How to Fix MBR2GPT Error on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7
Overview of MBR2GPT
The MBR2GPT tool can be run with the following syntax:
✦ MBR2GPT /validate|convert[/disk:] [/logs:] [/map:=] [/allowFullOS]
✦ /validate: to perform only the disk validation steps and report whether the disk is eligible for conversion.
✦ /convert: if all validation tests pass, it will perform the disk validation and proceed with conversion.
✦The `DiskNumber` syntax in the MBR2GPT tool instructs the tool to specify the disk number of the disk to be converted to GPT. If not specified, the system disk is used.
✦ The `LogDirectory` syntax in the MBR2GPT tool specifies the directory where the tool's logs should be written. If this option is specified, the directory must already exist; if not, the `%windir%` directory is used.
✦/map:
✦ The `=` syntax in the MBR2GPT tool specifies additional partition type mapping between MBR and GPT. This option allows you to define custom partition type mappings beyond the default mappings provided by the tool.
✦ The `/allowFullOS` syntax allows you to override the default block on running MBR2GPT.exe from the full Windows environment. This option enables disk conversion while running in the full Windows environment.
How to convert MBR to GPT with MBR2GPT conversion tool
Before converting your MBR to GPT using MBR2GPT.exe, there are a few things you should know:
1. The MBR disk is working with legacy BIOS mode, while the GPT disk is working with UEFI. After the disk has been converted to GPT partition style, the firmware must be reconfigured to boot in UEFI mode. Thus, you need to make sure if your device supports UEFI before converting the disk to GPT. And the news from Microsoft shows that Windows 11 only supports UEFI mode to boot.
2. Before converting the MBR disk to GPT using MBR2GPT.exe, you need to ensure that the current partition layout is displayed.
3. To ensure that Windows remains bootable after the MBR to GPT conversion, the existing MBR system partition must be reused as the EFI system partition (ESP). This is a crucial step to maintain the bootability of Windows.
Then, you can type the syntax in the command prompt to convert MBR to GPT disk with MBR2GPT tool.
To convert a MBR disk to GPT using the `MBR2GPT` tool, follow these steps:
You can see the result like the following screenshot:
* The MBR2GPT tool can convert operating disk that have earlier versions of Windows 10 installed, such as version 1570, 1511, and 1607. However, you must run the tool while booted into Windows 10 version 1703 or later, and perform an offline conversion.
However, not everyone can use it successfully. You may receive many errors during the progress.
MBR2GPT error and how to fix it
MBR2GPT may return codes like following picture:
You may receive errors during the MBR to GPT conversion. And we collect some common errors and solutions for those errors here.
●"There is no room for EFI partition"
The error message "Too many MBR partitions found" can be misleading, especially when combined with the message "no room to create EFI system partition." However, the root cause of this issue lies in the fact that the preparation was done in MBR mode, which limits the number of partitions to 4.
●"Please remove the write protection"
If you have created write protection for your MBR disk, you won't be able to make any changes to it, including creating a new EFI system partition. To resolve this issue, you need to remove the write protection from the MBR disk.
●"ValidateLayout: Wrong boot partition count, expected 1 but found 0"
The MBR2GPT only supports converting MBR system disk to GPT. The data disks aren't supported. A data disk can be backed up, converted, then restored using dism and the disk management console.
● MBR2GPT cannot find OS partition
As mentioned before, the MBR2GPT.exe is only used to convert MBR system disk to GPT. If there is only a data disk without OS installed, it cannot convert successfully with the error: MBR2GPT cannot find OS. To convert data MBR disk to GPT, here we suggest you copy the hard drive to another place, delete all partitions on the MBR disk, then, convert MBR disk to GPT with Diskpart or Windows Disk Management.
The MBR2GPT tool can be finicky, and errors can occur due to various reasons. Here are some common MBR2GPT errors and tips to help you troubleshoot them:
Alternative to convert MBR to GPT without any issue
MBR2GPT errors will disappoint you. Fortunately, here we will introduce you a great alternative to MBR2GPT.exe - Qiling Disk Master Professional, which is a great partition manager that can help you convert MBR system disk to GPT without losing data. Also, you can use it to convert data disk between MBR and GPT disk safely. Here are the detailed steps of how to convert MBR system disk to GPT with Qiling Disk Master. What's more, it works well on all Windows PC including Windows 11/10/8/7/Vista/XP.
Before purchasing the full version of Qiling Disk Master Professional, you can download the demo version to try out the software and see if it meets your needs. The demo version allows you to preview the operation of the software and get a feel for how it works.
* Before attempting to convert your disk from MBR to GPT using Qiling Disk Master Professional, it's essential to ensure that your computer's motherboard supports EFI/UEFI mode. This is a crucial consideration, as the conversion process will not work correctly if your motherboard does not support UEFI mode.
Step 1. Install Qiling Disk Master Pro, launch it. Right-click the MBR disk installed on Windows OS. Select Convert to GPT.
Step 2. After initiating the conversion process, Qiling Disk Master Pro will complete the conversion of the MBR disk to a GPT disk. This process may take a few minutes to complete, depending on the size of the disk and the system's resources.
▪ The progress may run under PreOS mode.
▪ After successfully converting the MBR disk to a GPT disk using Qiling Disk Master Pro, it's essential to configure the boot order settings on your motherboard to ensure that the computer can boot from the GPT disk.
Conclusion
The MBR2GPT tool is a useful tool for converting MBR disks to GPT disks in Windows 10, particularly for versions 1703 and the Creator's Update. However, it may still encounter errors. In contrast, Qiling Disk Master Pro is a more comprehensive and reliable tool for converting MBR disks to GPT disks, making it a great option for all Windows PC users.
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