How to Convert MBR to GPT or GPT to MBR Without Losing Data in Windows 10

Both MBR and GPT are partition styles for your storage devices and each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Converting a disk from MBR to GPT or vice versa is needed when you want to utilize your disk in a more proper way based on the integrated features of the partitioning formats.

4 Ways to Convert MBR to GPT or GPT to MBR Without Data Loss

You can learn four ways to convert MBR to GPT or GPT to MBR in this article. The first solution is the most recommended option. Even you have little technical know-how, you can convert to GPT without losing data.

Tip 1. Use Qiling partition manager to convert MBR to GPT (without deleting partitions)
Tip 2. Convert MBR to GPT CMD using Diskpart utility (need to delete partitions)
Tip 3. Use Disk Management to convert MBR to GPT (need to delete partitions)
Tip 4. Apply MBR2GPT.exe to convert MBR to GPT (complicated, suitable for advanced users)

How to Break the 2TB File System Limit of MBR in Windows 10/8.1/8/7

No matter whether you know MBR or GPT, you must have encountered such a situation. Your disk has 4TB of space, but you can only use 2TB of space, and the remaining 2TB seems to be wasted. Why does a 4TB hard drive only show 2TB? This is because your disk is MBR.

MBR only supports up to 2TB volume size and 4GB file size. Unlike MBR disk, GPT disk doesn't have such limitations. You can know their difference in this table.

Comparison	MBR	GPT
Maximum Partition Size	2TB	9.4ZB (1ZB=1billion TB)
Maximum Partition Number	4 primary partitions or three primary partitions and one extended partition	128 primary partitions
Firmware Interface Support	BIOS	UEFI

Therefore, if you want to break those limits on an MBR disk or if you have vital files on your disk and worry about data loss, you'd better convert MBR to GPT.

Tip 1. Convert MBR to GPT Without Data Loss in Windows 10/8.1/8/7

The partition tool - Qiling Partition Master perfectly meets your demands of changing MBR to GPT without data loss. Whether you want to convert MBR to GPT or convert GPT to MBR, you can apply this software to get it done without deleting the volumes on your disk.

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Whether you're a computer novice or an expert, you can easily apply this tool to simply change MBR to GPT without losing any data in Windows 10/8/7 now. To convert GPT to MBR vice versa, check the specific tutorial.

Step 1. Download and launch Qiling Partition Master on your Windows computer.

Step 2. Click the MBR disk that you want to convert.

Step 3. Click "More..." and click "MBR -> GPT" to convert partition.

Important: There is one thing you need to pay attention to. If the disk you want to convert is the system disk, make sure the motherboard of the computer supports the boot mode of the target partition style. Remember that MBR supports BIOS and GPT supports UEFI.

Tip 2. Convert MBR to GPT Using DiskPart Tool

You can convert MBR to GPT in CMD with the Diskpart tool. But you need to know that Diskpart will delete all files and folders from your hard drive when changing disk to GPT.

So we strongly recommend you back up your files in advance and then perform data restoring after the conversion. If there are lots of files on your disk, you are recommended to back up your data effectively using the free backup software - Qiling Backup.

After backing up the files, follow the steps below to use Diskpart in CMD to convert MBR to GPT.

Step 1. Type CMD in the Search box. Right-click Command Prompt and choose "Run as administrator". If CMD isn't available, you can use PowerShell instead.

Step 2. Open Command Prompt, type DiskPart, and press Enter.

Step 3. Type list disk and press Enter. (Note down the number of the disk you which you want to convert to GPT)

Step 4. Type select disk X. (Replace the X with the correct number of your hard drive)

Step 5. Now type clean and press Enter. This command will remove all the files and partitions from your hard drive, so back up all important files in advance.

Step 6. Type convert gpt and press Enter.

This method is not suitable for computer beginners. If you mistakenly cleaned a partition using DiskPart, you can undo DiskPart clean to retrieve your files.

Tip 3. Convert MBR to GPT Disk with Disk Management

Similar to using CMD, you also need to delete all partitions on your disk using Disk Management. Before you convert the disk from MBR to GPT or from GPT to MBR, you should back up your disk. If you want to recover a deleted partition, you can use a partition recovery software tool to get your lost data and partition back.

Step 1. Right-click on "This PC", choose "Manage", then head to "Disk Management".

Step 2. Right-click the volumes on your target disk and choose "Delete Volume..."

Step 3. When your disk becomes empty (shows as unallocated space), right-click your disk and choose "Convert to GPT Disk".

Tip 4. Convert MBR to GPT Without Losing Data with MBR2GPT

MBR2GPT.exe is a Windows built-in tool used to convert the disk from MBR to GPT. The advantage of this tool is that it won't destroy the files on your disk during the conversion.

But that's not recommended since it's complicated to use and you may encounter various problems according to the feedback from other users. Besides, it's only available in Windows 10 version 1730 and later.

Run MBR2GPT in WinPE to Convert MBR to GPT CMD

Step 1. Click the Start button > click the Power button > hold the Shift Key and click Restart to access the Advanced Startup screen.

Step 2. Navigate to "Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Command Prompt".

Step 3. In Command Prompt, input these commands orderly, and press Enter after each command line.

mbr2gpt /validate
mbr2gpt /convert

After running these commands, your disk will be converted from MBR to GPT without data loss.

Run MBR2GPT in Full Windows OS to Convert MBR to GPT

MBR2GP tool is designed to be run in a Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) environment command prompt, but can also be run from the full Windows 10 operating system (OS) by using the /allowFullOS option.

Step 1. Run Command Prompt (Admin) on your Windows 10.

Step 2. Type command lines below and press enter after each one.

mbr2gpt /validate /allowFullOS
mbr2gpt /convert /allowFullOS

After this, you can use the new GPT disk to create partitions, install new UEFI system, etc. withou out any obstacles.

Tip: If you forgot to back up files and want to undo the clean command, Qiling partition recovery software can retrieve your partitions and files.

Bonus Tip: How to Convert MBR to GPT without Operating System

Some people may also want to know how to convert MBR disk to GPT without operating system or during Windows installation. Compared to the above solutions, to convert MBR to GPT without OS is more complicated.

To do so, you have two ways out:

1. Boot the computer from a Windows installation media and then apply CMD command to convert disk. However, it's too complex for most ordinary people.
2. Run PC from a USB bootable disk created by Qiling Partition Master and complete the task. Even a biggner can give it a try.

You can check the details of MBR2GPT.EXE in the related Microsoft documents.

How to Enable UEFI Mode After Converting System Boot Disk to GPT

If you have converted a system disk (MBR) to GPT, you need to enable the UEFI boot mode on your computer to make the OS bootable. Here are the steps:

Step 1. Restart PC and press F2, F8, F12, Del to enter the BIOS boot menu.

Step 2. Locate the "Boot" options menu and enable the UEFI mode.

Set Launch CSM to Enabled.
Set Boot Device Control to UEFI Only
Set Boot from Storage Devices to UEFI driver first

Step 3. Set the UEFI OS Boot option at the top of the Boot Priority List.

Step 4. Save the changes and exit BIOS, reboot PC from the GPT disk

After this, wait patiently. Your computer will automatically boot from the GPT disk

The Bottom Line

After reading this guide, you will find that using Qiling Partition Master is the easiest way to convert MBR to GPT without data loss among the four solutions. With this tool, you can convert MBR to GPT or convert GPT to MBR directly without deleting any partition.

If you prefer using Disk Management or DiskPart to convert MBR to GPT, remember to back up your disk in advance. While if you attempt to use MBR2GPT.exe, make sure your disk meets the requirements given by Microsoft, or the conversion will not proceed and an error will occur.

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