CSM support

[testcy]

I am trying to install Windows on a disk with a single MBR partition. UEFI requires several partitions on a disk. If I enable CSM support in the BIOS, save, exit and then I enter the BIOS again, CSM support is disabled. Windows refuses to install on a MBR partition. Is there something I am missing in the BIOS?

[Kilrah]

1) What version of Windows?

2) What hardware?

3) What drive size?

4) Are all your drives MBR already?

 

Some BIOSes will auto-disable CSM if there's any hardware that requires UEFI or you have GPT drives.

[testcy]

1 hour ago, Kilrah said:

1) What version of Windows?

2) What hardware?

3) What drive size?

4) Are all your drives MBR already?

 

Some BIOSes will auto-disable CSM if there's any hardware that requires UEFI or you have GPT drives.

I think Windows 11, can be installed on a single MBR partition. Size is under 2TB, but drive was previously GPT. I can't check if the BIOS with a drive with no partitions, would keep CSM support enabled. I have another drive which is MBR.

[Eigenvektor]

3 hours ago, testcy said:

Windows refuses to install on a MBR partition.

WIndows 11 requires UEFI. There are hacks to work around it, but no reason to do so unless your system doesn't support UEFI/GPT.

 

Use the installer to delete the existing partition, then just tell it to use the entire disk and let it do it's thing. There's no advantage to sticking with MBR.

[whispous]

4 hours ago, testcy said:

I am trying to install Windows on a disk with a single MBR partition. UEFI requires several partitions on a disk. If I enable CSM support in the BIOS, save, exit and then I enter the BIOS again, CSM support is disabled. Windows refuses to install on a MBR partition. Is there something I am missing in the BIOS?

Just delete the MBR partitions and let it make a modern one.

[testcy]

58 minutes ago, Eigenvektor said:

WIndows 11 requires UEFI. There are hacks to work around it, but no reason to do so unless your system doesn't support UEFI/GPT.

 

Use the installer to delete the existing partition, then just tell it to use the entire disk and let it do it's thing. There's no advantage to sticking with MBR.

 

2 minutes ago, whispous said:

Just delete the MBR partitions and let it make a modern one.

This is what I did, but the drive now has four partitions.

[whispous]

Just now, testcy said:

 

This is what I did, but the drive now has four partitions.

Yes. This is normal. One giant one and some small hidden ones. Can you show a screenshot so we can verify this?

[Kilrah]

2 minutes ago, testcy said:

 

This is what I did, but the drive now has four partitions.

That's normal and just what it has to be. What's the problem having them exactly?

You can remove the recovery one if you want, but there's nothing valuable to gain by doing so, and means if your system gets hosed in a way where it'd be needed you need to use an install USB instead.

[testcy]

16 minutes ago, whispous said:

Yes. This is normal. One giant one and some small hidden ones. Can you show a screenshot so we can verify this?

 

13 minutes ago, Kilrah said:

That's normal and just what it has to be. What's the problem having them exactly?

You can remove the recovery one if you want, but there's nothing valuable to gain by doing so, and means if your system gets hosed in a way where it'd be needed you need to use an install USB instead.

I thought they were four partitions, but actually I see three now. I just don't like to have many partitions, what is their purpose? I had a boot failure recently, the recovery partition was of no help and I had to re-install Windows from USB anyway.

[Kilrah]

First is the EFI partition where the bootloaders for Windows and other OSes you install live. 

3rd is Windows recovery which by default will be used to start a recovery environment after 3 unsuccessful boots of the system, maybe it can help, maybe not. 

 

4 minutes ago, testcy said:

the recovery partition was of no help and I had to re-install Windows from USB anyway.

Suggests you have deeper problems.

 

You can remove the 3rd if you want, the 1st is needed.

 

4 minutes ago, testcy said:

Besides I don't like them

Get over it? That's how things work now.

[whispous]

8 minutes ago, testcy said:

 

I thought they were four partitions, but actually I see three now. I don't like to have many partitions on a disk, what is their purpose? The same disk failed to boot recently, the recovery partition was of no help and I had to re-install Windows from USB anyway.

Don't make the partitions before installing Windows to the drive.

 

Delete the partitions, turn CSM off, boot the win11 installer memory stick and just let it create the partitions.

I repeat: do not create the partitions yourself.


EDIT: on second thoughts, looks like you did do this.

Just... grow up and let it do what it is designed to do? Rather than getting upset that it doesn't "look" the way you... like?

[testcy]

2 minutes ago, Kilrah said:

First is the EFI partition where the bootloaders for Windows and other OSes you install live. 

3rd is Windows recovery which by default will be used to start a recovery environment after 3 unsuccessful boots of the system, maybe it can help, maybe not. 

 

Suggests you have deeper problems.

 

You can remove the 3rd if you want, the 1st is needed.

 

Get over it? That's how things work now.

If I can't have one partition, it makes no difference to have two, three or more.

2 minutes ago, whispous said:

Don't make the partitions before installing Windows to the drive.

 

Delete the partitions, turn CSM off, boot the win11 installer memory stick and just let it create the partitions.

I repeat: do not create the partitions yourself.

I did not create the partitions myself.

[Eigenvektor]

46 minutes ago, testcy said:

I just don't like to have many partitions, what is their purpose?

The 100 MB EFI partition contains files necessary for booting the system. You'd have similar files when using MBR, they simply wouldn't be stored in their own partition.

 

The recovery partition is there to recover the system in case of issues. As was said above, you can remove the recovery partition if you want to, but the EFI partition is necessary to be able to boot.

 

You shouldn't even notice their existence during normal use, so why worry that they exist?

 

42 minutes ago, testcy said:

If I can't have one partition, it makes no difference to have two, three or more.

Why does the number of partitions even matter?

[Donut417]

54 minutes ago, testcy said:

If I can't have one partition, it makes no difference to have two, three or more.

I think starting with Windows 7, Microsoft started putting some of the Windows Startup files in separate partitions. This is normal, you just let Windows do Windows. 

 

On a side note. When installing Windows make sure you disconnect other drives. Windows some times does stupid shit like create those partitions on other drives. If those drives are then removed from the system Windows will be unable to boot.