Issue With 3TD Drive As C Drive

Discussion in 'Windows 7' started by DeathStalker77, Feb 2, 2014.

  1. DeathStalker77

    DeathStalker77 MDL Addicted

    Nov 8, 2009
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    #1 DeathStalker77, Feb 2, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2014
    Reinstall of Win7 upgrading a 500gb drive to a Seagate ST3000DM001-1E6166. I wanted to separate the OS from the User folders (Docs/Pics/Games/etc) and so I initially installed Win7 x64 on just a 500gb partition.

    Now I am left with TWO unused partitions of ~1500gb and ~750gb. While I can make the ~1500gb partition valid, there is NOTHING I can do with the remaining ~750gb partition, and not eve EASUS can do anything about it.

    The mobo is an Asus Sabertooth Z77 with 2104 BIOS. I *have* to use compatibility in the BIOS - if I for UEFI, then it says the hardware doesn't support it - but it *should* (shouldn't it?)

    Aside from expanding the size of the primary partition, is there anything I can do?

    ====

    Yeah, that should be 3TB, lol

    ================

    Oh, I *tried* the latest SeaTools (1208) and it just locked up my system (unless this was the ONLY drive in the system) at "ATA: Scanning for supported drives. Please wait ... "

    When I ran it with this as the only drive - there was no functionality to resolve this issue.

    ==============

    K. Found my issue - no way to convert MBR to GPT AFTER installation - will try adding in my old drive to boot to and formatting the 3TB as GTP, then try reinstalling again. <sigh>

    Both the 3TB and the 500GB (which was a WD WD500AAJS) are 7200rpm - I was hoping the newer drive would be effectively faster :(

    May try my Samsung HD501LJ instead - it's a little older, but has a bigger cache, and the performance is supposedly better.

    ============

    Would still appreciate any opinions or feedback :)
     
  2. acyuta

    acyuta MDL Expert

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    #2 acyuta, Feb 2, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2014
    Z77 should have UEFI. Also convert the 3TB into GPT and then install.
    Z77 is a modern chipset and you will have 0 problems in GPT/UEFI.
    GPT also enables you to create more than 4 partitions.
    Suggest 100-200 GB as C drive (if you need for games then 200GB), and 3-4 more partitions for docs, photos, etc.
    I have 2 Seagate 3TB disks and use them fully as GPT disks.
    They are quite fast but if you can afford it, get a SSD and use 3TB as a storage disk.

    GPT will have an initial 128MB as a Microsoft System Reserved Partition (MSR) which is fine (128MB is hardly anything).
    I suggest getting a boot CD of partition wizard home (free to download and use). Then boot from that, initialise as GPT (Seagate disc wizard boot CD can also do that), and create partitions.
    Then boot from windows DVD and select the first partition for install.
     
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  3. Mutagen

    Mutagen MDL Addicted

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    #3 Mutagen, Feb 2, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2014
    In addition to the first reply, your Windows 7 installation media has to be configured for a EFI install. The default of MBR (legacy) won't work.

    If I was feeling better, I'd find the links, but there are plenty here and elsewhere that describe how to set the Win 7 media for EFI.
     
  4. acyuta

    acyuta MDL Expert

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    #4 acyuta, Feb 2, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2014
    z77 by default goes with UEFI which I would not change.
    When you insert windows dvd and boot, go to BIOS settings. You will see various boot options on the front screen of ASUS. There will be a DVD and also a UEFI DVD. Select UEFI DVD by dragging it to the front, save, and then boot, and install.

    Mutagen: mbr will also work for install but of course the problem of not getting the full 3TB will not be addressed. So mbr is viable for a ssd or for low capacity hard disk.
    PS: does windows 8/8.1 solve this mbr/2.2 TB problem by giving the full capacity regardless of mbr/gpt.
     
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  5. Carlos Detweiller

    Carlos Detweiller Emperor of Ice-Cream

    Dec 21, 2012
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    There exist software solutions like ASUS Unlocker, but I don't think they can be used on the boot drive.
     
  6. Xcessive

    Xcessive MDL Novice

    Feb 3, 2014
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    I literally just dealt with this several hours ago (which led to the creation of my forum account. No more lurking for me!)

    Anyways. Here's the process I did (I have a WD Green, 3TB. Process should be equally similar to Seagate.) It may also help to tell you that I had a working windows installation on another drive at the time of doing this.
    In my bootable Win7 partition on my 500gb, I ran the WD Acronis True Image software (google it), and added my 3TB Drive as a GPT drive. (step may actually be unnecessary, you decide.)
    I then used a USB to create a bootable Windows 7 installer.

    I opened command prompt, typed the following -
    diskpart
    list disk
    select disk 1 (your # may vary.)
    clean
    create partition primary
    format fs=fat32 quick (It HAS to be Fat32 for UEFI)
    active
    assign
    list volume
    exit

    I then copied my Win7 installation files from the disk (or .iso) over to the USB, and then copied the boot folder from X:\EFI:\Microsoft to X:\EFI
    After that, I opened sources\install.wim with 7ZIP, and navigated to sources\install.wim\1\Windows\Boot\EFI. Once here, I copied "bootmgfw.efi" to my desktop, renamed it to "bootx64.efi" and moved it into my EFI/Boot folder on my USB drive.

    After I did this, I put my mobo into UEFI mode and disabled legacy. I was able to see my USB drive with the UEFI prefix in the boot selector. This should be all you need to do.