Summary

This article briefly describes the hard disk partition table format GPT, MBR distinguish the difference between formats, systems and UEFI boot mode Legacy of. And "Select boot drive" the difference between different formats partition table.

For most of my friends, to do hard disk partition and install the system is not every day, occasionally encountered. Unless you are a computer expert is often the exception to a friend install the system.

Just the other day, Mr. Chang a blog for a new Lenovo E480 notebook, of course, to re-partition, install the system. For people like me, love to toss Computer City certainly will not please the business to do, on their own racket. Only toss to make their own learn a lot. Why mention it today, partition table format, but also have to install win10 from WinNTSetup to the computer system Speaking of hard disk installer.

Zhang often to colleagues install the system, but colleagues are not very new kind of computer, basically MBR partition format format. So Mr. Chang is the old way of thinking with the old MBR to my computer to install the system. FIG directly on a very described:

If you press installation tutorial on the map, and now basically it should not be successful. Why, because your hard disk partition is a GPT format. You would be wrong on the "Select boot drive." Because the choice of the C drive under MBR partition table format, and GPT partition table format should be selected under your ESP partition. The following were saying at their differences:

Hard disk partition table format GUID (GPT) and MBR literacy

1.MBR partition table: Master Boot Record, i.e. the MBR partition table, only support capacity hard disk 2.1TB less than 2.1TB hard disk can only manage 2.1TB, only supports up to four primary partitions or three primary partition and an extended partition, there may be a plurality of logical partitions the extended partition.

2.GPT partition table: GPT, partition table globally unique identifier (GUID Partition Table), compared with 4 limits the maximum partition table entry of MBR, GPT no limit on the number of partitions, but Windows only support a maximum 128 GPT partition, GPT can manage hard disk size reached 18EB. Only supports GPT partition boot UEFI-based platform motherboard.

Hidden partition under the GPT partition table:

�� ESP partition:.? EFI system partition, this partition is used for EFI BIOS uses a computer system to boot the operating system. Hold a boot partition management, drivers, system maintenance tools. If the computer uses EFI system, or the current disk to start the operating system on the EFI platform, it shall recommend ESP partition.

�� MSR partition: i.e. Microsoft Reserved partition, the partition is a GPT disk space reserved for later use, for example, require the use of these partitions disk space when a dynamic disk.

Zhang personal understanding: MBR partition is to boot the system and the WIN system all together on the C drive, and GPT partition is to boot the system partition on the ESP, to win the system on the C drive.

Both disks partition mode corresponding BIOS boot mode:

MBR hard disk partition format to format, startup mode should Legacy;

Hard disk partition format GUID (GPT) format, startup mode should UEFI.

Comparative traditional BIOS boot mode, the step of reducing the UEFI BIOS BIOS self-test, saving a lot of time, thus speeding up the start platform. Friendly reminder: the current online big branch system installation tutorial with winntsetup "Selecting the Boot Drive" will let you select the C drive, here we must note that, if your partition table format is the MBR format we chose the C drive, and if GPT format the letter must be selected ESP partition (under PE system visible)