risk of reformatting an existing data volume. Still verify the selected disk: a mistaken disk choice can affect other partitions in the same storage-management operation.
Format a Dev Drive from the command line
Use an elevated Command Prompt or PowerShell window when you need a repeatable setup or are administering several computers. Formatting acts on the specified volume, so verify its letter and contents first.
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Command Prompt or terminal command
- Open Windows Terminal, Command Prompt, or PowerShell with Run as administrator.
- Confirm the target drive letter in File Explorer or Settings > System > Storage > Advanced Storage Settings > Disks & volumes.
- Run the command below, replacing
D:with the intended target:
Format D: /DevDrv /QThe /Q switch requests a quick format. Do not run this command against a volume containing files you need; formatting removes the target volume’s contents.
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In an elevated PowerShell session, run:
Format-Volume -DriveLetter D -DevDriveReplace D with the target letter. If the command reports that the drive is in use, close terminals, editors, build tools, and Explorer windows using that volume, then verify the letter again before retrying. If it still fails on a managed computer, a policy or storage configuration may be preventing the operation.
What to store on the Dev Drive
Put files that are repeatedly read, written, scanned, or regenerated during development on the Dev Drive:
- Git or other source-code repositories.
- Project files and local working trees.
- Package-manager caches.
- Compiler and build output.
- Intermediate files, generated code, and other disposable artifacts.
Keep Windows itself, developer applications, SDK installations, and tools on C: unless the tool’s own documentation explicitly supports another location. A Dev Drive is a workload-specific workspace, not a general-purpose replacement for the operating-system volume.
Configure trust and Microsoft Defender safely
A newly created Dev Drive is designated trusted by default. Trust means that you, as the developer, have high confidence in the files stored there; it is not a promise that every file is safe. Microsoft Defender can use performance mode for a trusted Dev Drive to reduce the impact of scanning development workloads while real-time protection remains enabled on other volumes.
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Use the default performance mode for a trusted Dev Drive unless your organization’s security administrator specifies another policy. Do not remove antivirus file-system filters merely to chase performance. Microsoft warns that removing those filters leaves the drive outside standard security scans. The performance setting changes how trusted development content is handled; it does not justify disabling protection for the rest of the computer.
On a business or enterprise device, Group Policy can override custom settings. If a VHD is copied to another machine, reassess the trust designation there and reapply any approved filter policy because those settings are machine-specific.
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- System drive: Microsoft does not support a Dev Drive on
C:. - Removable or hot-pluggable disks: These cannot be designated as Dev Drives.
- VHDs on removable disks: A VHD stored on removable media is unsupported for this purpose.
- Dynamic Disks: Dev Drive does not support Dynamic Disks. Microsoft suggests Storage Spaces instead of Dynamic Disks where that architecture is needed.
These restrictions mean an external USB SSD or other removable device is not a workaround for the 50 GB requirement. Use supported internal storage, a supported fixed-disk VHD/VHDX, or Storage Spaces where appropriate.
Using a Dev Drive with WSL
Windows Subsystem for Linux can access files stored on a Dev Drive, but Microsoft does not say to expect a performance gain when a Linux distribution works with Windows-hosted project files. ReFS also does not support WSL’s metadata mount option for Linux ownership and permission attributes.
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Verify the result and diagnose common problems
The Create dev drive option is missing
- Check the Windows build in Settings > System > About; it must be at least
10.0.22621.2338. - Install pending updates and restart. Microsoft notes that an additional reboot after updating can be necessary before the feature appears.
- Confirm that you are using an administrator account.
- On a managed computer, ask the security administrator whether Group Policy hides or restricts Dev Drive configuration.
The wizard rejects the size
Confirm that the selected target has at least 50 GB available after any resize operation. For a VHDX, check both the virtual disk’s configured capacity and the free space on the host volume where the VHDX file is stored. A dynamically expanding VHDX still needs enough eventual host capacity as data accumulates.
You selected a volume that contains files
Stop before confirming the format. The Dev Drive designation requires formatting, and formatting deletes the target volume’s contents. Copy the data to a backup, create unallocated space by resizing only after verifying the backup, or create a new VHDX instead. There is no supported data-preserving conversion of an already populated volume into a Dev Drive.
The drive works on one computer but not after moving its VHD
Recheck the VHD’s trust designation and the machine’s file-system filter policy. Trust and filter settings are stored per machine, so a VHD moved to another computer must be evaluated and configured there again.
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A Linux project behaves differently on the Dev Drive
Check whether the workflow depends on WSL’s metadata mount option or Linux ownership and permission attributes. ReFS does not provide that option; use NTFS or the WSL virtual disk for projects that require it.
Maintain the Dev Drive after setup
- Keep a backup of source code and any generated data that would be costly to recreate. A Dev Drive is still a storage volume and is not a backup system.
- Leave enough free capacity for package caches and build output. A full development volume can cause tools to fail even when the Windows system drive has space.
- Use a clear volume label and a stable drive letter so scripts and build configurations do not break after a restart.
- Review trust and security policy whenever a VHDX is copied or attached to a different computer.
- Do not move the VHDX to removable storage and expect it to remain a supported Dev Drive.
For the official requirements, supported targets, Settings paths, and command syntax, consult Microsoft’s Dev Drive setup guide.
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