MBR ERROR help

[Patton2121]

Just bought a HDD for my bros PC, thats all he need to get his PC working, I installed windows 8 onto using my PC and it booted up fine. When I put it into his I get a message saying "MBR ERROR, BOOT FROM FLOPPY DISK" so I formatted it and reinstalled windows 8, and I get the same thing, boots on my PC, wont boot on his. any ideas?

 

[SuperSoph_WD]

Hey there, Patton2121!

I'd recommend you to go to the HDD manufacturer's website and find a DOS version of their diagnostic tool. It will help you determine the health and SMART status of your bro's HDD. Another feature that the tool might have is "WRITE ZEROS". It will help you erase everything and start from scratch with the drive.
In case you cannot find such a utility, you can try using our WD's Data LifeGuard Diagnostics for DOS. Here's a tutorial with the instructions you might find useful: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=8mvOm7

If you have access to another computer, you can try writing zeros using a formatting tool or you can simply re-initialize the HDD from Disk Management there.

Hope this helps you. Keep me posted with the troubleshooting!
SuperSoph_WD

 

[Patton2121]

Hey there, Patton2121!

I'd recommend you to go to the HDD manufacturer's website and find a DOS version of their diagnostic tool. It will help you determine the health and SMART status of your bro's HDD. Another feature that the tool might have is "WRITE ZEROS". It will help you erase everything and start from scratch with the drive.
In case you cannot find such a utility, you can try using our WD's Data LifeGuard Diagnostics for DOS. Here's a tutorial with the instructions you might find useful: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=8mvOm7

If you have access to another computer, you can try writing zeros using a formatting tool or you can simply re-initialize the HDD from Disk Management there.

Hope this helps you. Keep me posted with the troubleshooting!
SuperSoph_WD

 

[Patton2121]

I was formatting it an reinitializing it and I noticed I could choose GPT, or MBR, would choosing GPT be the cause? I tried it with MBR but windows wont install unless its GPT. can I change it over to MBR after I install windows?

 

[Lumia925]

You need to use your bro's computer to install Windows.
You cannot install windows on your computer, transfer the HDD to a different computer, and expect it to boot up.
Example: if you take the HDD of my computer, remove your computer's boot drive, connect my HDD to your computer, and turn it on, your computer will fail to boot/BSOD, although my HDD will boot fine on my computer.
Windows MUST be installed using the computer that will be using the installation.
If your brother's computer's BIOS is UEFI based, you should be using GPT. If it's a classic/legacy BIOS, or you're running a UEFI BIOS in Legacy emulation mode, you should use MBR.

UPDATE: Read your last post once again, and this is happening because of a firmware incompatibility.
YOUR computer is using UEFI (looks like it's newer than your brother's?) and your brother's computer is using a classic BIOS. Windows WON'T install on MBR if the firmware is EFI based. And an EFI installation won't boot on a Legacy BIOS firmware.
To resolve this problem (and many other future problems), I STRONGLY recommend you convert the drive to MBR, and then use your brother's computer to install Windows- Windows should ALWAYS be installed on the target system, not on a different system and moved to another (unless the two systems are EXACT hardware copies of each other eg:same motherboard, same graphics, same CPU, etc).
Your brother's computer (legacy BIOS) will allow you to install Windows on an MBR drive.

 

[Patton2121]

You need to use your bro's computer to install Windows.
You cannot install windows on your computer, transfer the HDD to a different computer, and expect it to boot up.
Example: if you take the HDD of my computer, remove your computer's boot drive, connect my HDD to your computer, and turn it on, your computer will fail to boot/BSOD, although my HDD will boot fine on my computer.
Windows MUST be installed using the computer that will be using the installation.
If your brother's computer's BIOS is UEFI based, you should be using GPT. If it's a classic/legacy BIOS, or you're running a UEFI BIOS in Legacy emulation mode, you should use MBR.

UPDATE: Read your last post once again, and this is happening because of a firmware incompatibility.
YOUR computer is using UEFI (looks like it's newer than your brother's?) and your brother's computer is using a classic BIOS. Windows WON'T install on MBR if the firmware is EFI based. And an EFI installation won't boot on a Legacy BIOS firmware.
To resolve this problem (and many other future problems), I STRONGLY recommend you convert the drive to MBR, and then use your brother's computer to install Windows- Windows should ALWAYS be installed on the target system, not on a different system and moved to another (unless the two systems are EXACT hardware copies of each other eg:same motherboard, same graphics, same CPU, etc).
Your brother's computer (legacy BIOS) will allow you to install Windows on an MBR drive.

 

[Patton2121]

Well I went to install it on his, and it said I couldn't because it was in GPT format, so I switched it back to MBR and it worked. I realized my problem though, I was installing it on mine and transferring it over to his cause it has to restart at the end, I thought that after this restart it would finish download, I realized though that the restart was it finishing, and the whole time I had the pc set to boot off DVD/CD drive, so it would take me back to the first step in install, switched it to the HDD and it worked like a dream. Hope what I just said make sense. Thank You by the Way, your a life saver.

 

[Lumia925]

Glad i could help
PS: I STRONGLY RECOMMENDED converting the drive to MBR and then install Windows using brother's computer.
Installation was failing on your brother's computer because you skipped a step - did not convert the drive to MBR.
For future reference:- use GPT on EFI firmware, use MBR on legacy firmware.