Windows 10: mbr and gpt on the same drive

so a clean install on a crucial mx500 ssd. used uefi from usb stick to install windows so that it would create the gpt partition. all updates installed fine and when i checked the drive using a portable partition manager, i had a system reserved partition, an mbr partition, and a gpt partition, and then a C:\ partition. i've only seen a couple of screenshots of gpt partitions, but there was no mbr partition along with it. i set up a couple more partitions and loaded my first program which was a firewall. have used this program with incident on win 10 prior to this. but now the system was partially locked up and it did not have an icon when i went to uninstall it, which i couldn't. did the program get confused about the two different partitions as it would launch with windows? not certain if start up programs use the mbr or not. so, is this a bad thing (i've read about the possibility of a 'protected mbr partition' being created alongside a gpt partition.) should i delete the mbr and move the gpt partition. i did forget to restart and make the ssd the 1st boot option. would that make a difference. or just start again... any help is appreciated.

:)

 

clone MBR HD to bootable GPT partition?

Hi,

1. You cannot convert mbr to gpt without data loss. otherwise, you can follow directions here:

FROM WINDOWS RECOVERY CONSOLE:

To change a master boot record disk into a GUID partition table disk using a command line

• 
  Back up or move the data on the basic master boot record (MBR) disk you want to convert into a GUID partition table (GPT) disk.
  
• 
  Open an elevated command prompt (right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as Administrator) and type diskpart. If the disk does not contain any partitions or volumes, skip to step 6.
  
• 
  At the DISKPART prompt, type list disk. Make note of the disk number you want to convert.
  
• 
  At the DISKPART prompt, type select disk <disknumber>.
  
• 
  At the DISKPART prompt, type clean.
  

2. I'd suggest converting your vista drive to a virtual machine, load that up on your windows 10 system and use a program like virtualbox to run it.

 

Convert GPT to MBR

if you cant do it using Disk Manager, Try DISKPART in command prompt.

otherwise you will need to find a 3rd party format/paritition program, google around for one.



the only way to go from GPT to MBR is to remove all volumes / parititions from the drive.





EDIT, im farily certain that only XP PRO can read GPT drives, HOME edition cant.
Vista premium and Win 7 can both read GPT drives i think.... i know for sure that the ultimate editions can.

 

Convert only one partition on the disk from MBR to GPT

Follow the steps listed here on using GPTgen. He also lists how to create and restore backups.

https://blog.bramp.net/post/2010/08/30/converting-mbr-to-gpt-without-deleting-your-partitions/