How to Avoid 200MB Hidden System Partition From Been Created During Windows 7 Installation
Unknowingly to many Windows 7 users, a hidden primary system partition which is active will be automatically and forcefully created by setup during installation of Windows 7. The additional separate standalone NTFS partition, which is not labeled with any drive letter or path, has the size of 200 MB, but only occupy 32 MB of it with 168 MB remains free.
The small 200MB partition actually holds Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE), which only available from DVD installation disc in previous operating system such as Windows Vista (see how to launch WinRE on DVD). The partition holds system files and bootable files that are essential to boot the Windows 7 properly in the event of the need to recover the OS in the event of corruption. The 200MB partition is pretty much similar to many recovery partition that been made on factory installation by most OEMs on the computer they sold.
However, when the small 200 MB separate partition has been created by Windows 7, it’s almost impossible to be deleted or removed. User cannot use delete the volume using Storage Disk Management in Computer Management. If forcefully deleted with third party partition manager or partition editor, Partition Table which is (normally) located in the master boot record (MBR) may be corrupted, or may become invalid.
The cause for the Partition Table error is because the 200MB partition does not use the standard sector zoning format. When deleted with partition tool which does not support non-standard partition type, the Partition Table will be corrupted. When the Partition Table is corrupted, the third party partition editor will show disk partition error has occurred on any re-created partition that uses the freed space (Disk Management in Win 7 do not show the error though). And the hard disk tends to have unallocated disk pace of 1 to 2 MB in size randomly. Format the hard disk volume or partition cannot fix the error either. In worst case scenario, some partition may be lost occasionally, causing files or data lost.
For Windows 7 users who don’t want the 200MB partition to be created and existed, the best way is to stop Windows 7 installation process to create the partition when installing Windows 7. In Windows 7, the feature (200 MB partition to store WinRE files) is installed on all computers if the OS is installed on hard disk with single partition scheme, or unallocated space (space which not yet been partitioned) on the hard disk drive.
Thus in order to skip or avoid the 200M partition to be automatically created during installation, here’s a few rules to follow when choosing where to install Windows 7 to:
- Do not install Windows 7 to a hard disk that not yet been partitioned or to unallocated space (When install Windows 7 to unallocated space, no warning pop-up or confirmation is asked, and setup will straight away and directly create partition 200 MB of disk space as special partition without notification).
- If possible, try to create all the necessary partition(s) and format the partition(s) before attempting to install Windows 7.
- If you’re installing Windows 7 into a new hard disk, or a blank hard disk with no partition defined yet, or if you must delete all existing partitions to start afresh, chose Drive options (advanced). Delete (if applicable) unwanted partitions. Then, click New to create the single partition or multiple partitions according to your own preference.
When prompted with dialog box saying “To ensure that all Windows features work correctly, Windows might create additional partitions for system files”, click on Cancel button. Optionally, to be double confirm, Format the partition before selecting it to install Windows 7.
When Windows 7 does not create the special 200MB partition, the WinRE recovery environment is stored in a folder in the root of Win7 installation drive. For example, if Windows7 is installed to a partition with a label of C:, the WinRE will be located located at C:Recovery.
Note: The hidden system reserved partition size is 100 MB in Windows 7 RTM, and the trick to prevent and remove 100 MB system reserved partition has been changed.
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Entries (RSS)
November 8th, 2009 20:32
What I do find odd is that the hidden partition is automatically installed on the first IDE drive, regardless of what HDD your main partition is installed on. It is an annoyance when you are using mobile HDD racks.
October 25th, 2009 23:28
[...] Acronis Disk Director Partitions Incompatible with Windows 7 This may be of interest… http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/0…-installation/ Is YOUR system up to Folding? Useful Information about HEXUS There are 10 types of people who [...]
October 10th, 2009 14:23
So windows 7 creates a “secret” 200MB partition which is designed to prevent your access to it. Why whould anyone go to all this trouble? it makes no sence, but it does if you put yourself in the designers shoes.
As MS are the chaps who make win7, start looking at them, ask yourself, why would they do this to your computer hard drive in secret.
Is it possible they want a secret area of your hard drive setup so they can place in this secret area secret software or several secret tools to prevent you from returning your PC to a known “unsecret” previous condition?
Is there going to be any “spying activerty” done by them or government agency that can run a special system command to access your PC without you being the wiser of it?
Say you decide to remove a security update file in windows, reboot and the internal OS does a sys check, finds you have removed a file, it might be able to “replace” that file autimaticly.
MS could even setup special software to be enabled by a hidden command from them or a gov agency, how would we know this hidden partition was being used honestly?
Well “secret” hidden partitions, created at system creation, smell big brouther trouble to me big time.
Keep your XP or W98 install cds, for emergency.
September 2nd, 2009 18:43
The best way to not install this is to create a partition, delete the non 100MB 1 and the extened the 100MB onto the larger one and that creates one whole partition.
August 17th, 2009 14:30
[...] a horrible experience! Fortunately, while I was googling around, I found an article titled “How to Avoid 200MB Hidden System Partition From Been Created During Windows 7 Installation“. This article basically gives you three options, but all of them basically indicate not [...]
August 13th, 2009 07:34
@Brandon
Many programs require the first partition to be the OS containing partition. eg: whole drive encryption programs.
August 5th, 2009 23:35
[...] How to Avoid 200MB (100 MB in Windows 7 RTM) Hidden System Partition From Been Created During Window… [...]
July 25th, 2009 11:05
It doesn’t bother me that it creates a partition, it bothers me that it sues 2 primary partitions allowing only 2 additional operating systems to be installed, or a dual boot with a dedicated boot partition. It would be better if it put Windows 7 in a Logical Partition inside an Extended. That way you can expand the extended and keep more Primaries.
July 16th, 2009 11:44
I followed you instruction but still a 100MB partition is created!
June 29th, 2009 23:26
[...] [...]
June 20th, 2009 02:10
@Brandon
Many who do this do it for a reason. Mine personally is for Truecrypt full disk encryption. Bitlocker doesn’t work on machines without the TPM, I think it is, and if you use a work around you’re likely run into other problems.
May 16th, 2009 23:55
Other operating systems (linux, BSD) create a root partition. However, unlike Windows 7, they don’t hide it from the computer owner. Saying that it’s used for recovery is a false pretense.
A simple solution would be to provide end users with a live CD, similar to those used to repair linux systems.
I wanted to try Windows 7 but now I think I’ll pass. I don’t have time for such nonsense.
May 6th, 2009 20:41
[...] 7 will also create a 100-200mb hidden partition for recovery purposes. More about it here : How to Avoid 200MB Hidden System Partition From Been Created During Windows 7 Installation My Digita… __________________ Eagles may soar, but weasels don’t get sucked into jet [...]
April 26th, 2009 23:22
[...] The partition is too do with system restore How to avoid the partition : How to Avoid 200MB Hidden System Partition From Been Created During Windows 7 Installation
February 1st, 2009 09:44
i too have the 200 mb allocation.(Win7 install) I was a first time raid installer. I thought i screwed it all up. Glad it wasn’t me. thanks, RF
January 26th, 2009 07:36
A very good reason is you are unable to complete whole disk encryption with Truecrypt when this partition is created.
Thus, all the work to this point I have accomplished is for naught.
Time to ERASE and install the way I WANT TO, not MS.
January 24th, 2009 19:23
Why on Earth would you be concerned about such a puny amount of hard drive space?
January 19th, 2009 21:26
IF you guys are going to be so purdnet why even bother testing windows 7! That 200mb partion is not only a wast of space 200mb and it only use a fraction of the space. It also hinders you from installing vista for a dual boot because that said partion is to bloddy small, vistsa needs 392mb of free space temp space and it auto uses the 200mb pariton so no vista for you.
January 19th, 2009 19:14
Why would you NOT do this? Because Windows 7 is still in Beta. Good idea when the OS has matured to RTM.
January 11th, 2009 16:44
The 200 MB is ACTIVE, but NOT BOOT partition as far as I know. It’s WinRE boot partition to boot Windows 7 in case of real boot partition corrupt.
January 11th, 2009 12:17
The 200 MB Partition is your ACTIVE partition. As you correctly found out, it hosts your BCD/BootMgr/etc. When you start Windows, first the BootMgr gets loaded from the System Partition and then it goes ahead and loads the overall OS from other bigger partitions.
Since this partition is needed for booting your OS, the OS takes certain steps to make it hard for you to delete it since allowing you to format or delete it would render Windows 7 unbootable.
NOTE: this has nothing to do with recoverability. It is highly discouraged that you don’t put additional stuff in that partition either.
January 11th, 2009 08:52
Why would you do this?
The boot partition is created for a reason, what possible reason could you have for not wanting it and the benefits it provides? (better recovery, ability to wipe the OS partition without messing up dual boot setups, ability to enable Bitlocker, and more).