Applies to Windows 10
MBR2GPT.EXE converts a disk from the Master Boot Record (MBR) to the GUID Partition Table (GPT) partition style without modifying or deleting data on the disk. The tool is designed to be run from a Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) command prompt, but can also be run from the full Windows 10 operating system (OS) by using the /allowFullOS option.
You can use MBR2GPT to:
Convert any attached MBR-formatted system disk to the GPT partition format. You cannot use the tool to convert non-system disks from MBR to GPT.
Convert an MBR disk with BitLocker-encrypted volumes as long as protection has been suspended. To resume BitLocker after conversion, you will need to delete the existing protectors and recreate them.
Convert operating system disks that have earlier versions of Windows 10 installed, such as versions 1507, 1511, and 1607. However, you must run the tool while booted into Windows 10 version 1703 or later, and perform an offline conversion.
Convert an operating system disk from MBR to GPT using Configuration Manager or MDT provided that your task sequence uses Windows PE version 1703 or later.
Offline conversion of system disks with earlier versions of Windows installed, such as Windows 7, 8, or 8.1 are not officially supported. The recommended method to convert these disks is to upgrade the operating system to Windows 10 first, then perform the MBR to GPT conversion.
After the disk has been converted to GPT partition style, the firmware must be reconfigured to boot in UEFI mode.
Make sure that your device supports UEFI before attempting to convert the disk.
OPTIONS:
Option Description
/validate Instructs MBR2GPT.exe to perform only the disk validation steps and report whether the disk is eligible for conversion.
/convert Instructs MBR2GPT.exe to perform the disk validation and to proceed with the conversion if all validation tests pass.
/disk:<diskNumber> Specifies the disk number of the disk to be converted to GPT. If not specified, the system disk is used. The mechanism used is the same as that used by the diskpart.exe tool SELECT DISK SYSTEM command.
/logs:<logDirectory> Specifies the directory where MBR2GPT.exe logs should be written. If not specified, %windir% is used. If specified, the directory must already exist, it will not be automatically created or overwritten.
/map:<source>=<destination> Specifies additional partition type mappings between MBR and GPT. The MBR partition number is specified in decimal notation, not hexadecimal. The GPT GUID can contain brackets, for example: /map:42={af9b60a0-1431-4f62-bc68-3311714a69ad}. Multiple /map options can be specified if multiple mappings are required.
/allowFullOS By default, MBR2GPT.exe is blocked unless it is run from Windows PE. This option overrides this block and enables disk conversion while running in the full Windows environment.
Note: Since the existing MBR system partition is in use while running the full Windows environment, it cannot be reused. In this case, a new ESP is created by shrinking the OS partition.
Examples
Validation example\>mbr2gpt /validate /disk:0
MBR2GPT: Attempting to validate disk 0
MBR2GPT: Retrieving layout of disk
MBR2GPT: Validating layout, disk sector size is: 512
MBR2GPT: Validation completed successfully
Regards,
Kon Belieu
Partner
4440 Lake Forest Dr., Suite 102B, Cincinnati, OH 45242
Comments are closed