Cannot be installed on this disk. Solution to the error “Windows cannot be installed on this disk.... Using BIOS UEFI Settings and System GUI
This instruction details what to do if, when installing Windows, you are told that it is impossible to install Windows on a disk partition, and in detail - “ Windows installation on this disk impossible. Your computer hardware may not support booting from this disk. Make sure that the controller for this drive is enabled in the computer's BIOS menu." Similar errors and ways to fix them: If you still select this partition and click “Next” in the installation program, you will see an error saying that we were unable to create a new or find an existing partition with a prompt to view additional information in the installer log files. Below we will describe ways to fix such an error (which can occur in the installation programs of Windows 10 - Windows 7). As more and more often on users' computers and laptops, there is a variety of partition tables on disks (GPT and MBR), HDD operating modes ( AHCI and IDE) and boot types (EFI and Legacy), errors when installing Windows 10, 8 or Windows 7 caused by these parameters are also becoming more frequent. The described case is just one of these errors. Note: if the message that installation to the disk is impossible is accompanied by error information 0x80300002 or the text “This disk may soon fail”, this may be caused by bad connection drive or SATA cables, as well as damage to the drive itself or the cables. This case is not considered in the current material.
Fixing the error “Installation on this disk is not possible” using BIOS settings (UEFI)
More often specified error occurs when installing Windows 7 on old computers with BIOS and Legacy boot, in cases where in the BIOS in the operating parameters SATA devices(i.e. hard drive) enabled AHCI mode(or any RAID, SCSI modes).
The solution in this particular case is to go into the BIOS settings and change the mode work hard disk on IDE. As a rule, this is done somewhere in the Integrated Peripherals - SATA Mode section of the BIOS settings (several examples in the screenshot).
Transferring your Windows OS to a new drive or SSD
But even if you don't have an "old" computer or laptop, this option can also work. If you are installing Windows 10 or 8, then instead of enabling IDE mode, I recommend:
- Enable EFI booting in UEFI (if supported).
- Boot from the installation drive (flash drive) and try the installation.
True, in this option you may encounter another type of error, the text of which will inform you that the selected disk contains an MBR partition table (correction instructions are mentioned at the beginning of this article).
Remove unnecessary apps from the Windows 10 start menu
I myself don’t fully understand why this happens (after all, AHCI drivers are included in Windows images 7 and above). Moreover, I was able to reproduce the error for installing Windows 10 (screenshots are just from there) - simply by changing the disk controller from IDE to SCSI for virtual Hyper-V machines“first generation” (i.e. with BIOS).
Problem when creating a new partition - the existing partition is missing
I couldn’t check whether the specified error will appear during EFI booting and installation on a disk running in IDE mode, but I assume it’s possible (in this case, we try to enable AHCI for SATA drives in UEFI).
Also, in the context of the described situation, the following material may be useful: How to enable AHCI mode after installing Windows 10 (for previous operating systems everything is similar).
Third-party AHCI, SCSI, RAID disk controller drivers
In some cases, the problem is caused by the specific hardware of the user. The most common option is to have caching SSDs on a laptop, multi-disk configurations, RAID arrays and SCSI cards.
Development computer technology means not only growth computing power, along with increased performance, there are improvements in stability, security and convenience modern computers. One of the most significant changes that have occurred in recent years has been the replacement old BIOS more advanced UEFI, as well as the transition from MBR to GPT disk partitioning style.
The advantages of the latter style are obvious. Unlike MBR, GPT partitioning allows you to create an almost unlimited number of partitions and assign them unique identifiers, names and attributes. GPT also supports duplicating the boot code and partition table, and works without any restrictions with media larger than 2.2 TB. However, style has GPT partitions and its disadvantages, among which the most significant is the lack of support for this technology on computers with an old BIOS.
In addition, novice users may have difficulty installing Windows on a GPT disk. So, due to incompatibility software BIOS or its individual settings with modern drives, when you try to install the system on a disk with a new partition style, at the initial stage you may receive the error “Windows cannot be installed on this disk. The selected disk is in GPT style."
To users inexperienced in computer subtleties, the error may seem serious; in reality, there is nothing here that could prevent the installation of the system.
The message “Windows cannot be installed, the selected disk has a GPT partition style” usually occurs on new computer models with large disks or, conversely, on older PCs after replacing the disks with newer drive models. In this case, the version of the operating system does not play a special role; an error can occur when installing both Windows 7 and Windows 10, although, according to numerous evidence, the error is more often encountered when installing Windows 7. Currently, there are two main solutions to this problem - changing the appropriate settings in the UEFI BIOS and converting the GPT style to MBR.
Setting up UEFI and installing Windows on a GPT disk
This method is only applicable to computers with UEFI firmware, so the first thing you need to do is make sure that it really is present. If you see a graphical interface with mouse support when you enter the BIOS, it is more likely that your PC is running UEFI firmware, hence you can install the system on GPT disk. You can get into the new BIOS in the same way as into the old one - just hold down the F2 or Del button during boot.
Further in the section BIOS Features or BIOS Setup, you need to find and enable UEFI boot instead of CSM, and in the Peripherals section, select AHCI instead of IDE operating mode. If you are installing Windows 7 or higher earlier version system, you must also disable the function Secure Boot(usually located in the Boot section).
After these manipulations the message “Windows cannot be installed. GPT Partition Style" should no longer appear.
Important: The system installed on a GPT disk must be 64-bit, these are the terms of Microsoft policy. If you want to install 32-bit Windows version, the markup will have to be converted to MBR. If the system is installed from a flash drive, it is recommended to recreate it so that it supports UEFI. To do this, you can use the command line, or even better, the special Rufus utility.
Converting GPT markup to MBR
If your PC is using a regular BIOS, installing Windows on a GPT drive will not be possible. In this case, the most correct solution would be to convert the GPT style to MBR immediately before installing the system. If you receive a notification that Windows cannot be installed, close the wizard window and click Shift + F10. In the opened command line run the following commands sequentially:
diskpart
list disk
select disk 0
clean
convert mbr
The first command launches the utility Diskpart, the second displays a list of all physical disks connected to the PC, the third command selects the desired disk(V in this example this is disk 0), the fourth command completely clears it (all created partitions are deleted), the fifth command converts the GPT partition style to MBR. When executing the list disk command, pay attention to the asterisk in the GPT column, it just indicates that the disk has the GPT style.
To make sure that the conversion was successful, you can display the list disk again - the asterisk in the GPT column should disappear. That's all, use the exit command to exit the Diskpart utility, close the command line and continue installing Windows, after restarting the computer. After cleaning, the partitions will have to be created again, but this time no notifications about the impossibility of installing on the selected partition should appear, since the disk will already have MBR partitioning.
Using third party programs
It is unlikely, but it may happen that you will need to convert the GPT partitioning style to MBR on a disk with data already on it. The method described above using Diskpart is not suitable in this case, since the clean command removes all partitions from the disk, and along with them the data they contain. In such a situation, you can use third-party applications, for example, a boot disk Minitool Partition Wizard Bootable, Paragon Hard Disk Manager or AOMEI PE Builder.
All these programs allow you to convert basic disk GPT to MBR and vice versa, while the conversion procedure is simple and accessible to users with any level of training.
Installing the system in unallocated space
In some cases, you can do without using the command line or additional applications. If, when installing Windows 7/10, the wizard writes “installation on this disk is not possible,” and the disk size does not exceed 2.2 GB, it is worth trying this method. Using the installation wizard, delete all created partitions and try installing Windows into a single unallocated space.
If no error occurs, the system itself selected the MBR style and converted the disk to it. However, in this case, you will have to create the user partition D separately after installation. Also on disk you will not have hidden section“Reserved by the system”, which will somewhat reduce the fault tolerance of Windows.
Having tinkered with the MBR partition table on the hard drive, the developers decided to spoil us with a practical new product in the form of the GPT style. The advantages of such an innovation would seem to be obvious: accelerated loading systems, more convenient BIOS, support for volumetric external drives. However, despite these advantages, a GPT disk is not suitable for every user. The fact is that installing an OS on such a hard drive without errors is not at all easy. Somewhere in the middle of the process, a notification may unexpectedly pop up on the screen: installing Windows OS on this disk is impossible - the GPT partition style is selected.
What's the catch? The fact is that the GPT partition has several restrictions on use. In addition to the fact that activating the operating system on it is very problematic, to work with it you will also need:
- installed on computer BIOS in UEFI version;
- Windows 7/8/8.1 64-bit release system.
Note that if at least one of these parameters is omitted, you will not be able to get rid of the above error. However, if the motherboard gets along well with UEFI and at the same time you yourself are not averse to installing a 64-bit Windows 7 / 8 system on your PC, then it is not difficult to cope with the problem when installing the system: you just need to set the necessary settings for the GPT partition.
Step #1: Prepare a bootable USB flash drive
Basically a GPT partition can be formatted using standard disk with Windows distribution. However, in practice, it is easier to install and further operate the system using a regular flash drive. The only thing worth considering is its volume. Ideally, it should be at least 8 GB, so as not to lose the data we need during the recording process.
In any case, to create a flash drive distribution, you will have to download (copy) the image file from the OS, and then burn it using the command line, the UltraISO program, Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool or any other utility. You can read in detail about how to do this. Naturally, it is better if Windows is licensed, since activation problems may arise in the future.
Step #2: Setting up UEFI BIOS
After bootable flash drive will be ready without removing it from the USB port, reboot the computer and when starting again, press Del or F2 on the keyboard to enter the UEFI BIOS. But then there are 2 possible options.
Method No. 1: Simplified configuration of BIOS parameters
You can use this method when you need to immediately download the distribution and debug GPT partitions.
After the UEFI BIOS menu appears, you need to enter the “Boot Menu” section and set the option to start the system from the installation flash drive in the list of devices that appears:
As a result, the computer will automatically restart and the system will start from the flash drive.
Method No. 2: Full UEFI BIOS debugging
For advanced BIOS settings, once in it, the first thing you need to do is enter the “Advanced” section. You can find it in the lower left part of the open UEFI BIOS window, although simply pressing F7 on the keyboard is enough. Next, you need to open the “Boot” menu, select the “USB Support” tab in it and set this parameter to Full Initialization:
The next step is to select the CSM item in the same section and set the Enabled option for it as a launch parameter:
As a result, a window should appear additional options. You can work with it according to the following plan:
- go to “Boot Device Options” and set it to “UEFI Only”;
- select the “Boot from storage devices” item in the proposed list, enter the second option from the menu for it – Both, UEFI first;
- go back by clicking the Back button:
Now in the "Download" menu we need to set the value Windows UEFI mode for the option " Secure Boot" To do this, go to the appropriate section, click “OS Type” and select the required option in the menu presented:
After this, it remains to set the download priority:
Have you completed this step? On to the next one!
Step #3: Editing the GPT Disk
After the PC boots from the installation flash drive, in order to avoid the appearance of a message such as “installation is impossible”, “this partition is not suitable” or “GPT style is selected instead of MBR”, when starting the Windows Installer, you must open the “Full installation” tab:
Of course, it doesn’t open right away. When loading a flash drive, you will initially need to configure the installation language, then click “Install”, and then agree to the terms Windows licenses. Only after this will access to the “Installation Type” tab be opened.
One way or another, after selecting the required item, a list of disk partitions will be displayed on the screen. Let’s skip it for now, press Shift+F10 (Shift+Fn+F10) and one by one enter the following tasks into the command line, alternating with pressing Enter:
- diskpart
- seldis 0
- clean
- convert gpt
At the same time By replacing the convert gpt command with convert mbr, you can get a disk partition in MBR format(OS activation is easier in it):
In any case, all information from the hard drive will be deleted! Now, after exiting the command line to complete the setup, return to the list of sections, click “Update” and select “Next”:
As a result, a standard Windows installation starts (details). We wait for it to complete and move on.
Step #4: Checking Disk Information
After you have successfully installed Windows, you should check the current partition data. In this case, the procedure will be as follows:
- click right click Click on the “Computer” shortcut on the desktop and select “Management” from the list;
- in the new window, click the “Disk Management” tab;
- in the list of partitions we find drive C, right-click on it and go to “Properties”;
- select the “Volumes” tab and check the information on the section:
If all three steps were completed without problems before, no surprises should arise.
Step #5: Activate the system from a GPT disk
And the last, perhaps the most heartbreaking moment is the activation of the operating system installed on the GPT disk. It is worth recognizing that often the biggest problems arise precisely at this stage. Why? The fact is that activating Windows with GPT without license key practically impossible. In this case, you will have to choose one of the following options:
- format the GPT disk to MBR format (see step No. 3);
- perform activation using special programs;
- purchase a license for the OS;
Ideally, of course, activate the operating system using a license key received from the developer. True, such a pleasure is not cheap, but this is the only way to ensure full-fledged operation of the computer while maintaining the advantages of GPT.
If this is not possible, to activate Windows you should try your luck using activator programs, for example, KMSPico 10.0.3, or ordinary cracks. Naturally, in this case you have to act at your own peril and risk. The question arises: wouldn’t it be more efficient to replace GPT with the MBR format and forget about the hassle of activation? The answer, of course, is different for each user.
You may encounter the message “Windows cannot be installed on this disk” at the stage of selecting an operating system installation partition if not supported download from the selected storage medium. The reason that caused this obstacle is stated in the installer's message.
Reasons There may be several such problems:
- worn out or damaged SATA cable;
- disabled controller hard drive in BIOS;
- malfunctions the storage medium itself;
- absence included in the distribution Windows drivers AHCI;
- does not match the format BIOS - UEFI or Legacy - disk partition style - GPT and MBR, respectively.
About two latest problems Let's talk in more detail.
Problem with AHCI
The appearance at one time of the connection mode for the SATA storage media controller AHCI, which replaced old IDE, entailed additional requirement to the composition of the Windows distribution kit - the presence of the corresponding drivers. AHCI driver support is announced in OS versions starting with Vista.
But Windows 7 does not always want to be installed on a computer with active mode SATA AHCI controller. There are two ways out here - change of distribution(AHCI drivers can be cut by packagers of pirated assemblies) and AHCI switching on old regime IDE. In the latter case, you need to enter the BIOS, find the section for setting the parameters of the SATA controller (sections may be called “Integrated Peripherals”, “Storage Configuration”, etc.) and change the preset AHCI to IDE.
Convert MBR to GPT
Windows will not install if the disk has wrong style sections:
- GPT, while the UEFI interface in the BIOS is disabled;
- MBR, while UEFI mode is active and Windows is installed from UEFI bootable media.
The last case is the most common: everyone who either replaced a new motherboard with BIOS UEFI support, or connected to PC assembly HDDs or SSD with MBR partitioning. There may also be two options for getting out of the situation:
- refuse from the benefits of UEFI, disable this interface in the BIOS (switch to Legacy) and continue Windows installation to an MBR disk;
- convert it in GPT.
If there is no important data on the hard drive, transformation from MBR to GPT will be carried out automatically Windows installer. To do this, at the stage of choosing where to install the OS, you need to delete all existing partitions.
And as an installation location indicate whole unoccupied space.
Need to complete the process Windows reinstallation, return to the old system and install this program. Or boot up with LiveDisk with AOMEI Partition Assistant included, if access to old Windows already impossible. Program developer - AOMEI company - provides the ability to create emergency bootable media with your products on board. To create such media, you need to use another product of the company - AOMEI PE Builder. Also, AOMEI Partition Assistant, among other software for system engineers, is included in LiveDisk AdminPE.
To convert disk from MBR to GPT, follow the steps as in the screenshots below.
After converting the section style again launch Windows installation.
Convert GPT to MBR
If the question is the opposite - for example, the motherboard does not support BIOS UEFI, but the assembly of components included an HDD or SSD with GPT partitioning, nothing left other than convert it in the MBR. This can be done in the same ways as described above for the reverse process:
- by removal all partitions using the Windows installer, if there is no need for the data stored on the disk;
- by using programs AOMEI Partition Assistant.
To convert a disk from GPT to MBR, follow the same steps as in previous section article, with the only difference that this time we launch, accordingly, the reverse operation.
Users who install Windows three operating systems on their PC can see a message on the screen with the text “the selected disk has a GPT partition style.” latest versions– 7, 8 or 10 (any build).
The problem is the incompatibility of outdated laptop or computer software with more modern drive characteristics.
The choice of a specific solution to the problem primarily depends on the bit capacity of the installed Windows systems and firmware interface (BIOS or UEFI).
What are GPT and MBR?
Before you continue to install operating system to your PC and convert the section styles, it is worth finding out what is causing the problem.
So, most of the relatively old motherboards equipped with BIOS software, the tasks of which were primary diagnostics and loading of the operating system.
By the way, you can read on our website.
The software was designed to work only with MBR boot records.
A newer version of the interface, UEFI, allows you to work with both old styles and new ones, GPT.
Rice. 1. Error when installing Windows on a disk with GPT partition style.
The benefits of the updated software include increased download speeds and data security - due to more reliable downloads and support hardware encryption drives.
In addition, UEFI works with the GPT style, which supports writing and reading large files. This is especially important for hard drive sizes larger than 1 TB.
You should know: UEFI is compatible with both BIOS and MBR. This means that when working with the new interface, the disk style does not matter. At the same time, the BIOS does not work with either UEFI or GPT.
Rice. 2. Define disc styles using special utilities.
Options for solving the problem
As a rule, most more or less new motherboards are already equipped with a modern interface.
And problems with installing an operating system due to the GPT style can appear only in two cases - if the computer is relatively old or the UEFI settings do not support the new style.
The first version of the problem can be solved in only one way - by changing the hard drive settings.
As a result, it will be more difficult to work with large files, but you will be able to install the system.
If the problem is that GPT support is disabled, you just need to enable it and continue installing the platform.
Installing the system on GPT disks
It is advisable to solve problems with installing the system on a HDD with GPT partitions by observing the following conditions:
- Using a 64-bit system;
- By setting the boot mode to UEFI.
However, most often the cause of the error is the failure to fulfill the second condition, since it hardly makes sense to install a 32-bit system now (except for computers with 32-bit processors).
To correct the situation, you will need to either change the BIOS settings, or prepare it in such a way that it supports working with UEFI automatically.
Setting up BIOS or UEFI
The first steps that should be performed when installing Windows of one of the last three generations on a PC is (or, more precisely, UEFI).
This usually requires pressing a certain key while the operating system is loading.
In Windows 7, you most often need to press Esc, F1 or F2, depending on the motherboard manufacturer.
For Windows 8, this will require changing the system boot settings (through additional options in the Diagnostics menu, called up by pressing the Win + C keys).
Rice. 3. Enter the Windows 8 system boot change menu.
For Windows 10, to enter the UEFI settings you will have to run:
- Click on the notifications icon and select settings;
- Go to the update and security window;
- Select recovery partitions, special boot methods and immediate reboot one by one;
- After the system has rebooted, select advanced options and UEFI settings.
Now that the BIOS has turned on, you should configure its menu for automatic installation new system to GPT disks.
To do this, the user must install the download UEFI interface instead of the standard CSM.
Rice. 4. Installation of loading the new UEFI interface.
The second step is to select the appropriate disk operating mode - instead of IDE, designed for the old type of HDD, you should choose.
Configuration can be done in the Peripherals or SATA Configuration menu.
Rice. 5. Setting the operating mode for SATA drives.
Sometimes, for Windows 7, you need to additionally disable such an option as UEFI.
You should know: In different versions of UEFI, all these items may be located in different places. However, the names of the settings are saved and are relatively easy to find.
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Possible installation problems
After making all the changes, just save them and restart your computer (or laptop). There should be no error messages or other similar problems.
If problems still remain, they should be eliminated by creating a special boot disk.
One of the most simple ways to do this - use the command line or special programs Rufus type.
Rice. 6. Create a boot disk that supports GPT by default.
When using such a drive, the probability of error-free system installation is almost 100 percent.
However, to be on the safe side, you should perform one more action - delete the bootmgr file in the main directory of the USB flash drive, which may lead to another attempt to boot without GPT support.
Now the system will install without errors.
Converting a disk from GPT to MBR
In the absence of the ability to configure UEFI, and especially in the complete absence of this interface, the user has no other option but to change partition styles.
To do this, you can try to use the already built-in tools of the installed operating system or special utilities.
Important: If necessary, the methods for changing styles back from MBR to GPT are just as simple. Moreover, the data written on the disk is not lost, unlike conversion to an older format.
Conversion via command line
An option to change the disk style, suitable for computers with an outdated boot interface and, especially, an old type HDD (IDE).
A necessary condition for performing such actions is that the hard drive partitions must be empty, since all data is deleted during the conversion process.
If the information on the disk is not needed by the user, it does not need to be deleted.
To change the style to the MBR, the person installing the operating system will need to do the following:
- When selecting the partition type during the system installation process, click Shift keys and F10;
- In the command line that opens on the screen, enter two commands - first discpart, then list disk;
- After the list of hard disk partitions appears, write select disk A, where A is the number of the part that should be converted to GPT.
The user's next actions can continue by entering the clean command. In this case, all partitions of one of the disks will be deleted.
The second option is manual removal, which requires entering three commands in turn (detail disk, select volume, delete volume).
The last stage is changing the style. To do this, enter another command in the line - convert mbr.
After manual conversion to MBR has been completed, you need to:
- Enter one more final command Exit ;
- Close command prompt;
- Split the disk into new partitions (it is advisable to leave a smaller part of the HDD for the system and applications, and for storage important information- large);
- Continue installing the operating system.
As a rule, no errors occur in this case.
The only reasons why problems continue are problems with hard drive or a damaged software distribution.
In the first case, you will have to contact service to fix the problem, in the second, use another installation disk.
Selected disk has GPT partition style when installing Windows
Attention: this is not the only way solve the problem: you can also simply enable EFI boot for the installation drive without converting the HDD.
Convert to MBR in Disk Management menu
The second option for manually switching from GPT to MBR is suitable for computers on which a working Windows 7 or 8 is already installed, and the disk is not a system one.
To resolve the issue, the user is required to:
1. Go to the disk management menu (one of the simplest options is through the run window, in which you should enter the command diskmgmt.msc);
Rice. 7. Disk management menu.
2. Find a physical one (that is, not a partition, of which there can be many on the HDD) hard drive, which will be converted;
3. Delete all partitions from the HDD by selecting the delete item in the menu;
4. Right-click on the disk name and select conversion to MBR.
5. Restart your computer and continue installation.
Convert GPT HDD to MBR Basic
Convert a GPT hard drive to MBR (basic) using Paragon Hard Disk Manager.
Style conversion utility
Except standard methods, providing for the use of built-in Windows tools, there is also the opportunity to simplify your task using special utilities.
Some of the most convenient are Minitool Partition Wizard and Acronis Disk Director. The downside to these apps is that you have to pay to purchase them.
While downloading the Aomei Partition Assistant program can be done completely free of charge.
And among the many possibilities, there is not only changing styles, but also other options for customizing hard drives.
Rice. 8 Working with the Aomei Partition Assistant utility
You should know: When using applications that allow you to change hard drive style settings, you can delete the first boot partition of the HDD. In this case, converting GPT to MBR and back will be much easier.