Disk partitioning is a very important function of the operating system to manage disk data. When partitioning, users need to choose a partition table format to organize the partitions on the disk, which is the origin of the two partition table formats, GPT and MBR. In this article, the difference between GPT and MBR partition table formats and how to choose them will be discussed in detail.
1. Overview of MBR and GPT partition table formats
MBR partition table, also known as master boot record, is a traditional disk partition format that can be booted by BIOS/MBR and supports up to 4 primary partitions or 3 primary partitions and 1 extended partition. In the MBR partition table, the primary partition is a partition that can be directly booted, while the extended partition can be divided into multiple logical partitions, and each logical partition can be formatted as a file system to store data. The partition table entries of the primary partition and the extended partition in the MBR partition table are numbered in DOS format.
GPT disk partition format is a new generation of disk partition format based on UEFI standard, can be booted by UEFI/GPT, and supports a maximum capacity of 9.4 ZB (1 ZB=1024 EB). GPT partition table includes primary partition and protective partition (Protective MBR). A maximum of 128 primary partitions are supported, and each partition has a globally unique identifier (GUID) and a specific name. The protective partition is a hidden MBR partition table for compatibility with operating systems that do not support GPT. The GPT partition table uses the GUID partition table format.
2. The difference between GPT and MBR partition table format
① Disk capacity
The maximum capacity of the MBR partition table is 2TB, while the maximum capacity of the GPT partition table can reach 9.4 ZB (1 ZB = 1024 EB), much larger than the MBR partition table. If your hard disk capacity is larger than 2TB, you must use GPT for partitioning, otherwise you cannot use unallocated disk space.
② Number of partition table entries
MBR supports up to 4 primary partitions or 3 primary partitions and 1 extended partition. If you want to use more partitions, you will need to create a logical partition. GPT can support up to 128 primary partitions, allowing for more flexible partitioning.
③ GUID
The MBR partition table uses a partition type identifier (Partition Type ID) to identify each partition, while GPT uses a GUID (globally unique identifier) to identify each partition. GUID can not only ensure the uniqueness of each partition, but also ensure that different Disk partitions are unique on a computer.
④ Protective Partition
There is a protective partition in the GPT partition table, which is used to store backup and repair information to prevent the disk partition table from being damaged. However, the MBR partition table does not have any protective partitions, so if the MBR partition gets corrupted, it may result in disk data loss.
⑤ Guidance method
The MBR partition table has an embedded bootloader that can load the operating system when the computer starts. However, there is no built-in boot loader in the GPT partition table, so an additional boot partition is required to load the operating system. This additional boot partition is a UEFI system partition that contains the boot loader and the files needed to boot the operating system.
3. How to choose the partition table format
When choosing an MBR or GPT partition table format, you should consider the following:
① Disk capacity
If your hard disk capacity is larger than 2TB, you must choose the GPT partition table format, otherwise you cannot use the unallocated disk space.
② Guidance method
If your computer starts with BIOS or Legacy Mode, then you must select the MBR partition table format. However, if your computer boots with UEFI, then you must choose the GPT partition table format.
③ Backward Compatibility
If you need to move data between different operating systems, then you need to choose the MBR partition table format as it is the most common format among various operating systems and computers. However, if your computer supports UEFI and you want to use a new Windows operating system, then you need to use the GPT partition table format.
④ Purpose
If your hard disk is partitioned for personal or family use, and you feel that MBR partitions are sufficient, then there is no need to use the GPT partition table. However, if your hard disk partitions are used in enterprise-level data centers or other high-performance computing tasks, then you will need more partitions and high reliability, which requires the use of GPT partition tables.
In short, both MBR and GPT partition table formats have their own advantages and disadvantages. Which one to choose depends on the user's special needs, such as disk capacity, operating system and computer type, etc.