Learn Hardcore German: Ohne freien Speicherplatz ist es schwer zu speichern. - Without free storage space it is hard to save.

Because the preposition ohne always takes the accusative case. With no article present, the adjective before a masculine noun takes the strong ending -en in the accusative singular: freien Speicherplatz.

Nominative: freier Speicherplatz
Accusative: freien Speicherplatz
Dative: freiem Speicherplatz (Genitive, for completeness: freien Speicherplatzes)

What case does the preposition ohne take?

Ohne governs the accusative. A handy list of common accusative prepositions: durch, für, gegen, ohne, um (plus entlang when it comes after the noun).

Could I say mit freiem Speicherplatz instead? Why freiem?

Yes. Mit takes the dative, so the adjective shows the dative masculine ending: mit freiem Speicherplatz.

Why is there an es in ist es schwer zu speichern? What does it refer to?

That es is a dummy (expletive) subject, like English “it” in “It’s hard to save.” It doesn’t refer to anything specific. You could also say:

Das Speichern ist schwer. (Nominalized verb as subject)
Speichern ist schwer. (Bare infinitive used as subject in informal style)

Why zu speichern and not just speichern?

German generally uses zu + infinitive after many adjectives (like schwer, leicht, möglich) to express “to do something”: schwer zu speichern. A bare infinitive (without zu) is used mainly after modal verbs (können, müssen, dürfen, sollen, wollen, mögen) and a few others like lassen and with perception verbs (sehen, hören) in certain constructions.

Do I need a comma before zu speichern?

In a short sentence like this, the comma is optional: both Es ist schwer zu speichern and Es ist schwer, zu speichern are correct. A comma becomes mandatory when the zu‑infinitive is “announced” by a word like es/daran/darauf or depends on a noun, or if needed to avoid ambiguity (e.g., Er liebt es, zu programmieren.).

Why is the verb ist in second position after putting Ohne freien Speicherplatz at the start?

German main clauses require verb-second (V2) word order. The initial prepositional phrase (Ohne freien Speicherplatz) occupies the first (topic) slot, so the finite verb ist must come next: Ohne freien Speicherplatz | ist | es schwer zu speichern. You can also keep a neutral order: Es ist ohne freien Speicherplatz schwer zu speichern.

Why doesn’t schwer take an ending here?

Because schwer is used predicatively (after a copula verb like sein). Predicative adjectives in German don’t get endings: Es ist schwer. When an adjective directly modifies a noun (attributive use), it does take an ending: ein schwerer Koffer, ohne freien Speicherplatz.

Is there a nuance difference between schwer and schwierig?

schwer: “hard” in the sense of difficult; also means “heavy.” It’s very common and slightly more colloquial.
schwierig: “difficult/complicated,” often a bit more formal or emphasizing complexity. Both fit here: Es ist schwer/schwierig zu speichern.

What exactly is the difference between Speicherplatz, Speicher, and Gedächtnis?

Speicherplatz: storage space (disk/SSD/cloud capacity).
Speicher: memory/storage in general; often RAM or storage hardware.
Gedächtnis: human/animal memory (not for computers). There’s also Speicherung (the process of storing) and Backup/Sicherung (a backup).

Is speichern transitive? Don’t we need an object?

Yes, speichern is normally transitive (you save something): Daten speichern, eine Datei speichern. In your sentence, the object is omitted because it’s obvious from context; German allows this kind of ellipsis.

Could I say Ohne freien Speicherplatz lässt sich nichts speichern?

Yes. That’s a very idiomatic alternative. Lässt sich + infinitive often corresponds to English “can be …”: Ohne freien Speicherplatz lässt sich nichts speichern ≈ “Without free storage space, nothing can be saved.”

Can I move the ohne-phrase next to the verb phrase?

Yes, and it often reads more natural when tied to the activity:

Es ist schwer, ohne freien Speicherplatz zu speichern. You’ll also see: Es ist schwer zu speichern, ohne freien Speicherplatz, but placing ohne … directly before zu speichern is usually smoother.

Why frei and not kostenlos?

Frei here means “free/available/unoccupied,” i.e., unused space. Kostenlos means “free of charge,” which doesn’t apply to storage space capacity. So freier Speicherplatz = available storage space.

Could I include an article: ohne einen freien Speicherplatz?

Grammatically yes, but it sounds overly specific or clunky here. After ohne, German often omits the article when speaking in general terms: ohne freien Speicherplatz. You’d add an article if you mean a particular unit or instance.

Is Speichern capitalized at the end of the sentence?

In zu speichern, no—verbs are lowercase. If you nominalize the verb, it becomes a noun and is capitalized: das Speichern. For example: Ohne freien Speicherplatz ist das Speichern schwer.