Can you change the partition table from MBR to GPT without losing data? Yes, and for free, with Windows’ own tools without having to use third-party payment solutions, as we will see in this tutorial.
To carry out this process, which is delicate since it involves personal or professional files and folders that we intend to keep intact, it is important to know essential aspects of how storage units are managed in Windows systems and how they must be configured in a certain way so that the operating system can recognize them and access the data they contain.
We have already talked to you in previous guides about the importance of disk partitions in Windows, their creation, management, increase or decrease in size through the disk manager and in general their usefulness to keep data better organized in different partitions. In addition to partitionsWindows needs a certain type of record and boot loader called a partition table.
De MBR a GPT
These are the two used in Windows and although their purpose is similar, they are quite different in capabilities. Let’s review their main features:
MBR
It is the oldest of the two and therefore supports a wider range of operating systems. And the MBR was developed for the first IBM Personal Computer machines and has remained virtually unchanged as the primary partition table choice for Windows machines for decades.
The MBR (or master boot record) takes its name from its location at the beginning of the drive and contains the operating system’s boot loader and information about the drive’s partitions. The MBR has its limitations, such as that it only works with drives up to 2TB in capacity. Also, an MBR drive can only have four primary partitions.
GPT
Much more capable than the previous one, although less compatible, it is closely associated with UEFI, the firmware solution that modernized the old BIOSes. In GPT, the GUID partition table assigns each partition on your disk a globally unique identifier, a 128-bit number that uniquely identifies its hardware. In addition, GPT does not have the limitations of MBR regarding size and number of partitions. which can contain, in Windows, up to 256 Tbytes and up to 125 partitions.
Another important difference is the way GPT drives store boot data. Unlike the MBR drive, the GPT drive stores copies of boot data across multiple partitions, which increases security and makes recovery easier. Note that Apple also uses GPT instead of the older Apple Partition Table (APT), while Linux has built-in support for GPT drives.
Obviously, not everything is an advantage, due to the greater compatibility of MBR and its ability to work alongside systems other than Windows. Even different editions of Windows are only compatible with one or the other.For example, a typical case is that of Windows 11, which is only able to boot from disks with GPT partition tables.
MBR2GPT: migration without data loss
GPT is a more modern, capable and versatile table, and is mandatory for the latest operating systems. The way to use it is to format the partition, but this implies deleting all the data it contains. But there is a way of Convert from MBR to GPT while keeping files, folders and disk structure.
To do this, we can use the MBR2GPT tool from Windows itself. This application is primarily aimed at system administrators who have to deploy Windows 10 installations on a large number of computers. However, any user can use it with minimal complications. And we say “minimal” because they are precious data that can be lost in the event of problems. It is therefore advisable to make a backup beforehand.
From there the process is as follows:
– Check the disk number by accessing Computer Manager > Disk Management. Locate the disk you want to convert, right-click on the disk number, select Properties and open Volume, noting the disk number.
– Access the Windows Terminal or Command Prompt in administrator mode. Validate the disk to be converted with the command “mbr2gpt /validate /disk:(disk number here) /allowFullOS”.
– Type “mbr2gpt /convert /disk:(disk number here) /allowFullOS” to perform the conversion.
– Restart the PC, enter the BIOS and change the boot mode to UEFI instead of others like ‘Legacy’ or similar.
All set. If the whole process is done correctly, The conversion will only take a few seconds and we will have the unit prepared with the GPT partition table. We insist on the convenience of making a previous data backup. And, of course, continue using MBR with systems that are not compatible. In other systems such as Linux, you can use ‘gdisk’ in Linux to perform the conversion process without losing data.
Source: www.muycomputer.com
