Windows Cannot be Installed to This Disk

There are two partition schemes available to use with the hard disk. Respectively, the first one is the MBR partition table and the second one is the GPT partition table.

Also, there are two kinds of booting systems available for computers. The first one is UEFI boot and the second one is Legacy boot.

If we choose the UEFI boot option during the computer startup, then it will check for the GPT partition on the hard disk. Similarly, if we choose the Legacy boot option then it will check for the MBR partition on the hard disk. 

If the UEFI boot option didn't get any GPT partition or the Legacy boot option didn't get any MBR partition, then the computer booting process will be failed. 

Suppose, we are going to install the "Windows Operating System". In the first boot option, we have selected the UEFI enable booting method. In that case, the "Windows Installation Process" will check for the GPT partition on the hard disk. If it didn't find any GPT partition information on the hard disk, then it will display the following error message:-

 

"Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk has an MBR partition table. ON EFI system windows can only be installed to GPT disks."

or

"Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is not of the GPT partition style."

 

In the same way, if we choose the normal booting method or the legacy method from the "First boot menu", then the setup process will scan for the MBR partition information on the hard disk. If it didn't find any MBR partition information on the hard disk then it will display the following error message. 

 

"Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style."

 

To resolve this issue, we have to select the right booting method to complete our "Windows Installation Process". If our hard disk is formatted with the GPT partition system, then we have to select the "UEFI booting method" from the "First boot list". On the other hand, if our hard disk is formatted with the MBR partition style, then we have to select the "Legacy booting method" from the "First Boot Menu".

 

In this tutorial, we assume that we will use the USB Flash Drive to complete the installation of our "Windows Operating System". And we also assume that we will use the "Rufus" software to create the bootable USB flash disk. In this software, there is an option available to select the partition scheme for the bootable USB disk. 

If our hard disk is formatted with the GPT partition, then we will select the GPT partition scheme from that option.

And if our hard disk is formatted with the MBR partition then we will select the MBR partition scheme from that option.

After creating the bootable USB flash drive, then we have to choose the right booting method from the "First Boot Menu". Remember, for the GPT formatted hard disk choose the UEFI boot method and for the MBR formatted hard disk choose the Legacy boot method.

That's it. Now, our windows installation process should be completed without any error.