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    How to install Windows 7 without extra system paritions?

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by AndroidFan, Aug 7, 2012.

  1. AndroidFan

    AndroidFan Notebook Guru

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    Usually when you choose to create a partition in Windows 7 setup, it prompts you to create a system partition

    in my case, it also prompts me to create some MBR disk I think it is because my SSD is a GPT disk (I have no clue what's that)

    So basically, when I install Windows 7, I end up up with:

    1- System partition (for boot files I think)
    2- MBR Disk (or whatever it is called is being created due to me having a GPT disk I think)
    3- C: partition (where windows is installed) [part of my 256 GB SSD]
    4- D: partition, my 2nd disk which is a 1 TB HDD

    The problem is, when I try to backup with Acronis True Image, even though I have installed the addon which supports GPT disks, when trying to restore the backup it always fails.

    Now what I want to do is, at one point last week, I installed Windows 7 but it didn't prompt me to neither create a system partition nor that extra MBR disk! I was then able to backup / restore in ACronis True Image just fine! I don't know what I did in computer management / disk management that made the SSD become a non GPT and valid for a normal installation, this is very confusing

    now yesterday I wanted to make a new installation with a new backup of Acronis True Image but this time it kept prompting me to recreate those extra partitions

    How does one go about installing Windows 7 on C: only without any extra partitions?

    Thanks
     
    AndroidFan, Aug 7, 2012
    #1
  2. scoots.

    scoots. Notebook Enthusiast

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    Why don't you try recreate the drive as MBR. I don't think you should normally use GPT.

    If you don't want Windows to create extra partitions, make them yourself..
     
    scoots., Aug 7, 2012
    #2
  3. AndroidFan

    AndroidFan Notebook Guru

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    I finally figured it out after a lot of research online.

    It seems the reason that extra MBR Disk 100 MB partition is created in addition to the 100 MB system partition and forcing the disk to be a GPT disk is because I had EFI Boot enabled in BIOS!

    All I did was delete the EFI boot option, and disable "Boot to EFI" in the BIOS settings then this time when I inserted the Windows 7 DVD and tried to create the partition, this time it only created C: without anything else! no system partition and no MBR Disk!!! Finally! I can use my Acronis True Image to back up and restore properly!! :)

    Thanks for all the suggestions though!
     
    AndroidFan, Aug 8, 2012
    #3