Windows 7 paritions -BASIC MBR


  1. pickmesara
    Posts : 3
    Windows 7 Home premium 64 bit
       New #1

    Windows 7 paritions -BASIC MBR


    Hi Everyone,

    I have HP Pavilion dv6 laptop running in Windows 7 Home premium 64 bit OS. I have 1 TB hard disk with 4 primary partitions already configured by the manufacturer HP. (attached my DISK screenshot details).

    I want to install Fedora LINUX, so wanting to create another partition. But my disk is BASIC MBR and it is changing to Dynamic if i try to create another partition. I googled it and found my disk is BASIC MBR which is restricted to have only 4 primary partitions. I looked for some partition tools which can convert Basic MBR to GPT disk and tried that. After converting, though i can login into windows 7, But my HP recovery (F11) during start up is not working and giving error message :BOOT/BCD missing. By trying to recover that, I some how messed up my windows 7 login as well. So again installed everything using Windows 7 discs (Called and ordered from HP support ).

    I tried converting disks many times and failed to get it worked (Both Windows 7 and HP recovery) @ start up. I'm very tired installing windows 7 many times. Please suggest me something to install LINUX FEDORA in a separate partition. Basically i want to know if i can create more partitions in BASIC MBR disk.

    Please HELP. Thanks in Advance. I'm not very good at English, please bare with me
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Windows 7 paritions -BASIC MBR-disk-detail.jpg  
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  3. Mark Phelps
    Posts : 1,379
    Win7 Pro 32-bit, Win8 Pro 32-bit
       New #2

    Basically i want to know if i can create more partitions in BASIC MBR disk.
    Basically, no -- you can't create more partitions.

    There are ways to install Linux in your setup, but it means you will have to get rid of the Recovery partition, because even if you remove HP_TOOLS, the space is not nearly large enough to install a Linux distro, and if you resize or move the Recovery partition, it's most likely NOT going to work anymore.
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  4. pickmesara
    Posts : 3
    Windows 7 Home premium 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       New #3

    Thank you Mark for the reply.

    I'm ready to shrink my volume C:\. I have around 800 GB of free space residing there. If i change my C:\ partition as Extended and create logical drives in there, will the windows 7 boot.? and Can i able to install LINUX disto in logical drives in an Extended parition
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  6. SIW2
    Posts : 16,161
    7 X64
       New #4

    Yes, you can boot linux from an extended partition. You can also boot windows from an extended partition. You need at least one primary marked active, for the windows boot critical files.
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  7. SIW2
    Posts : 16,161
    7 X64
       New #5

    You are probably best using partition wizard to shrink C and convert it to logical. The remainder will be unallocated space.
    When you boot linux install media, make sure to point it at the unallocated space.

    partition wizard
    Best Free Partition Manager Freeware and free partition magic for Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista and Windows XP 32 bit & 64 bit. MiniTool Free Partition Manager Software Home Edition.
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  8. AddRAM
    Posts : 13,576
    Windows 10 Pro x64
       New #6

    Do you really want to install Fedora ?

    Just run it off a flash drive, or a cd if it fits
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  10. gregrocker
    Posts : 50,642
       New #7

    If you want to keep Win7, Recovery Partition and the OEM bootable diagnostics tools partitions bootable like it came from factory, then SIW2 provided you with the solution which on HP's is to convert C to Logical, shrink it to create as many adjacent Logical partitions as you want.

    How to set partition as Primary or Logical with Partition Wizard
    Partition Wizard Resize Partition - Video Help.
    Partition Wizard Create Partition - Video Help
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  11. pickmesara
    Posts : 3
    Windows 7 Home premium 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       New #8

    Thank You Everyone..!

    Problem Sovled. As suggested, I converted my C:\ in to Logical drive and shrinked it to get some unallocated SPACE (50 GB). I installed LINUX FEDORA in unallocated space without installing BOOT loader and cofigured boot loader in windows 7 using EASYBCD 2.2. That worked. Yeah..!!!

    Steps followed:
    1. Install MINITOOL PARTITION .
    Free download Magic Partition Manager Software, partition magic alternative, free partition magic, partition magic Windows 7 and server partition software - Partition Wizard Online

    2. Convert C:/ from Primary to Logical drive using MiniTool parition wizard.

    3. Restart and check your windows 7 and HP recovery tools are working fine.

    4. Shrink C:\ volume to get some unallocated SPACE

    5. Install LINUX FEDORA 20 using Live USB in the unallocated SPACE

    6. During installation, Remove Boot Loader device, there is an option to choose "Do not install boot loader" in storage configuration step. I did this because my previous install of Fedora messed up my windows 7 boot configuration and I was not able to boot windows 7 which is throwing an Error "File Missing 'Boot/BCD' "

    7. Once the installation is over, Restart and it wil automatically boot in to Windows 7 since we did not installed boot loader in Fedora.

    8. Install EASYBCD 2.2

    9. In the ADD ENTRY, Install NeoGrub boot loader and click Configure button. In the note pad file, just have the below content. You just need to identify your root and boot partition disk numbers.

    # NeoSmart NeoGrub Bootloader Configuration File
    #
    # This is the NeoGrub configuration file, and should be located at C:\NST\menu.lst
    # Please see the EasyBCD Documentation for information on how to create/modify entries:
    # http://neosmart.net/wiki/display/EBCD/

    title Fedora
    root (hd0,6)
    kernel (hd0,6)/vmlinuz-3.11.10-301.fc20.x86_64 ro root=/dev/sda9
    initrd (hd0,6)/initrd-plymouth.img
    boot


    10. Restart the PC, you all set to go. yeah...!!!
    Last edited by pickmesara; 07 Aug 2014 at 19:57. Reason: More information provided regarding resolution
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  12. gregrocker
    Posts : 50,642
       New #9

    Good job.

    That's the way we've been advising for years here but its easy to get sidetracked.

    Was it as Easy as this?
    Where to install ubuntu in my system?
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