A few things you need to keep in mind about converting to a dynamic disk. First of all, this is a one way upgrade. In order to revert back to a basic disk, you must back up all your data, delete the existing volumes and repartition the disk. Next, you cannot upgrade to a dynamic disk of you are using a mobile computer. Finally, dynamic disks are not accessible under pre-Windows 2000 operating systems. If you are dual booting with an older version of Windows, the dynamic disk will not be readable.

You can convert a basic disk to a dynamic disk by completing the steps below:

1. Click Start.
2. Right click Computer and click Manage.
3. Click Disk Management (Local) in the left pane.
4. In the right pane, right-click the disk you want to convert and click Convert to Dynamic Disk.
5. Click the check box beside the disk you want to convert and click OK.
6. Click Convert.
7. When prompted, click Yes.
8. Click OK.

Unfortunately converting back to a basic disk is not as simple but you need know the general process that has to be completed. Since the disk has to be repartitioned, your very first step will be to back up all data on the volumes then proceed with the steps below.

1. Click Start.
2. Right click Computer and click Manage.
3. Click Disk Management (Local) in the left pane.
4. Right click a volume on the dynamic disk and click Delete Volume.
5. Click Yes.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for each volume on the disk.
7. Right click the dynamic disk and click Convert to Basic.

[tags]dynamic disk, vista, convert, convert to basic[/tags]