Different kinds of Windows Installations

[mech-eng]

I would like to ask some questions about different "windows installations".  Is "windows installations" divided into two: 1.UEFI installation and 2. BIOS installation?

Regards.

[WAWood]

@mech-eng 

Every PC has a chip (or two) that provide what is needed to get the PC started so it can eventually read the attached drive and boot into an OS or into some other inserted media.

That "stuff" is known as Firmware (similar to software, but not quite the same) and it exists in two general forms: BIOS (older, been around since PCs began), and UEFI (newer -- last few years).

There are also different filesystems -- ways of formatting a drive into sections known as partitions.  One is know as MBR (older, been around since PCs began) and the other is known as GPT (newer -- last few years).

Your PC is either BIOS or UEFI -- you can't change that because that is hardware. IF your PC came with Win10 preloaded, it is UEFI, as that is what HP puts onto their newer PCs.

When you install an OS, with a UEFI machine, it will want the drive formatted GPT -- and it will do that for you from the OS installation media.  The installer creates the partitions needed, formats them, and then populates them -- you answer a few questions and then sit back and watch.

[mech-eng]

---

@WAWood wrote:

@mech-eng 

There are also different filesystems -- ways of formatting a drive into sections known as partitions.  One is know as MBR (older, been around since PCs began) and the other is known as GPT (newer -- last few years).

Your PC is either BIOS or UEFI -- you can't change that because that is hardware. IF your PC came with Win10 preloaded, it is UEFI, as that is what HP puts onto their newer PCs.

When you install an OS, with a UEFI machine, it will want the drive formatted GPT -- and it will do that for you from the OS installation media.  The installer creates the partitions needed, formats them, and then populates them -- you answer a few questions and then sit back and watch.

My PC came with Win 8, so how can I understand whether it is preloaded with UEFI, or BIOS?  If it is BIOS, what does it still need "GPT"? These are quite confusing to me.

---