To safely move Documents folder to another drive in Windows 10, copy and part won’t work. Try ways in this post, we’ll show you how to change the location of Documents.
Working on any PC entails downloading and storing data in various directories. The Document folder, which is one of the default directories on a Windows PC, is one such significant folder. The default Documents folder is on your system's C disk. However, as time passes, the folder grows in size, using a substantial amount of space on the C drive.
Then, you’d think about moving it to another drive. But, when some users try to move it, they received a notice showing that “can't move documents folder access denied”.
If you also find that you are running short of space in your C drive, and when you may want to move your Documents folder to another location but Windows doesn't allow you to do it, then this post on how to move the Documents folder to another drive in your Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC will help you.
The reason why the denied warning pops out is the path. You must change the storage path, then the folder is able to be moved. So in this part, we’ll show you 2 ways to move the folder and how to change the path.
▶ Section 1. Create new folders
Step 1. Open File Explorer.
Step 2. Click on “This PC” from the left pane.
Step 3. Under the "Devices and drivers" section, open the new drive location.
Step 4. Navigate to the location you want to move the folders.
Step 5. In the new location, create a new folder named “Documents”.
▶ Section 2. Move the folder
Step 6. Press “Windows” + “R” and type: %HOMEPATH%.
Step 7. Right-click the Document folder and select the “Properties” option in the menu.
Step 8. Click the “Location” tab and click the “Move” button.
Step 9. Select the folder with the same name in the new location, and click the “Select Folder” button.
Step 10. Click the “Apply” button and confirm with the “Yes” button.
Although the first way can help you to move the Documents folder, you see, there’re too many steps for users. To easily and safely move Documents folder or move Users folder to another drive in Windows 10 or 11, AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional is a great alternative.
It’s a Windows PC manager for Windows 11/10/8/8.1/7/XP with various features. In the “App Mover” function, you can choose to move folders and the software will automatically move and change the path for you, so you don’t need to modify it manually. The operation is quite user-friendly for all users.
Step 1. Install and run AOMEI Partition Assistant, click “Free up” in the top toolbar and select “APP Mover”.
Step 2. In the new window, click “Move Folder”.
Step 3. Select the Documents folder. Choose the location drive under the window, and click “Move”.
Step 4. You will see a pop-up message to confirm forcibly closing running applications when moving starts. Click "OK" to begin the process.
Wait for a while, the Documents folder will be moved to the other drive.
If your C drive is still crowded with your data, don’t worry. You can try to move the programs that are installed on the C drive. “App Mover” utility will move the programs and detect all data of the target apps on your disk to make sure your moved apps can run after the moving.
After you enter this window, if you want to move installed programs, please choose “App Mover”.
Step 1. In the pop-up window, choose the partition that you want to free up via moving apps (here is partition C) and click “Next”.
Step 2. In the window, all movable apps on the C drive will be listed. Choose one or multiple apps that you need to move and the destination partition. Then click “Move”.
Step 3. Confirm that you have closed the apps and that you will move from C drive to D drive. Then, click "OK".
Step 4. Wait for the move process to complete. Then, click "Finish".
After the move, you can run a moving app to check if it can run successfully or not. And what's more, you can use the "Delete Large Files" function to scan and remove your PC to find hidden big files to release more free space.
These are 2 ways to move Documents folder to another drive in Windows 10. If you want to skip all cumbersome steps, you can select option 2, AOMEI Partition Assistant. This practical tool also allows users to test disk speed, clone disk, and convert file systems without losing data… And if you also have a Server device, there’s the Server Edition on your service.