Hack to Remove 100 MB System Reserved Partition When Installing Windows 7
On a fresh (custom) installation of Windows 7, where Windows 7 is installed onto a new hard disk with unallocated disk space (no partition or volume been defined yet), or when user attempts to create a new partition out of empty drive, the Windows 7 installer will create an additional partition with the size of 100.00 MB, and mark as System Reserved.
The 100MB volume is labeled as System Reserved with NTFS file system, and System, Active, Primary partition attribute with no drive letter in Disk Management. The 100MB system reserved partition is only available for Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Business and Windows 7 Enterprise editions. The 100 MB system partition is used primarily as BitLocker partition for BitLocker encryption. Additionally, it also holds the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) and boot files with boot manager for booting up the computer for troubleshooting when there is no Windows 7 installation DVD disc on hand.
The Windows 7 created 100 MB partition is not the main boot partition or boot drive, but serve only as a backup. The following files and folders are the initial content of the partition (names in [] brackets indicate it’s a folder or directory), before BitLocker is enabled and in use.
[$RECYCLE.BIN]
[Boot]
[System Volume Information]
bootmgr
BOOTSECT.BAK
For Windows 7 users who do not intend to use BitLocker, the 100 MB partition can be removed subsequently and easily in Disk Management, the built-in partition manager of Windows 7. However, users can stop and prevent the 100MB partition from been created in the first place during installation of Windows 7, via several workarounds and tricks or hacks. These hacks have slightly different from trick used to remove 200 MB partition in Windows 7 RC or Beta.
Method 1: Use Existing Partition or Partitioning Scheme
Windows 7 installation wizard will not modify existing partition which already been defined and allocated. The 100 MB BitLocker partiton will only be created when user creates new partition on a clean and empty HDD (no partitions), or delete all partitions and then create a new partition during setup. Thus, system with hard disk already partitioned, and users wish no change to existing partitioning but wish to clean install can just format the partition in Windows 7 setup wizard before installing.
Method 2: Partition the HDD Before Installing Windows 7
It’s “almost impossible” to stop or cancel the 100MB system reserved partition from been created in Windows 7 Setup (unless you uses hack 3 below). So for people you prefer to delete off all existing partitions, or want to install Windows 7 to an empty hard disk, it’s recommended to partition the hard disk before starting Windows 7 setup, through several ways.
One way is to boot up the computer with a Windows XP or Windows Vista installation CD or DVD, or any other bootable disc with disk partitioning utility, and then perform the re-partitioning. Quit the setup after finished partitioning, and start up the computer with Windows 7 DVD to install Windows 7.
For user with only Windows 7 DVD, follow these steps, as provided by UkonCornelias:
- Once Windows 7 Setup is loaded, press Shirt + F10 keys at the first setup screen (which allows selection of language, keyboard and locale). A Command Prompt window will be opened.
- Run Diskpart, the built-in disk partitioning tool of Windows 7 with the following command:
diskpart - Type in the following command one by one, follow by Enter key to create a partition (text in brackets are comments only):
list disk(to show the ID number of the hard disk to partition, normally is Disk 0)
select disk 0(change 0 to another number if applicable)
clean
create partition primary size=80000(create a partition with 80 GB space; to use entire disk as one partition, omit the “size=value” parameter switch; use similar command to create more partition if needed or create in Windows 7 after installation)
select partition 1
active
format fs=ntfs quick
exit - Type exit at command prompt to close Command Prompt window.
- Continue Windows 7 installation as usual. Remember to just highlight and select the partition just created when come to partition screen.
Method 3: Trick to Remove 100.00 MB System Reserved Partition During Setup
- On the “Where do you want to install Windows?” partition screen of Windows 7 Setup, click on Drive options (advanced) to delete existing partitions and create a new partition.
- Click OK when Install Windows wizard prompts with the following message:
To ensure that all Windows features work correctly, Windows might create additional partitions for system files.
- Two partitions should be created, a System Reserved System type partition (Disk 0 Partition 1) with 100.00 MB in size, and originally intended primary type partition (Disk 0 Partition 2) with allocated size now less 100MB.
- Delete the Primary Partition created.
- Click OK when prompted that “The partition might contain recovery files, system files, or important software from your computer manufacturer. If you delete this partition, any data stored on it will be lost.”
- All disk space inside the partition deleted will now become unallocated space. Now, highlight System Reserved Partition, and click Extend. Assign the available disk space to the partition, and click Apply.
- Click OK when promoted with “Extending a partition is not a reversible action. If you proceed, you will not be able to undo this action later.
- Highlight on the extended System Reserved Partition, and click Format.
- Click OK when prompted with “The partition might contain recovery files, system files, or important software from your computer manufacturer. If you format this partition, any data stored on it will be lost.”
- After finished formatting, the originally System Reserved Partition will now become normal system partition, ready to install Windows 7. Proceed to install Windows 7 as usual.
Note: If you plan to create more than one partitions, all partitions should be created first before deleting one that intended to be used as Windows 7 partition.
More hacks and usage guides of Windows 7 is available.
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Entries (RSS)
November 25th, 2009 18:31
You can remove this partition AFTER install.
1. Open CMD
2. Type DISKPART (enter).
3. Type LIST DISK (enter).
4. Choose the disk that contains your WinRE partition. If it is disk zero, you type SELECT DISK 0.
5. Type LIST PARTITION.
6. Select the 100MB (or 200MB, depending) partition. If it were partition 1, you would type SELECT PARTITION 1 (enter).
7. Type DETAIL PARTITION. Examine details to make sure this is the 100/200MB WinRE partition.
8. Type INACTIVE to make this no longer the active, bootable partition.
9. Now select your Windows disk – the one you want to boot from. If it is partition 2, you’ll type SELECT PARTITION 2.
10. Again examine details with DETAIL PARTITION.
11. Once you’re sure, mark it active with the command ACTIVE.
12. Type EXIT to get out of Diskpart. You’re back at the commandline.
13. You need to be sure there are system files on the new bootloader drive. if that drive is C:, you will put them there with this command: BCDBOOT c:\windows /s C: (you can use BCDBOOT /? to learn the other options available.)
14. Now reboot the machine.
15. When it comes back, use Disk Manager to delete the old 100/200MB partition. You’re done, though I recommend a reboot to test.
November 21st, 2009 21:06
Thanks a lot! I was wondering what the hell was that of a system reserved partition when I was about to install W7 in a new disk.
November 15th, 2009 23:36
it’s only 100MB so why mess around and delete it. It won’t make much difference to the overall performance of the system!!
November 5th, 2009 09:41
I had the same problem and did almost the same.
Installing to a new (clean) HD I let the system partition everything but then deleted the 100MB partition reserved for systemfiles from the installer.
It installed everything to the second partition.
November 2nd, 2009 16:00
[...] User is allowed to delete or delete hard disk drive or partition during the setup (note: a 100 MB system reserved partition may be created by Windows 7 Setup), or let Windows 7 install wizard backup the old configuration, [...]
October 28th, 2009 23:17
I love this! Yes works great for me on all my systems, I’ve been installing without the 100MB System partition ever since beta versions came out using this above method. Bitlocker serves only IT departments anyway. As Bitlocker will ultimately reduce system performance there really is no need for it in a standard user or enthusiast’s performance environment.
Especially since Microsoft did not give the customer a choice I say Stick it to the man!!
Note to the OP: Do not use WinXP to create a formatted partition EVER!! WinXP does not respect partition alignment. Instead use a a Vista install disk or one of the methods described above..
October 19th, 2009 06:06
[...] Hab hier noch ein paar Infos dazu gefunden, leider nur englisch. [...]
October 11th, 2009 10:06
1. Create a 50 MB partition.
2. Click on the partition, click the Extend button, extend the partition to use however much of the disk that you want the first partition to use.
3. Repeat steps 1 & 2 until you have your hard disk setup the way you want it.
4. Be thankful it’s really that easy.
October 7th, 2009 18:03
[...] like it is for bitlocker use: Hack to Remove 100 MB System Reserved Partition When Installing Windows 7 My Digital Life [...]
September 12th, 2009 18:28
Little update.
Microsoft is tricky. I thought that all was okay, so I deleted the partition on the 2nd disk.
Reboot and boom, boot corrupted.
I have disabled the 2nd drive in the bios before the repair to be sure that it won’t recreate it on the 2nd disk.
I repaired the boot with win7 dvd and all is okay now.
I think that a file has not been copied when I did the copy on linux.
September 12th, 2009 17:56
Hi everyone,
First sorry for my bad english.
Second : You may already have this problem, you have two clean hardisk and then you install win7, it create you the hidden System reserved partition in the second disk (ye it’s true). Then you cannot format the second disk or your boot is corrupted.
I found how to move this hidden partition into the first disk.
First thing to do is to create a 100mb active partition named System Reserved on the first disk (I had luck because I had 1Gb free on my disk).
Second thing is to boot with something like a linux live cd (like ubuntu).
Third thing is to mount the original System Reserved partition into your linux and you mount the future System Reserved part., you copy all files and it’s done, you can now boot on your first disk without have to boot on the second (and remove it, also).
I hope my explaination were understandable.
You can rewrite this tip for better english.
Have a nice day!
September 5th, 2009 19:51
Hi
I’ve just the opposite problem!
I’ve installed Windows 7 rtm ultimate on my pc and all is perfectly working, but when I’ve changed My hdd IDE into another HDD S-Ata, I cannot succeed in creating ‘hidden’ partition of 100Mb, while I want to create it!
How can I do in order to create this partition on my Sata HDD
Regards
Donald
August 22nd, 2009 01:01
“Did the poster actually try this before posting this article?”
There is often information posted here that is questionable (to be diplomatic about it.)
August 21st, 2009 08:22
B0r1s, did you not read what I said? I implied that the 100MB partition may well be the primary partition and that this guide may well be incorrect in stating that it is a backup and that it can safely be deleted once it exists.
I mean, every single softmod crack for ultimate needs to assign that 100mb partition a drive letter and modify the boot partition on it to start a modified version of grub that bootstraps windows 7. In addition to that C: does not contain any boot manager files on ultimate. Now unless MS has changed how windows ultimate boots since the RC, and as far as I can tell they have not – I am saying it is not safe to delete the partition via the disk manager and that it will cause windows to be nonbootable. Did the poster actually try this before posting this article?
Do not insult me by assuming I’m some ignorant ass who hum-drum decided to innocently ask a question because I was afraid my windows would become unbootable.
August 20th, 2009 16:26
snaphat, in a case of boot failure, if you don’t know how to recover a boot sector using Win7 install disk then this guide was not for you.
August 20th, 2009 10:47
Are you sure this partition can be deleted? Are you sure it is not the primary? I’ve read stories of people who deleted it and could no longer boot windows 7.
August 20th, 2009 01:49
[...] Hack to Remove 100 MB System Reserved Partition When Installing Windows 7 [...]