Windows - Move AppData from C Drive to a Data Drive

Scenario

I was running out of space in my C Drive on my laptop and I noticed that the AppData was taking a lot of disk space, especially the application Signal.

The cause: the pictures and other documents shared with my contacts.

Solution

Important: Close Signal completely before starting (right-click system tray icon → Quit)

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator Press Win + X and select “Command Prompt (Admin)” or “Windows PowerShell (Admin)”

2. Move the existing Signal folder

   1	move "C:\Users\jerem\AppData\Roaming\Signal" "E:\Applications\ProgramFiles\Signal"

3. Create the symbolic link

   1	mklink /D "C:\Users\jerem\AppData\Roaming\Signal" "E:\Applications\ProgramFiles\Signal"

4. Verify the link was created

   1	dir "C:\Users\jerem\AppData\Roaming" | find "Signal"

   You should see <SYMLINKD> icon next to Signal, indicating it’s a symbolic link.

5. Start Signal—it should work exactly as before, but now store data on your E: drive.

The /D flag creates a directory symbolic link (junction).

Make sure E:\Applications\ProgramFiles exists before running the move command.

This preserves all Signal messages, settings, and media. If you ever need to reverse this, delete the symbolic link and move the folder back.

Troubleshooting

If Signal doesn’t start

Verify the symbolic link exists and points to the correct location using dir command.

mklink Isn’t a Known Command

Though it is a built-in Windows command, not a separate program you need to install, I came across the issue.

I was running the command line as Administrator

The alternative I used was PowerShell instead.

1

New-Item -ItemType SymbolicLink -Path "C:\Users\jerem\AppData\Roaming\Signal" -Target "E:\Applications\ProgramFiles\Signal"

Documentation

References:

• Microsoft Learn—mklink.
• Microsoft Learn—PowerShell

Credits: Photo by www.logo.wine