Nov 16, 2020 • Filed to: Windows Computer Solutions • Proven solutions

As great as Windows 10 OS is, updating it is not as great as it should be. The process of upgrading your Windows to the latest Windows 10 version is fraught with several challenges. Users of this OS often complain of several errors with one of them being 'we couldn't create a new partition error' message. This type of error can stop you from installing this OS altogether but we want to help you overcome this challenge hence our decision to compile this easy to use tutorial.

Overview of this error: We couldn't create a new partition

We couldn't create a new partition is an error commonly reported in these forms when users are trying to upgrade their Windows system

• Couldn't locate existing partition in Windows 10
• Partition creation error 0x8004240f, 0x80042468
• We couldn't create or locate an existing partition on SSD, RAID
• Could not create Partition Windows setup, Windows 10 USB
• Could not create a new unallocated space for Partition
• Could not create Partition dual boot, BIOS, GPT

'Unable to find a free MBR slot in the virtual partition DLL. This is usually due to there being no free primary partition slots left on the boot disk.' Kindly tell me the solution of this message. For your case I think you have two issues need to address. The MBR Problem and change Drive C as your Primary. First, we need to fix your MBR Partition Problem then second we will change your Drive C to primary using EaseUS Partition Master. When fixing your MBR Partition Table there are two solve it; 1. StartUp Repair Option.

How to fix we couldn't create a new Partition error

Below we have provided a detailed process of how to fix this error. Go through them carefully and if you must use any of the solutions make sure you follow the steps as they are spelled out

Solution 1 – Use Diskpart

Before you use Diskpart, disconnect all external drives from your PC. Also, make sure you have a backup created for your files as this step will erase all the files on your drive. Follow these steps.

• Start the Windows setup with a bootable DVD OR USB
• If you still see the error message, close setup and tap the Repair icon
• Pick Advanced tools and click Command Prompt.
• When the prompt opens, input 'Start Diskpart' and enter the list disk to see all the hard drives on your system
• Locate the number assigned to your hard drive and replace that number with any other number of your choice
• Input the following codes and press enter after each code

disk 0 assign (press enter)

disk 0 format is=ntfs quick (press enter)

disk 0 active (press enter)

disk 0 clean (press enter)

disk 0 create partition plan (press enter)

• To close the prompt type enter
• Commence installation again
• This option will erase all the data in your hard drive so make sure you back them up before you do it.

Solution 2 – Activate Partition

To fix this error another option you can use is to set the partition to primary. A Diskpart tool can be used to do this using the same steps listed in the first solution above. After starting the Diskpart tool, follow these steps.

• Open list disk
• Locate drive and input 'select disk 0' or any number of your choice. This new number will be your hard drive's number
• Open list partition
• Identify the partition from the list which you want to install then click the partition
• Replace the 'number 1' with the number of your partition.
• Type in 'active'

• Type exit and enter to leave the command prompt

We couldn't create a new partition Windows 10 USB

For USB's here are reliable solutions to fix the error.

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Solution 1 – Use a bootable DVD

Some users complain that their USB 3.0 flash drives cause partition creation errors. USB 2.0 drives are also not immune to this kind of error too. To be on a safe side, install Windows using a bootable Windows 10 DVD instead of a flash drive

Solution 2 – Disconnect additional USB drives from your PC

If you don't have a bootable DVD but a flash drive is all you have, make sure you disconnect any other flash drive from your PC and leave only the flash drive you are working with.

Solution 3 – Reconnect your USB flash drive

Another trick that may work is to unplug the USB drive from the USB port and then reconnect it. If you still can't create a new partition, try connecting the drive to another USB Port.

Solution 4 – Set hard drive as the first boot device

Some systems have been known to set BIOS as the first boot device and this often triggers a 'we couldn't create a new partition' to message. To fix it, set your flash drive as the first boot device then reconnect the drive and restart the system again. As the system is booting, press (F12, F11, and F10) to select the flash drive as a boot device.

If the Boot menu is not enabled on your device go to BIOS to change it manually.

Solution 5 – Use a 3rd party Media Creation Tool to create a bootable USB drive

Your Media Creation tool may be the cause of the error message but no need to fret over it. Simply go on online and download a third-party creation tool for free. There are so many of them you can use like Recoverit Partition tool to create a bootable flash drive.

Solution 6 – Convert the partition to GPT format

If none of the other solutions has worked, don't lose hope, perhaps this one will. Try converting the MBR partition to GPT. Why? This is because GPT partitions are more advanced and do not have some of the limitations of MBR and it works well with UEFI.

DO NOTE THAT CONVERTING MBR TO GPR WILL ERASE ALL FILES SO MAKE SURE YOU DO A PROPER BACKUP OF ALL YOUR FILES FIRST.

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To convert to GPT

• Run command prompt then open Diskpart
• Open list disk to locate the hard drive
• Enter disk X and replace it with the number of your hard drive.
• In command prompt type clean than tap Enter. (This command will erase all files)
• Type 'convert got' the run command

Solution 7 – Use a third-party tool

If you don't know how to use command-line tools a third party tool may help recover and copy lost Partitions.

Try using Recoverit Software

We couldn't create a new partition Windows 10 SSD

DISCONNECT OTHER HARD DRIVES

For those who have not been able to install Windows on SSD, disabling other hard drives except for SSD can remedy the situation. After disconnecting all external drives with SSD being the only recognized drive in the system, the Windows installer will recognize it. Deleting existing partitions on the SSD will create new space for Windows 10 to be installed.

Failure to create a new partition is one error that any of our solutions will fix. It has worked for many of our readers and we are very sure that one of them will work for you if you try them.

When you are setting up a new hard drive in Windows, you’ll be asked to choose between GPT (GUID Partition Table) and MBR (Master Boot Record). It’s understandable if you are puzzled by that question, as GPT and MBR are not common terms that we hear every day. In this article, you’ll know what they are, how to identify which partition table your hard drive is using and how to convert disk GPT to MBR and vice versa.

What do Master Boot Record (MBR) and GUID Partition Table (GPT) Do?

Before you start using the hard disk, you have to partition it. And this information about partition is stored and governed by GPT and MBR. The information consists of where the partitions begin, so the OS will know which partition is bootable and which segments belong to which partition.

Architecturally both are different but performs the same function – providing details of the partitions in the hard drive.

MBR (Master Boot Record)

MBR is the old version of partition scheme and requires BIOS mode for booting Windows. It is located at the beginning of the disk drive and holds the information of logical disk. Apart from that, MBR also contains boot loader – a code that loads bigger boot loader from different partitions on the disk drive.

The drawback of this partition table is that it supports only four primary partitions, each with 2TB in size. If you want more partitions, you have to set one partition as “extendable partition” and create more sub-partitions. This will not be useful if you are having big storage drive.

Another drawback is, MBR has only one place, that holds the information of partitions and boot data on the drive. If it gets corrupted, then the entire disk drive becomes unreadable. If you don’t have a backup of the data, it’s manually not possible to restore data after MBR corruption.

GPT (GUID Partition Table)

GPT is the latest version and requires (a must) UEFI mode to boot. In GPT, you can create unlimited partitions on the hard drive and each partition can have up to 256TB size. GPT stores numerous copies data as primary and secondary partition tables in the hard disk. So, it can recover data if primary tables are corrupted. It can detect errors and try to recover data from it.

Now, if you want to change the partition table for various reasons, you need to know which one your computer hard drive is using.

And how do you find out?

Use These Methods to Know Which Partition Table Your Hard Disk Is Using

There are two ways to check which partition table your disk is using – you can use the Command Prompter or you can use disk management tool. Let’s see how to use these two.

Method #1: Using Command Prompt

You can use Diskpart Command to check which partition table your disk is using. You have to open the Command Prompt as an Administrator. To do that, press Windows button + X and select “Command Prompt (Admin)” or you can right-click the start button and run Command Prompt as an administrator.

Then, type the command diskpart, press Enter, and type command list disk.

It will show you a list of the connected disks. If the disk is GPT , you’ll see an asterisk (*) under “Gpt” column. If it is an MBR, Gpt column will be blank .

Method #2: Using Disk Management Tool

You can check which partition table your disk is using with Disk Management Tool contained within Windows. You can access it by right-clicking the Start menu or by pressing Windows button + X and choose “Disk Management.” Another way is to press Windows button + R and type “diskmgmt.msc” in the dialog box and press Enter.

In the Disk Management box, select the disk you want to verify. Then, right-click it and choose “Properties.” Then, select “Volumes.” On the right-side of “Partition Style,” you will either see “GUID Partition Table (GPT)” or “Master Boot Record (MBR)” based on the disk being used.

How to convert GPT to MBR or (MBR to GPT) in Windows 10

To convert disk GPT to MBR or disk MBR to GPT, you first have to wipe-off the contents of the disk. So, it’s important that your data is backed-up before proceeding with the conversion process. Else you cannot recover lost data after GPT to MBR conversion.

The conversion process will clean up all the data and partition tables of the disk, then you will change it to the new form of partition structure and arrange it from start again.

This process might take little longer, but it’s a guaranteed way of escaping from data loss or problems with partitions. There are third-party tools available, which promises MBR to GPT conversion without any data loss. But Microsoft hasn’t officially supported these tools, and you might want to backup your data before you run into any data loss problem.

Option #1: Using Command Prompt

From Command Prompt, you can use Diskpart Command. The Diskpart Clean Command will let you modify disks and partitions that appear unmodifiable and locked in the Disk Management tool.

Run Command Prompter as an “Administrator,” and type below mentioned commands in the dialog box. Press Enter after each command:

• Diskpart
• List disk

This will show you the list of all the disks on your PC. Note down the disk number you want to convert.
Now type below command and press Enter after each command:

• Select disk <number>
• Clean

This command will wipe out all the data in the partition and disk. So make sure you select the right disk number.

Now, to convert MBR to GPT or GPT to MBR, type either of the commands:

To convert disk MBR to GPT, type:
• Convert gpt

To change GPT to MBR, type:
• Convert mbr

And you have successfully converted between the partition tables.

Option #2: Using Disk Management Tool

First, open Disk Management and find the disk you want to convert. Right-click on the each of the partitions on the disk and select “Delete Volume.” Repeat this procedure until all partitions have been removed on the disk.

Once all the partitions have been removed, right-click on the disk and select “Convert to GPT Disk” or “Convert to MBR Disk.” You get this option only when all partitions have been removed or wiped out.

To create new partitions, right-click on the “Unallocated” in the Disk Management and create one or more partitions. Then, you can move your backed-up data into these new partitions.

Converting GPT to MBR in Windows 8, 7 or Vista

Using Disk Management Tool

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• Boot into your PC
• Click Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools, then
• Click on Computer Management > Storage > Disk Management

Then, follow the above-mentioned procedure.

Using Command Prompt

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Boot into Windows, then Start > Run > cmd

If your Windows is inaccessible, you can open Command Prompt by inserting Windows Installation Disc.

• Insert original Windows installation disc and Restart your PC
• Press any key to boot
• Navigate to “System Recovery Options” and click on Command Prompt

Then, type the commands mentioned in Option #1.

Conclusion

GPT is more modern and you might want to use it when setting up a disk drive. But if you want compatibility with the old version that is a system with traditional BIOS, then you’ll need MBR. Whether you are installing OS, resizing partitions or changing partition table make sure you take a backup of your data. If not, only a data recovery software can help you in recovering partitions, hard disk and lost files.