- #Linux initialize drive as mbr linux install#
- #Linux initialize drive as mbr linux update#
- #Linux initialize drive as mbr linux software#
- #Linux initialize drive as mbr linux free#
#Linux initialize drive as mbr linux software#
booting and partitioning software from other OSs (e.g., DOS FDISK, OS/2 FDISK).software that runs at boot time (e.g., old versions of LILO).If the number of cylinders in the disk is larger than 1024 (and large hard drives always have more), it could, in certain setups, cause problems with:
#Linux initialize drive as mbr linux free#
For illustration, I'll use /dev/sdb, and assume that you want a single partition on the disk, occupying all the free space. Refer back to the logical name you noted from earlier. See this tutorial for information about EFI support and parted usage: The latest version of the kernel supports EFI, and almost all the latest distros do too.
GPT (GUID Partition Table) can do both of these things, but it is part of the EFI standard. MBR (Master Boot Record) has two main limitations: you cannot have a partition larger than 2 TB and you cannot have more than 4 primary partitions.
parted allows you to create MBR or GPT partitions. fdisk is an older program, and its main downside is that it can only create MBR partitions. There are two commands that can be used in the command line to partition a new drive: fdisk and parted. The disk will then be partitioned and formatted.
#Linux initialize drive as mbr linux update#
The graphical display should update to show a new partition covering the entire disk.Ħ) To finish, click "Apply," or Edit > Apply. For file-sharing between Ubuntu and Windows, you should use "fat32." If you are unsure, search around the wiki and forums for advice.ĥ) Now click Add to compute the partition. Use "ext3" if the drive will only be used with Ubuntu. Use these steps to partition the drive with a single partition.ġ) Right-click on the white bar and choose "New."Ģ) For "New Size" the number should be the maximum allowable, to fill the entire disk.Ĥ) Now decide on a filesystem. Assuming that the drive has yet to have been used, a white bar will run across the window. The window should refresh and show you a representation of the new drive. In the top-right corner of the window, choose your new hard drive from the drop-down list, referring back to the "logical name" from earlier. Open GParted and let's get started.Īlways use gksu or gksudo for graphical applications like gparted and sudo for command line applications, like apt-get.
#Linux initialize drive as mbr linux install#
If System > Administration > GNOME Partition Editor (or 'Partition Editor') is not available, install "GParted" using "sudo apt-get install gparted" from the command line, "Add/Remove Software" (or "Add/Remove.") from the Applications menu, or "Synaptic Package Manager" from the System > Administration menu. Decide whether you want the drive to contain one single partition, or if you want to divide the space up between two or more partitions. If you have already formatted the drive and it contains data, skip this step and move on to "Mount Point." If the drive is still blank and unformatted, then you have two options: formatting the drive using the command line, or installing GParted for a graphical approach. This should produce output similar to this sample: *-diskīe sure to note the "logical name" entry, as it will be used several times throughout this guide. To determine the path that your system has assigned to the new hard drive, open a terminal and run: sudo lshw -C disk We assume that the hard drive is physically installed and detected by the BIOS. If you are new to file systems and partitioning, please do some preliminary research on the two before you attempt this procedure. For sharing between Ubuntu and Windows, FAT32 is often the recommended file system, although NTFS works quite well too. Multiple partition drive installations are not very hard, and you may very well figure it out by using this guide however, make sure you add an entry in /etc/fstab for each partition, not just the drive.ĭrives that are going to be used only under Ubuntu should be formatted using the ext3/ext4 file system (depending on which version of Ubuntu you use and whether you need Linux backwards compatibility). This guide goes over procedures for a single partition drive install only. Do you want any of the partitions to be larger than 2 TB?.How do you want to divide the free space? As a single partition, or as several?.Will the drive need to be accessible from both Ubuntu and Windows?.Will the drive be used only with Ubuntu?.Before beginning, you need to consider for what you will be using the hard drive. Use this guide to help you install a new hard drive with an existing Ubuntu system, and partition it for use. While it's not every day that you need to add a new hard drive to your computer, the task does not have to be complicated.