How to change default save locations in Windows 11

Redirect your downloads, documents, and media to a secondary drive to preserve storage space on your primary Windows system partition.

1. Open system storage settings. Open the Start menu and click the Settings icon. Navigate to System, then select Storage from the right-hand panel to view your drive distribution.
2. Access advanced storage options. Scroll down to the Storage management section and click Advanced storage settings to expand the menu. Select Where new content is saved from the list of options.
3. Assign new save locations. Review the list of content types, including apps, documents, music, photos, and videos. Use the dropdown menu next to each category to select your secondary drive from the available options.
4. Confirm the changes. Click the Apply button after selecting the new location for each category. If prompted, confirm the authorization to change the storage path for that content type.
5. Verify the drive connection. Ensure the secondary drive remains connected to your system at all times. If the drive is disconnected, Windows will revert to the primary drive location until the storage device is reconnected.