Dual boot MB; 1 MBR, 1 GPT drives, GPT won't boot, same O/S

videobruce

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Specs;
Gigabyte GA-970A-D3P Rev 2 older MB (2016) AMD based system.
Main drive; 250GB SSD W7 Pro x64 MBR no hidden partitions
Backup; brand new 4TB same O/S GPT one created System partition using Disk Part .

Backup is seen in the Bios, but won't boot even if the SSD is disconnected. The MB is advertised as "dual boot". No custom settings, no overclocking etc. I've tried different Boot settings, the few that are there and no difference. The system always boot to the MBR. I haven't reset the Bios since I don't do custom settings, but I considered it.

The original system was the SSD and 2TB MBR Backup drive (no hidden partitions), same O/S's and that worked for eight years. Both drives have other storage partitions.

Any other details, please ask. The basic difference is one MBR and one GPT drive.

- - - Updated - - -

Here is the Bios boot mode screen.

- - - Updated - - -

I did reset the Bios to 'optimized defaults", but no difference.
Another 'oddity', the SSD drive that does boot, doesn't show on that page I posted even thou it shows in the boot menu and under System Info.
 

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  • 02 Boot Mode select.png
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    Win7 x64AMD
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    Laptop
    Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
    Toshiba
    OS
    Win7 x64
    CPU
    AMD
  • At a glance

    Win 7 Pro x64AMD FX-835016GBnVidia GeForce 1060
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model Number
    AMD based MB
    OS
    Win 7 Pro x64
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-970A-D3P
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce 1060
    Monitor(s) Displays
    25"
    Screen Resolution
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    Hard Drives
    two SSD;
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    PSU
    700watt Seasonic
    Internet Speed
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    BD Recorder
Its not duel boot its is duel BIOS. Its not clear what your trying to boot win7 win10 other if one is uefi and the other legacy one one boot as bios will be wrong what systems are you trying to boot and what are they set to?
 

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win 8 32 bit
Computer type
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OS
win 8 32 bit
Ok, typo. It's W7 Pro x64 on (originally) both MBR bootable drives. The new drive (4tb) forces GPT /UEFI.
Apparently, the MB didn't like two different drive types.

Long story short, after the new drive was switched to GPT the same was done with the former MBR drive. Now, all is fine I can boot from either drive like before.
 

My Computers My Computers

  • At a glance

    Win7 x64AMD
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
    Toshiba
    OS
    Win7 x64
    CPU
    AMD
  • At a glance

    Win 7 Pro x64AMD FX-835016GBnVidia GeForce 1060
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model Number
    AMD based MB
    OS
    Win 7 Pro x64
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-970A-D3P
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce 1060
    Monitor(s) Displays
    25"
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1200
    Hard Drives
    two SSD;
    two 4TB HDD
    PSU
    700watt Seasonic
    Internet Speed
    300MB up & down
    Browser
    Firefox
    Other Info
    BD Recorder
Ok, typo. It's W7 Pro x64 on (originally) both MBR bootable drives. The new drive (4tb) forces GPT /UEFI.
Apparently, the MB didn't like two different drive types.

Long story short, after the new drive was switched to GPT the same was done with the former MBR drive. Now, all is fine I can boot from either drive like before.
I have a computer very similar to yours. The 3 internal drives are MBR while the external one is GPT. This computer started out as Windows 7 only which explains why it is MBR. The external one's size is greater than 2TB so GPT is required. My motherboard doesn't even support UEFI but a modified EFI which has a BIOS option to boot from GPT drives larger than 2.2TB. I never booted from a drive larger than 1TB so never tried that option.

I have a number of computers. None of them have HDDs or SSDs larger than 2TB. The main reason is making backups. Backing up drives larger than that make for very large and expensive backup drives. Also, I like to try to keep Windows and user data on separate drives.

Internal
Disk 0: 1TB SSD MBR (Windows 10 Pro)
Disk 1: 1TB SSD MBR (Data)
Disk 2: 1TB SSD MBR (Windows 7 Home)
External
Disk 3: 5TB HDD GPT (Backup)
 

My Computers My Computers

  • At a glance

    Windows 7 Professional 64bit / Windows 10 Hom...AMD FX-8350GSKILL Ripjaw-X PC3 12800 12GB (2x4GB, 2x2GB)ASUS ENGTX560 DCII OC/2DI/1GD5 1GB
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
    Custom build
    OS
    Windows 7 Professional 64bit / Windows 10 Home 64bit
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 (AM3+) Rev. 4.0
    Memory
    GSKILL Ripjaw-X PC3 12800 12GB (2x4GB, 2x2GB)
    Graphics Card(s)
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    Sound Card
    Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus VE228H (21.5-in)
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 60Hz
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG 870 EVO 1TB (2.5" SATA SSD)
    SAMSUNG 870 EVO 500GB (2.5" SATA SSD)
    PSU
    Antec TruePower (new) TP-650 (650 watts)
    Case
    Antec Three Hundred
    Cooling
    AMD stock (plan to upgrade to Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO)
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    Mouse
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    Internet Speed
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    Browser
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    Other Info
    Optical drive: ASUS DRW-24B3ST/BLK/G (Black) (24X)
    External hard drives: 2TB & 6TB
    Internet Gateway: Comcast XB8
  • Computer type
    PC/Desktop
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