[SOLVED] I'm too dumb to use unallocated disk space

Nov 25, 2020
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I just installed Win7 (hardware limitations) on my new 4TB HDD .
The installation made a 2TB partition because of MBR disk, and left the remaining space unallocated. MBR is OK.
I am fine with having it partitioned and I can always fix it later with EaseUS P. M. which I have already installed. Still, I want to use that unallocated disk space somehow.

EaseUS is not giving me an option to handle that space in anyway. Can't even format it.
DiskPart's last commandline Extend Filesystem gave a response that said the command worked but in reality nothing changed after a reboot.
 
Solution
The installation made a 2TB partition because of MBR disk, and left the remaining space unallocated. MBR is OK.
Still, I want to use that unallocated disk space somehow.
You can't.
With MBR partitioned drive you're limited to 2TB capacity of your drive. Remaining capacity is inaccessible.
To access more capacity than 2TB, drive has to be partitioned in GPT.

You have 2 options:
  1. Install windows in UEFI mode. This will partition drive in GPT.
  2. Install windows on a smaller MBR drive (<2TB) and use 4TB drive as secondary storage (GPT partitioned).
The installation made a 2TB partition because of MBR disk, and left the remaining space unallocated. MBR is OK.
Still, I want to use that unallocated disk space somehow.
You can't.
With MBR partitioned drive you're limited to 2TB capacity of your drive. Remaining capacity is inaccessible.
To access more capacity than 2TB, drive has to be partitioned in GPT.

You have 2 options:
  1. Install windows in UEFI mode. This will partition drive in GPT.
  2. Install windows on a smaller MBR drive (<2TB) and use 4TB drive as secondary storage (GPT partitioned).
 
Solution
Nov 25, 2020
2
0
10
You can't.
With MBR partitioned drive you're limited to 2TB capacity of your drive. Remaining capacity is inaccessible.
Wait. Yes there is a limit of 2TB per partition and yes there is a limit of 4 partitions, but shouldn't be one able to use up to 8TB of space with MBR? Is the 2TB limit really shared for the entire disk?

You have 2 options:
  1. Install windows in UEFI mode. This will partition drive in GPT.
  2. Install windows on a smaller MBR drive (<2TB) and use 4TB drive as secondary storage (GPT partitioned).

My MB is an old Asus M4A77T. It's so limited it caps at 8gb of ram and the Bios doesn't even have an UEFI boot mode so even with the Win7 ISO installation pen-drive I have prepared I am quite screwd.
 
Wait. Yes there is a limit of 2TB per partition and yes there is a limit of 4 partitions, but shouldn't be one able to use up to 8TB of space with MBR? Is the 2TB limit really shared for the entire disk?
2TB limit is on whole MBR partitioned disk. Capacity beyond 2TB is not accessible.
Disk must be partitioned in GPT to access capacities beyond 2TB.
See the image:
Disk 1 - MBR partitioned. Only first 2048GB are accessible. 1678GB - inaccessible.

EYEIk.jpg

My MB is an old Asus M4A77T. It's so limited it caps at 8gb of ram and the Bios doesn't even have an UEFI boot mode so even with the Win7 ISO installation pen-drive I have prepared I am quite screwd.
Then your only option is installing windows on a different (smaller) drive or
at least placing bootloader on a different (smaller) drive and converting 4TB drive to GPT.