Foramatting HDD to MBR not GPT

Jan 5, 2013
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Hi all, today I need your help again for formatting my HDD to MBR instead of GPT (which is what it currently is), I am going to re-install windows obviously because I will have to format the drive (it is my boot drive). Can you guys please tell me how to make sure when windows creates it's partition it makes a MBR partition not a GPT one like it seems to by standard. I'm pretty sure this is a really noob question but owel.

Specs incase you want them:

Gigabyte Z77-D3H mobo (rev 1.1)
i5-3570k
Sapphire 7970 vapor-x
8gb g.skill RAM
1TB WD Caviar Black 7200RPM

Thanks for any help
 
Solution
The above tool is for formatting a USB flash drive to be bootable. I don't think that's what you're looking for.

If you're installing Windows 7, it formats MBR by default. At least it's always done so for me in the past, dozens of times. If I'm not mistaken, GPT isn't needed unless the drive is over 2 TB, which yours certainly is not. If you can hook it up to another computer running Windows 7, you can use diskmgmt.msc to partition it. But I think the install disk should be all you need.

mbreslin1954

Distinguished
The above tool is for formatting a USB flash drive to be bootable. I don't think that's what you're looking for.

If you're installing Windows 7, it formats MBR by default. At least it's always done so for me in the past, dozens of times. If I'm not mistaken, GPT isn't needed unless the drive is over 2 TB, which yours certainly is not. If you can hook it up to another computer running Windows 7, you can use diskmgmt.msc to partition it. But I think the install disk should be all you need.
 
Solution
Jan 5, 2013
450
0
10,860


I believe it formats to GPT because I have a UEFI motherboard and I'm stalling 64 bit windows. It definitely defaults to GPT on my windows installs, what would happen if I was to disable UEFI?
 
Jan 5, 2013
450
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10,860

n
nWell before re-installing windows I had to go into my BIOS before formatting my HDD and re-installing windows and find a setting that boots the windows install CD in UEFI mode, I DISABLED this (ie put it at bottom of boot order). After I did that I begun the windows install process, I pressed shift+f10 and typed the following into cmd:
n
ndiskpart
nlist disk
nselect disk 0
nclean
nconvert mbr
ncreate partition primary
nselect partition 1
nformat fs=ntfs quick
n
n
nThen I just installed windows as usual and it worked perfectly. :D
 
Jan 5, 2013
450
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10,860


Yeah I agree, it was just so that before creating the partition I had a blank HDD, otherwise I would end up with random files everywhere, I guess, I don't really know a lot about hard drives honestly.