How to Mount or Unmount VHD or VHDX (Virtual Hard Disk) File in Windows 10

In this post, we will show you different ways using which you can natively mount or unmount VHD and VHDX virtual hard disk files in Windows 10. VHD and VHDX files cannot be mounted from removable media that isn’t formatted with NTFS or ReFS file system.

What are VHD and VHDX

• VHD: A Virtual Hard Disk allows multiple operating systems to reside on a single host machine. This method enables developers to test software on different operating systems without the cost or hassle of installing a second hard disk or partitioning a single hard disk into multiple volumes.
• VHDX: Virtual Hard Disk v2 is the successor format to VHD and is used by Hyper-V. VHDX has a much larger 64 TB storage capacity than the older VHD format 2TB limit. It also provides data corruption protection during power failures.

We have seen how to create and set up a new VHD or VHDX File. Now in this post, we will show you how to:

1. Mount VHD or VHDX file via File Explorer
2. Mount VHD or VHDX file via Disk Management
3. Unmount VHD or VHDX file using Eject via File Explorer
4. Unmount VHD or VHDX file via Disk Management
5. Unmount all VHD and VHDX files by restarting Computer.

1) How to directly Mount VHD or VHDX file via File Explorer

Launch File Explorer.

Right-click the .vhd or .vhdx file, and click Mount.

2) How to Mount VHD or VHDX file via Disk Management

• Open Disk Management (Press Win + R. Type diskmgmt.msc in the box, hit Enter).
• Click Action in the menu bar, and click Attach VHD.
• On the dialog that pops up, click Browse, navigate to and select the .vhd or .vhdx file, click Open, check or uncheck Read-only, and click OK. (see screenshot below)
• You can now exit Disk Management.

3] Directly Unmount VHD or VHDX file using Eject via File Explorer

Open This PC in File Explorer.

Right-click the drive for the mounted .vhd or .vhdx (virtual hard disk) file, and click Eject.

4) How to Unmount VHD or VHDX file via Disk Management

• Open Disk Management
• Right-click the Disk # for the mounted .vhd or .vhdx file, and click Detach VHD. (see screenshot below)
• Click OK to confirm, on the prompt.
• You can now exit Disk Management.

5) How to Unmount all VHD and VHDX files by Restarting Computer

• You can simply unmount all VHD or VHDX files by restarting the computer.

These are the ways to Mount or Unmount VHD or VHDX File in Windows 10.