After restore system partition is not the first partition
Using GPT disk.
Partition ### Type Size Offset
------------- ---------------- ------- -------
Partition 1 Reserved 128 MB 17 KB
Partition 2 System 100 MB 129 MB
Partition 3 Primary 223 GB 229 MB
On fresh install system is before reserved. According to microsoft the system should be first on a GPT disk.
Will this cause issues?
I always thought recovering a disk image places all the partitions in the original order. Which wasn't the case here.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/gg463525.aspx
ESP EFI System Partition
Q. Where should the ESP be placed on the disk?
A. The ESP should be first on the disk. While there is no architectural requirement, there are numerous reasons why it is beneficial to place the ESP first. The primary reason for this is that it is impossible to span volumes when the ESP is logically between the two data partitions that you are attempting to span.
Ian,
Yes, I have seen that link when I look at your post, and I thought this was the one you were referring to. The system reserved partition is the partition that contains the boot files, not the system one, so you are fine.
But the EFI system partition is fat32 and is the 100MB one I found this out by checking.
DISKPART> list volume
Volume ### Ltr Label Fs Type Size Status Info
---------- --- ----------- ----- ---------- ------- --------- --------
Volume 0 D DVD-ROM 0 B No Media
Volume 1 F FILES NTFS Partition 931 GB Healthy
Volume 2 K BAK NTFS Partition 931 GB Healthy
Volume 3 C SYSTEM NTFS Partition 223 GB Healthy Boot
Volume 4 FAT32 Partition 100 MB Healthy System
Volume 5 U NTFS Removable 59 GB Healthy
The 100MB fat32 is the EFI system partition. And that 100MB partition is listed as the second partition. The reserved partition is a windows NTFS partition I think, but its not fat32 so its not an EFI system partition.
Aren't confusing the C:\System, which is the system partition as in "the OS that can be booted" partition with the System Reserved Partition (not label) that is marked as "system, active" because it contains the boot files?
Right click on the computer icon, choose manage, storage, disk management. Capture a screen shot of the window and post it here...
There are no 'active' partitions on GPT disk - it always boots from ESP partition. What Windows places in 'active' 100 mb partition on an MBR disk, is in the 100 mb FAT32 ESP partition on GPT disk. And MSR partition is another GPT-specific reserved partition that has no equivalent in bios boot mode.
Quoting from msdn link above -
Every GPT disk must contain an MSR. The order of partitions on the disk should be ESP (if any), OEM (if any) and MSR followed by primary data partition(s). It is particularly important that the MSR be created before other primary data partitions.
I wouldn't expect any issues as long as they both are in the beginning of the disk.
I wasn't confusing c:\system. But thanks, I just found it odd that restore didn't put the partitions back in the original order. Anyway I did a full reinstall, not because of this, but I had other problems I couldn't fix on my 2 year old install.
Ian,
You can control the order the partitions are restored: just restore one partition at a time, finishing with the MBR+Track0 and the disk signature (if needed, for example with a new disk). No need to reboot inbetween restores.
I tried that. Restored the fat32 partition first, then the only other thing in their to restore was the data partition, but it didn't boot. Only booted if I restored the whole disk at once. There was no MBR + Track0 since its GPT disk i think.
There was no MBR + Track0 since its GPT disk i think.
Right. Of course.
Was there any option when you restored the fat32? Dev-Anon pointed out there is no active partition per se on a GPT disk, so I am wondering what ATI displays for the system "active" partition on restore...