Can I remove the HP Recovery partition to free up hard drive space?

Yes, HP Recovery Manager allows you to remove the HP Recovery partition using the 'Remove Recovery Partition' option, but this is only available on select products that support this function. Important: before removing the partition, you must create HP Recovery media first, as you will no longer be able to perform System Recovery or create recovery media from the partition afterward. To remove it, type 'recovery' in the taskbar search box, select HP Recovery Manager, then select 'Remove Recovery Partition' and follow the on-screen instructions. (Page 11)