8 Solutions: Can't Install Windows on GPT or "Windows Cannot Be Installed to This Disk" Error

Having issues installing Windows on a target GPT or MBR drive? On this page, we will delve into this problem in two parts, where you can find corresponding solutions according to different error messages.

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Inspect and find the easiest solution to install Windows on your PC without any issues.

Note: If important data is saved on the target disk, back up the data first, because some of the following fixes might delete data from the target drive.

Part 1: Fixing the "Can't Install Windows on GPT Disk" Error

Applies to: Fix the "Windows cannot be installed to a GPT partition" or "Can't install Windows on GPT" error.

Issue: Unable to Install Windows on a GPT Disk

"I'm trying to install Windows 10 on a new SSD, but the computer keeps showing me the message 'Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style.' What does this mean? Do I need to convert the GPT disk to MBR? Or do I need to enable UEFI boot mode in the BIOS?"

If you see a message like the one shown below, you won't be able to install Windows on a GPT disk:

Error 1. "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style."

Error 2: "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk has an MBR partition table. On EFI systems, Windows can only be installed to disks with a GPT partition table."

These two errors indicate that Windows cannot be installed on a GPT drive. Don't panic. Below, we'll explain why you can't install Windows on the selected disk and list practical solutions to help you fix the problem.

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Why can't you install Windows on a GPT drive?

1. You forgot to enable the UEFI boot option, or your motherboard only supports Legacy BIOS. (Error 1)

If you get Error 2, you need to know something about UEFI vs BIOS. Know the difference and relationship between them.

Usually, when you use the Windows installer to install Windows on a UEFI-based PC, the target disk must be set to UEFI mode or BIOS-compatible mode. If your computer is started in UEFI mode, and the target disk is not configured for UEFI mode, you will receive error 2.

4 Ways to Fix the "Windows Cannot Be Installed on GPT Disk" Error

Here, we provide you with 4 effective methods to resolve this error and associated issues. Note that the methods presented earlier have a higher success rate.

Solution 1: Convert GPT disk to MBR disk with Partition Master [Error 1]

If your computer doesn't support UEFI, you can't install Windows on a GPT disk unless you convert the disk to MBR.

A professional partition manager tool - Partition Master, can help you organize your hard drive and easily change the partition style. With this software, you can effortlessly convert GPT to MBR, allowing the disk to be reinstalled with Windows:

Step 1. Install and launch Partition Master on your computer and go to “Disk Conversion”.

Step 2: Select "Convert GPT to MBR" and click "Next" to proceed.

Step 3. Select the target GPT disk that you want to convert to MBR, and click "Convert" to start the conversion.

Read more: Can't Install Windows 10 on SSD

Solution 2: Enable the UEFI Boot Option in BIOS to Fix the Error Windows Cannot be Installed on GPT Disk

If you encounter error 1 - "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style.", try booting into UEFI mode on a motherboard that supports UEFI.

Step 1: Restart your computer and press the key to open the Boot Menu. You can usually access the Boot Menu by pressing Esc, F2, F9, F12, or another key.

Step 2. Boot into UEFI mode and look for the Boot Options menu.

Step 3: Make sure the USB UEFI OS boot option is at the top of the boot priority list. Save your changes and continue with the Windows installation.

Solution 3: Convert MBR to GPT with Partition Master Tool

If you encounter Error 2, you can fix the “The selected disk has an MBR partition table” error by converting your MBR disk to a GPT disk.

On a UEFI system, Windows can only be installed on a GPT disk or similar device. This is because MBR is compatible with BIOS, while GPT is compatible with UEFI.

The process is similar to converting from GPT to MBR, except that you'll use the Partition Master tool to convert from MBR to GPT:

Step 1. Download and run Partition Master on your computer.

Step 2. Enter the Disk Converter and choose “Convert MBR to GPT”, then click “Next” to proceed.

Step 3. Select the MBR disk that you want to convert to GPT and click "Convert" to start the conversion.

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Solution 4: Convert MBR to GPT with DiskPart

Aimed at addressing error 2.

Step 1: Turn off your PC, insert the Windows install DVD or USB drive, and boot from it.

Step 2. Boot your computer from the DVD or USB drive.

< b > Step 3: < / b > While installing Windows, press "Shift + F10" to open the Command Prompt.

Step 4. Enter the following commands in order:

• diskpart
• list disk
• select disk
• clean
• convert gpt
• exit

Step 5: Close the Command Prompt.

After fixing the "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style" error, you can proceed with installing Windows on your computer. You can refer to the guide on How to Install Windows 10 on GPT Disk for a detailed tutorial.

Part 2: Fixing the "Windows Cannot Be Installed to This Disk" Error

Applies to: Fix the "Windows can't be installed to this disk" error.

Error: Windows cannot be installed to this disk.

When trying to install Windows 10/8/7, you might encounter various error messages stating that Windows cannot be installed on the hard drive. Here are a few common examples:

Error 1: "Windows cannot be installed to this hard disk space. The partition contains one or more dynamic volumes that are not supported for installation."

"Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the dynamic disk type."

Error 2: "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The computer's hardware may not support booting from this disk. Ensure that the disk controller is enabled in the computer's BIOS menu."

Windows cannot be installed to this disk due to disk controller not enabled issue.

Error 3. "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The disk may fail soon. If you have another disk available, install Windows on that disk instead."

Error 4. "Windows cannot be installed to this hard disk space. Windows must be installed to a partition formatted with NTFS."

Why can't I install Windows on the selected disk?

Why am I receiving these error messages? What are the main causes? Based on the error messages, the main reasons are as follows:

1. You can install only on dynamic volumes that were converted from basic disks, and the volume must be a boot or system partition. (Error 1)

2. Hardware protection and SATA controller modes can cause Error 2.

If you see Error 3, it could indicate a problem with the hard drive.

4. The partition where you are trying to install Windows uses an incompatible file system. Since Windows Vista, Microsoft requires that Windows be installed on a partition formatted as NTFS. (Error 4)

Fix for the 'Windows cannot be installed to this disk' error

Now you can try one of these solutions to fix the inability to install Windows on your PC's drive.

Solution 1: Convert dynamic disk to basic disk

If you receive error 1 - "Windows cannot be installed to this hard disk space. The partition contains one or more dynamic volumes that are not supported for installation," convert the dynamic disk to a basic disk.

Partition Master also helps you to convert dynamic disk to basic disk easily and quickly.

Here are the detailed steps:

Step 1: Install and launch Partition Master, then go to “Disk Converter”.

Step 2. Choose the disk conversion mode that suits your needs:

• Convert to Dynamic Disk: Convert a basic disk to a dynamic disk. • Convert Back to Basic Disk: Convert a dynamic disk back to a basic disk.

Step 3. Select the target disk - Basic or Dynamic. Make sure you have selected the correct disk and then click "Convert" to start the conversion.

0:00 - 0:18 Convert a basic disk to a dynamic disk; 0:19 - 0:36 convert a dynamic disk back to a basic disk.

Fix 2: Disable HDD protection and change SATA controller mode (for error 2)

If you see the error message “Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The computer's hardware may not support booting from this disk. Ensure that the disk controller is enabled in the computer's BIOS menu.” – Error 2, you should do two things:

Phrases 1. Remove hard drive protection

Please check if your hard disk protection is enabled. If it is, please contact the salesperson and follow their instructions to disable it.

Here's a quick guide you can follow to use DiskPart to remove write protection from your hard drive:

Step 1: Click "Start," type "CMD" in the Run box, and hit "Enter."

Step 2: Type diskpart and press Enter.

Step 3: Type in the following commands, pressing Enter after each one:

• List Volumes
• Select Volume # (# is the number of your hard drive)
• Attributes Disk Clear Read-Only
• Clean

Step 4: Type exit and press Enter to close DiskPart and complete the process.

Upon completion, you have successfully removed the write protection from your hard drive. For more practical solutions, refer to How to Remove Write Protection from SSD for assistance.

Phrases 2. Change the SATA controller mode

This error might indicate that your computer's BIOS settings aren't configured correctly. Please make sure you've changed the SATA controller mode in the BIOS. Afterwards, try resetting the BIOS to its default settings, as if it were coming straight out of the factory.

Solution 3: Repair the hard drive to fix “Windows cannot be installed to this disk space” issue

Error 3 - You may see the "Windows can't be installed to this disk. The disk might fail soon." error when your HDD is failing. What to do with a dying hard drive? How to fix it? You should stop the Windows installation and clone or back up your important data immediately. Then, you can start fixing the HDD.

Read also: How to fix a hard drive without losing data

Solution 4: Format the partition to NTFS

This solves issue Error 4. The Windows installer cannot install to a disk partition formatted with a file system other than NTFS.

Changing the file system of a volume is not an easy task for users who are not comfortable with computer administration and command lines. So, we need a simple and safe solution for that.

A comprehensive partition manager – AOMEI Partition Assistant – can help fulfill this need. It lets you easily format an HDD to NTFS.

In this case, you need to create a bootable drive and then format the hard drive through USB.

After fixing the “Windows cannot be installed to this disk” or GPT/MBR drive error, you can proceed with installing Windows on the target disk on your PC.

Conclusions

This page covers 4 effective ways to fix the "Windows cannot be installed on GPT disk" error, along with 4 practical methods usable by Windows users of all levels to get rid of the "Windows cannot be installed to this drive" error.

If you encounter any of these errors, you can find the answer here. If the partition style of the target disk is not supported and does not allow you to install Windows, you can use the Partition Master tool to convert GPT to MBR, convert MBR to GPT, or even convert dynamic disk to basic disk.

This software plays an important role in the recovery process. Why not get it now?

Additional reading: Troubleshooting Windows installation issues

In addition to the above, if you have more questions about installing Windows on a GPT or MBR disk, refer to the following FAQ.

You might get a clue.

How to Fix "Windows Cannot Be Installed to This Disk. MBR" Error?

How to solve the "Windows cannot be installed to this disk" error? The solution is simple: convert MBR to GPT.

There are two approaches you might try:

Method 1: Convert MBR to GPT with Partition Master (as shown in the first part of Fix 3 on this page) Method 2: Use the DiskPart command to convert an MBR disk to GPT (as shown in the first part of Fix 4 on this page)

2. Can GPT boot Windows?

Yes, GPT can be used to boot a Windows operating system as long as it's installed on your disk, or the computer's operating system has been migrated to the disk.

If you need to migrate your system disk to GPT, refer to the guide on how to transfer Windows 10 to another HDD/SSD.

3. How to convert GPT partition to BIOS?

In most cases, GPT partitions support both UEFI boot mode and BIOS compatibility mode. To convert a GPT partition to Legacy BIOS mode, you'll need to follow these steps:

• Step 1: Check if your computer's motherboard supports BIOS boot mode. (Check for BIOS)
• Step 2: If the motherboard supports BIOS boot, you need to verify if the disk uses the MBR partition style.
• Step 3: If not supported, convert the GPT disk to MBR using the methods provided in the first section of this page.
• Step 4: Install a Windows system that supports BIOS boot on the disk.
• Step 5: After completing the Windows installation, enter the BIOS and set the computer to boot from the MBR disk which was previously a GPT partition.
• Step 6: Save the changes and restart your PC.