Disk quotas are an essential feature for managing and controlling disk space usage on Windows servers and workstations. By enabling disk quotas, administrators can set limits on the amount of disk space that users can consume, helping to prevent a single user from monopolizing disk resources and ensuring fair distribution of storage. This article will guide you through the process of enabling and configuring disk quotas in a Windows environment using both the graphical user interface (GUI) and command-line tools like PowerShell.

Examples:

Enabling Disk Quotas via GUI

1. Open File Explorer:

   • Press Win + E to open File Explorer.

2. Select the Drive:

   • Right-click on the drive where you want to enable quotas (e.g., C: drive) and select Properties.

3. Access Quota Settings:

   • Navigate to the Quota tab and click on Show Quota Settings.

4. Enable Quota Management:

   • Check the box labeled Enable quota management.

5. Set Quota Limits:

   • You can set specific limits for disk usage by checking Limit disk space to and specifying the desired limit. You can also set a warning level to alert users when they are nearing their quota limit.

6. Apply Settings:

   • Click on Apply and then OK to save the settings.

Enabling Disk Quotas via PowerShell

1. Open PowerShell as Administrator:

   • Press Win + X and select Windows PowerShell (Admin).

2. Enable Quota Management:

   • Use the following command to enable quota management on a specific drive (e.g., C: drive):

     fsutil quota enforce C:

3. Set Quota Limit and Warning Level:

   • To set a quota limit and warning level for a specific user, use the following commands:

     fsutil quota modify C: 104857600 52428800 <UserSID>

     Replace <UserSID> with the Security Identifier (SID) of the user. The values 104857600 and 52428800 represent the quota limit and warning level in bytes, respectively.

4. Verify Quota Settings:

   • To verify the quota settings, use the command:

     fsutil quota query C:

Enabling Disk Quotas via Command Prompt

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator:

   • Press Win + X and select Command Prompt (Admin).

2. Enable Quota Management:

   • Use the following command to enable quota management on a specific drive (e.g., C: drive):

     fsutil quota enforce C:

3. Set Quota Limit and Warning Level:

   • To set a quota limit and warning level for a specific user, use the following commands:

     fsutil quota modify C: 104857600 52428800 <UserSID>

     Replace <UserSID> with the Security Identifier (SID) of the user. The values 104857600 and 52428800 represent the quota limit and warning level in bytes, respectively.

4. Verify Quota Settings:

   • To verify the quota settings, use the command:

     fsutil quota query C: