A friend brought me his laptop Lenovo and asked me to install on it Windows 10 instead of Windows 8... By the way, the "eight" was on it from the moment of purchase in the store. This laptop has BIOS UEFI... I already told once, laptops with such a BIOS.
So, I inserted my bootable Windows USB flash drive into this laptop. Then I put it in BIOS so that the boot from the flash drive was successful. I'm getting started with the installation.

At first, everything goes as usual:

I choose the largest partition on the hard disk where I will install the system. And then I find out that the "Next" button is not active. Below I see a warning: “”. I click here “ Show details”:

An error window appears: “”:

Now I will explain what this error means. And how do you install Windows in such a situation:

GPT(GUID Partition Table) Is the new standard for hard disk partition tables. Most modern laptops sold with Windows 8 or Windows 10 preinstalled use this standard.

To install Windows 10 on a GPT disk of a laptop with UEFI BIOS from a bootable USB flash drive, it is necessary that one of the conditions is met:

1) either it was UEFI flash drive(created in a special way. For example, using the program Rufus)

2) either, if the flash drive is not UEFI, then it is necessary convert hard drive from GPT standard to legacy MBR standard

I had a regular bootable USB flash drive with an operating system (not UEFI), and I did not want to remake it at all. Therefore, I decided to use the second option - to convert the laptop hard drive. This is done at the time of installing the OS using command line.

Important: during the conversion process, all data from the hard disk will be deleted! Even if your disk is divided into several partitions (for example, “Local disk C” and “Local disk D”), then all these partitions will be deleted! Therefore, if you, for example, on drive D, have some important personal files, then it is better to cancel the installation, then drop these files somewhere on a USB flash drive or external hard drive, and only then continue.

In my case, the Lenovo laptop still had a hidden partition with a rollback program to the “store state”. After converting the hard disk from GPT to MBR, it will also become unusable. When I warned the owner of the laptop about this, he said that he was not going to return to Windows 8 - he asked to give him either “seven” or “ten”.

The instructions for installing Windows on a laptop given in the article are relevant for both Windows 10 and for Windows 7.

So, I told you about the reason for the error: “ Windows cannot be installed on this disc. The selected disk has a GPT partition style”. And also warned about the consequences of converting a hard drive from GPT to MBR. Now let's proceed with our installation:

After an error about the GPT partition style occurs - call the command line by pressing the keyboard shortcut Shift + F10(on my laptop I had to press Fn + Shift + F10):

In the black window that opens, type the command diskpart and press the key Enter on keyboard:

Now you need to select the hard drive to convert. At first find out his number... To do this, enter the command list disk and press the key Enter:

In my case, the system detected two disks. But the volume shows that Disc 0 Is your computer's hard drive, and Disc 1- this is my personal flash drive, from which I am currently installing Windows.

Naturally, we will work with Disk 0... Therefore, on the command line, we write the following command: sel dis 0 and press the Enter key:

Then we enter the command clean and press the Enter key. The hard drive will be completely cleaned up, including all files and partitions:

Now we enter the command and press the Enter key. Thus, we have converted the disk to the MBR standard:

After that, we enter again exit and again press Enter:

Go back to our section window and click here “ Refresh”. Then we press the button “ Further”:

We see the following window:

We can immediately click "Next" and the Windows installation process will begin. But we can first create the number of sections we need on your hard disk by clicking the “ Create”:

In any case, the process of installing Windows on a laptop should go further without problems:

Most users do not even try to seek help from the wizards, since they have already gained practical experience in installing Windows.

In principle, they are right, indeed, it is quite easy to install a new operating system with a bootable disk available. Especially considering that many bootable discs come with other additional features. In particular, they are focused not only on installing Windows, but also on installing drivers, as well as other necessary software.

Installing earlier versions of Windows to a GPT disk fails. How to solve it - in our article below

Unfortunately, sometimes the belief that everything will go like clockwork can collapse like a house of cards. During the installation of Windows, suddenly after the disk has already been formatted, a message appears announcing the impossibility of continuing the process. Of course, if the user encounters such a problem for the first time, he may not understand what caused this failure. The only hint is the phrase that is in the message. It is this phrase that says that it is impossible to install Windows, since the disk has a GPT partition style.

Previously, all hard drives came with an MBR scheme, which made it so easy to install the OS. Many inexperienced users are amazed why it was necessary to invent something new, to create this incomprehensible and "problematic" GPT style.

It is not difficult to explain this, technical progress persistently "dictates" its new requirements. Nowadays, hard drives, the sizes of which exceed several terabytes, are no longer surprising. Unfortunately, a disk with an MBR scheme cannot exceed 2TB. Also, such disks cannot be divided into more than four partitions.

Of course, with the purchase of hard drives with a large volume, users may encounter unexpected problems. To eliminate them, manufacturers have created a new disk system - GPT.

If you want to install Windows 10 on a GPT disk, problems may not arise, but when you try to install Windows 7, problems by themselves, as if by insidious "magic", will appear. If you are an adherent of this particular operating system, so you do not want to abandon it, no matter what, then you need to read our instructions.

BIOS preparation

We recommend that you initially check which BIOS version is installed on your computer equipment. It is important that it is not of the old format, but UEFI. Defining this is quite simple. Restart your computer, enter BIOS, try moving your mouse. If the cursor is listening to you, the mouse functions perfectly, it means that the UEFI BIOS is installed on the PC, which is what you need. And you can also find confirmation of the new Bios format by examining its interface.

After you have made sure that you have the UEFI BIOS installed, we suggest that you proceed to making changes to its settings. When you entered the BIOS, press the F7 key, after that you will be redirected automatically to the "Advanced" section.

In this section you will find five tabs, we need the last tab "Download", click on it. In the next open window you will find several suggestions, we recommend that you find the line "USB support", click on it, and then opposite the "Next boot after power failure" parameter select the Full Initialization value.

Now we suggest you go to the GPT section, then find the "Boot Options" option, in it it is rational to select the UEFI option. In the next option "Boot from devices" you also need to select the UEFI first option. Find another option "Secure Boot", set it to UEFI Mode.

It remains to make changes in the priority of the boot process, which determines from which device it is important to initially start the system. Due to the fact that you are planning to install Windows 10 or 7 on your hard drive using a bootable USB flash drive, you, of course, need to put the option to boot from a flash drive in the first place.

Specify the USB flash drive as the first source, the hard drive as the second

This completes the introduction of changes, it remains to restart the computer for all changes to take effect. Only reboot the PC after working with the BIOS in a special way. To do this, press the F10 key, and then confirm the need to save the changes made.

Preparing a flash drive

It's good if you took care in advance and prepared a bootable USB flash drive that will allow you to install Windows 10 or 7 on a GPT disk. Do not worry if you have not done this before, you can do this at this moment.

By the way, you can prepare a bootable USB flash drive on any PC, so if your computer is not yet “capable” for some reason, use the “help of a friend” by borrowing a PC from him for a while. We recommend that you choose a flash drive for loading the operating system, the volume of which is at least 8 GB.

Download the Windows image from the Internet, then, using the appropriate programs, initially format the removable drive, give the USB flash drive the parameters of the boot disk, and then copy the image of the desired Windows to the prepared USB flash drive.

And you can also go another way of creating a bootable USB flash drive by resorting to the command line. It is this method that is most welcomed by experienced users, although it requires increased vigilance, since it is accompanied by the introduction of service commands.

Call the command line, to do this, hold down two keys simultaneously: Shift and F10. Now you have to enter several commands sequentially. First we enter diskpart, then press the Enter key, and then immediately enter the following command list disk. Now the window will display information about which disks were detected on your computer. You need to determine for yourself where your flash drive is, under what number it is accompanied. This is not difficult, since each disk will have its size indicated next to it.

Now enter the following command select disk 2, in which a different numeric value can be specified instead of "two". It depends on which number you just found your drive from which you plan to install the operating system on your computer.

Enter the following commands in the strict order we specified:

• clean, targeting cleanup activities;
• create partition primary;
• select partition 1, confirming your choice of this particular partition;
• active, indicating that you wish to make this section active;
• "Format quick fs = fat32 label =" Win7UEFI "", performing formatting;
• assign;
• exit to successfully exit the command line.

Use any program that allows you to mount a bootable disk image. DAEMON Tools is a good option for such tasks.

It remains to enter one more command "xcopy I: *. * F: / e / f / h", after which all the necessary boot files will be written to our flash drive. In this command, only capital letters can be changed, since the letter I indicates the disk on which the image of Windows 10 or 7 was recorded. But the letter F indicates your USB flash drive.

Installing the operating system

After the preparatory work is completed, you have everything, in order to properly install Windows 10 or the desired "seven", we suggest you familiarize yourself with the algorithm of actions, performing strictly that you will not encounter any difficulties.

Algorithm of actions

Insert the bootable USB stick into a USB port and restart your computer. After the next launch, you will be immediately reoriented to the operating system installation menu. First, do not forget to indicate the language that is comfortable for you. Do not ignore this rule, since the loading process, although it is carried out automatically, will occasionally require your participation, which is why it is so important that the message appears in a language that you perfectly understand.

First step - specify your language and region

During the installation process, your disk will be converted to GPT. We warn you that after completing all the procedures, your hard disk will be completely clean. For this reason, if you have saved some important documents, photos, videos on your PC, first transfer them to other drives, and only then proceed to boot your new Windows.

By the way, you can reformat a disk from MBR to GPT not only when you are trying to install a new OS. If Windows 10 is already installed on your computer at this moment, you can carry out the reformatting process without even having to reinstall the operating system.

Windows 10 has built-in such a successful tool as Disk Management. You will be able to call it if you click on the "Start" button, then click on "Run", then enter "diskmgmt.msc" in the line.

A window will appear on the screen, it will display all the disks on which your hard drive is partitioned. You will have to delete each of them in turn. It is not difficult to do this, just click on the disk to highlight it, and then right-click, select the "Delete volume" option in the context menu.

After you remove all the disks in this way, an available option "Convert to GPT disk" will appear in the context menu, which we suggest you use. This formatting process is fast, but only if there are no bad sectors.

Once the process is complete, you can repartition the disk into several partitions, one of which will be active. It is on it that you can reinstall Windows 10 or your beloved "seven" if necessary.

Installation problems

Unfortunately, occasionally one has to deal with various problem situations. If you weren't able to install the OS, delete all partitions and format the disk in GPT so easily, then you missed something, so you need to take some other steps to eliminate the mistakes.

So, restart your computer, after launching the boot disk welcome window, select the "System Restore" option. Next, you will have the opportunity to work with the command line again.

We have already worked with the first four commands, so it will be easy for you to enter them:

• diskpart;
• list disk;
• select disk X;
• clean.

Next, write the convert mbr command, which directs the system to reformat the disk space. The next command "create partition primary size xxxxxxx" allows you to specify the size of the future disk. It is thanks to this command that you divide the hard drive into several sections with the desired volume.

It is important to make one of the disks active, since it is supposed to install the operating system on it later. To do this, use the active command. Format this section with the following command "format fs = ntfs quick". All that remains is to assign a letter to your drive using the assign command. Of course, to exit the command line, you need to type the last command, exit.

Now click the "Update" button and proceed with the installation of Windows. Unfortunately, if this time you will be trapped by some next technical failure, then the problem, most likely, lies in something else.

Often users do not pay attention to the bitness of their system, so they start the installation with a 32-bit system, which leads to an unsuccessful result. It is important to have exactly a 64-bit operating system, only in this case you can take actions aimed at formatting the disk in GPT and installing a new operating system.

So, this process cannot be called cardinally easy. Since it is supposed to perform several actions, followed by the introduction of commands. However, if desired, each user will be able to figure out how to achieve what he wants if he follows the proposed algorithm.

Advances in computer technology mean more than just an increase in computing power, but along with performance gains, there are improvements in the stability, security and convenience of modern computers. One of the most significant changes in recent years has been the replacement of the old BIOS with a more advanced UEFI, as well as the move from MBR to GPT disk partitioning style.

The advantages of the latter style are obvious. Unlike MBR, GPT markup allows you to create an almost unlimited number of partitions, assign them unique identifiers, names, and attributes. GPT also supports duplication of boot code and partition tables, work without any restrictions with media over 2.2 TB. However, the GPT partition style has its drawbacks, the most significant of which is the lack of support for this technology on computers with an old BIOS.

In addition, novice users may find it difficult to install Windows on a GPT disk. So, due to the incompatibility of the BIOS software or its individual settings with modern drives, when you try to install the system on a disk with a new partitioning style at the initial stage, you may receive the error “Installing Windows on this disk is not possible. The selected disk is in GPT style. "

To users inexperienced in computer intricacies, the error may seem serious, in reality there is nothing here that could prevent the installation of the system.

The appearance of the message "Windows cannot be installed, the selected disk has a GPT partition style" usually occurs on new models of computers with large disks or, on the contrary, on older PCs after replacing disks with newer models of drives. At the same time, the version of the operating system does not play a special role, an error can occur during the installation of both Windows 7 and Windows 10, although, according to numerous testimonies, the error is more often encountered when installing the "seven". There are currently two main solutions to this problem - changing the appropriate settings in the UEFI BIOS and converting the GPT style to MBR.

UEFI setup and Windows installation to GPT disk

This method is only applicable for computers with UEFI firmware, so the first step is to make sure that one is actually present. If you see a mouse-enabled GUI when entering the BIOS, it is more likely that your PC is using UEFI firmware, hence you can install the system to a GPT disk. You can get into the new BIOS in the same way as into the old one - just hold down the F2 or Del button while booting.

Further, in the BIOS Features or BIOS Setup section, you need to find and enable UEFI boot instead of CSM, and in the Peripherals section, select AHCI instead of IDE SATA mode. If you are installing Windows 7 or an earlier version of the system, you must also disable the Secure Boot feature (usually located in the Boot section).

After the performed manipulations, the message “Unable to install Windows. GPT Partition Style ”should no longer appear.

Important: the system installed on a GPT disk must be 64-bit, these are the terms of Microsoft's policy. If you want to install a 32-bit version of Windows, you will have to convert the markup to MBR. If the system is installed from a USB flash drive, it is recommended to recreate it so that it supports UEFI. To do this, you can use the command line, or even better - a special utility Rufus.

Converting GPT markup to MBR

If your PC is using a regular BIOS, you will not be able to install Windows to the GPT disk. In this case, the most correct solution would be to convert the GPT style to MBR just before installing the system. When you receive a notification that Windows cannot be installed, close the wizard window and click Shift + F10... In the command line that opens, run the following commands in sequence:

diskpart
list disk
sеlеct disk 0
clean
convert mbr

The first command runs the utility Diskpart, the second one displays a list of all physical disks connected to the PC, the third command selects the required disk (in this example, it is disk 0), the fourth one performs its complete cleaning (all created partitions are deleted), the fifth command converts the GPT partitioning style to MBR. When executing the list disk command, pay attention to the asterisk in the GPT column, it just indicates that the disk is in the GPT style.

To make sure that the conversion was successful, you can display the list disk again - the asterisk in the GPT column should disappear. That's all, use the exit command to quit the Diskpart utility, close the command line and continue installing Windows, after restarting the computer. After cleaning, the partitions will have to be created anew, but this time no notifications about the impossibility of installation in the selected partition should appear, since the disk will already have MBR markup.

Using third-party programs

It is unlikely, but it may happen that you will need to convert the GPT markup style to MBR on the disk with the data already on it. The method described above using Diskpart is not suitable in this case, since the clean command removes all partitions from the disk, and with them the data they contain. In such a situation, you can use third-party applications, for example, the Minitool Partition Wizard Bootable, Paragon Hard Disk Manager or AOMEI PE Builder.

All of these programs allow you to convert a basic GPT disk to MBR and vice versa, while the conversion procedure is simple and available to users of all skill levels.

Installing the system in unallocated space

In some cases, you can do without using the command line or additional applications. If, when installing Windows 7/10, the wizard writes "installation on this disk is not possible", and the disk capacity does not exceed 2.2 GB, you should try this method. Use the installation wizard to delete all the partitions you created and try to install Windows into a single unallocated space.

If no error occurs, the system itself chose the MBR style and converted the disk to it. However, in this case, you will have to create a custom partition D separately after installation. Also, you will not have a hidden "System Reserved" partition on the disk, which will somewhat reduce the fault tolerance of Windows.

Hard disks with the GPT partition style have been around quite recently, but some computers are already equipped with them out of the box. Working with this format is slightly different when compared to standard MBR disks, especially in the installation of the operating system. We will consider how to do this later.

What is a GPT disk?

First, let's find out what the MBR (Master Boot Record) is. This is a partition on the hard disk dedicated to loading the operating system. Based on this sector, the work of the entire hard disk is built.

This scheme has been used for 20 years, and today it involves the following restrictions:

• The maximum size of a partition on a hard disk cannot exceed 2 TB;
• You can only partition a disk into 4 partitions or less;
• Data redundancy cannot be provided.

Hard drives are getting bigger and newer versions of the operating system appear. As a result, the MBR scheme limits the capabilities of the computer. Hardware and software manufacturers noticed this problem and created a new disk partitioning system called GPT. This format gives you more options.

As an example, you can take partitions - there can be up to 128 of them on a GPT disk, and up to 4 on an MBR. But the user may face incompatibility between the BIOS and GPT versions of the disk. As a result, you will not be able to install Windows 7. This problem has already been resolved - you can install Windows 7 yourself.

Step-by-step installation instructions

To install the seven, we need a bootable flash drive. If you have not yet prepared a USB flash drive, we recommend using a drive of at least 8 GB for these purposes. Burn the image of the installation disk to a USB flash drive - this can be done using simple programs. For example, you can take BurnISO, which has a function to create a bootable disc. You can download it from here. Now let's move on to the main process.

Helpful advice! Many users do not know how to determine the BIOS version. It can be of the old format or UEFI - we need the second option. To find out, open the BIOS at boot and check if the mouse works. If so, you have a newer version of the UEFI BIOS installed. It is also noticeable in the interface.

Step # 1 - preparing the BIOS

So, you have verified that the computer is running UEFI. Now the BIOS needs to be configured correctly. This is done according to the following scheme:

After completing the settings, the BIOS will reboot itself. If you have specified all the parameters correctly, the installation of the "seven" will start in automatic mode. If you have problems again, then double-check the correctness of the entered parameters in UEFI.

Step # 2 - installing Windows

After the reboot, we will be transferred to the installation menu. If you have already installed Windows 7 on GPT before, then you can skip this step. Novice users are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the process. Select the Russian language (or another) and press the button Further

Selecting the button Install, study the agreements and select the mode Complete installation, in which you can see additional options. In the next menu, several hard disk partitions will appear in front of us, just click on the button Further.

Now you need to call the command line to convert the disk to GPT format.

IMPORTANT! After that, all data and sections will be erased.

To call the line, press the combination Shift + F10... We drive in the following commands one by one:

• diskpart
• sel dis 0
• clean
• convert gpt
• exit
• exit

Now press the button Refresh and then follow the instructions. The standard installation of the "seven" begins. We need to wait for the completion of the process and go to the menu Disk management... We select the option where our system is located, and in the context menu, click on Properties – Volume... Here you can verify that the operation was successful - the disk is now GPT style.

Why can't I put Windows 7 on GPT format?

If everything was done correctly, the installation may not start due to incompatibility with the GPT disk. There may be several reasons for such a malfunction. We have already said about the need for a UEFI disk, the second important requirement is a 64-bit system. 32-bit (x86) is used only on older computers, so the GPT disk is not intended for installing this version.

To check, you need to go to This computer (My computer)... On the white field, press RMB and click on Properties... Before us there will be data about our computer and "hardware". Scroll down the window and find the part dedicated to the operating system we're interested in. There you will see which bit depth is suitable for your computer:

If you have a 32-bit format, then there is no point in trying to put the seventh version on the GPT format. Try converting GPT to MBR - after that the installation should start. It is recommended that you upgrade to a 64-bit motherboard for new hard drives to function properly.

Video installation of windows 7 on gpt

In the next video, you will see how to install Windows with GPT partition style. It also provides ways to troubleshoot errors and convert the disc.

Problems with installing an OS from Microsoft on GPT arise most often among owners of the seventh version. More modern Windows automatically switch to this disk style. But sometimes, without the initial UEFI configuration, it is impossible to install Windows 8. The problem can be solved using our instructions if you have a modern BIOS version.

Most modern laptops come with Windows 10 (8) preinstalled. But from experience I can say that many users (for the time being) like and conveniently work in Windows 7 (some of them do not start old software in Windows 10, others do not like the design of the new OS, others have problems with fonts, drivers, etc.) ).

But in order to run Windows 7 on a laptop, it is not necessary to format the disk, delete everything on it, etc. You can do it differently - install Windows 7 a second OS to an existing 10-ke (for example). This is done quite simply, although many have difficulties. In this article I will show with an example how to install a second Windows 7 OS to Windows 10 on a laptop with a GPT disk (under UEFI). So, let's begin to understand in order ...

How to make two from one disk partition (we make a partition for installing a second Windows)

In most cases (I don't know why) all new laptops (and computers) come with one partition - on which Windows is installed. First, this breakdown method is not very convenient (especially in emergency cases when you need to change the OS); secondly, if you want to install a second OS, then there will be nowhere to do it ...

The task in this subsection of the article is simple: without deleting the data on the partition with preinstalled Windows 10 (8), make another 40-50GB partition (for example) out of free space for installing Windows 7 into it.

In principle, there is nothing complicated here, especially since you can get by with the utilities built into Windows. Let's consider all the actions in order.

1) Open the Disk Management utility - it is available in any version of Windows: 7, 8, 10. The easiest way to do this is to press the buttons Win + R and enter the command diskmgmt.msc, press ENTER.

2) Select your disk partition on which there is free space (I have 2 in the screenshot below, the new laptop will most likely have 1). So, select this section, right-click on it and in the context menu, click "Shrink Volume" (that is, we will reduce it due to the free space on it).

3) Next, enter the size of the compressible space in MB (for Windows 7, I recommend a partition of 30-50GB minimum, i.e. at least 30,000 MB, see the screenshot below). Those. in fact, we are now entering the size of the disk on which we will later install Windows.

4) Actually, in a couple of minutes you will see that that free space (the size of which we indicated) was separated from the disk and became unallocated (in disk management - such areas are marked in black).

Now right-click on this unallocated area and create a simple volume there.

5) Next, you will need to specify the file system (choose NTFS) and specify the drive letter (you can specify any that is not yet in the system). I don't think it's worth illustrating all these steps here, just press the "next" button a couple of times.

Then your disk will be ready and you can write other files to it, including installing another OS.

Important! Also, to split one hard disk partition into 2-3 parts, you can use special utilities. Be careful, not all of them crash your hard drive without damaging your files! I talked about one of the programs (which does not format the disk and does not delete your data on it during such an operation) in this article: / i>

Creating a bootable UEFI USB stick with Windows 7

Since the preinstalled Windows 8 (10) on a laptop runs under UEFI (in most cases) on a GPT disk, it is unlikely that you will be able to use a regular bootable USB flash drive. To do this, you need to create a special. USB flash drive for UEFI. This is what we will do now ... (by the way, you can read more about this here:.

By the way, you can find out what kind of partitioning on your disk (MBR or GPT) in this article: The settings that need to be set when creating bootable media depend on the partitioning of your disk!

For this case, I propose to use one of the most convenient and simple utilities for writing bootable flash drives. It's about the Rufus utility.

A very small (by the way, free) utility for creating bootable media. It is extremely simple to use it: just download, run, specify the image and set the settings. Further - she will do everything herself! Directly ideal and a good example for utilities of this kind ...

Let's move on to the recording settings (in order):

1. device: specify the USB stick here. to which the ISO image file from Windows 7 will be written (a flash drive will be needed for at least 4 GB, better - 8 GB);
2. Partition scheme: GPT for computers with UEFI interface (this is an important setting, otherwise you will not be able to start the installation!);
3. File system: FAT32;
4. then specify the boot image file with Windows 7 (check the settings so that they are not reset. Some parameters may change after specifying the ISO image);
5. Press the start button and wait for the end of the recording process.

Configuring laptop BIOS (disable Secure Boot)

The fact is that if you plan to install the second Windows 7 system, then this cannot be done unless you disable Secure boot in the laptop BIOS.

Secure boot is a UEFI feature that prevents unauthorized operating systems and software from starting up when the computer is turned on and started. Those. roughly speaking, it protects against everything unfamiliar, for example, from viruses ...

In different laptops, Secure Boot is disabled in different ways (there are laptops where it cannot be disabled at all!). Let's consider the issue in more detail.

1) First you need to enter BIOS. For this, most often, the keys are used: F2, F10, Delete. Each laptop manufacturer (and even laptops of the same model range) has different buttons! The login button must be pressed several times immediately after turning on the device.

Remark! Buttons for entering BIOS for different PCs, laptops: / i>

2) When you enter the BIOS, look for the BOOT section. In it, you need to do the following (using the example of a Dell laptop):

• Boot List Option - UEFI;
• Secure Boot - Disabled (disabled! Without this, you will not be able to install Windows 7);
• Load Legacy Option Rom - Enabled (support for loading older OS);
• The rest can be left as is, by default;
• Pressing the F10 (Save and Exit) button is to save and exit (at the bottom of the screen you will have the buttons to press).

Remark! You can read more about disabling Secure Boot in this article (several different laptops are considered there): / i>

Running Windows 7 installation

If the USB flash drive is recorded and inserted into the USB 2.0 port (the USB 3.0 port is marked in blue, be careful), the BIOS is configured, then you can start installing Windows 7 ...

1) Reboot (turn on) the laptop and press the bootable media selection button (Call Boot Menu). These buttons are different in different laptops. For example, on HP laptops you can press ESC (or F10), on Dell laptops you can press F12. In general, there is nothing complicated here, you can even experimentally find the most frequent buttons: ESC, F2, F10, F12 ...

Remark! Hotkeys for calling the Boot Menu in laptops from different manufacturers: / i>

By the way, you can also select bootable media in BIOS (see the previous part of the article) by setting the queue correctly.

The screenshot below shows how such a menu looks like. When it appears, select the created bootable USB flash drive (see screenshot below).

2) Next, the usual installation of Windows 7 will start: the welcome window, the window with the license (you need to confirm), the choice of the type of installation (choose for advanced users) and, finally, a window will appear with the choice of the disk on which to install the OS. In principle, there should be no errors at this step - you need to select the disk partition that we prepared in advance and click "next".

Remark! If there are errors, like “this section cannot be installed, because he MBR ... "- I recommend to read this article: / i>

3) Then all you have to do is wait until the files are copied to the laptop hard drive, prepared, updated, etc.

4) By the way, if after the files are copied (screen above) and the laptop is restarted, you will see the error "File: WindowsSystem32Winload.efi", etc. (screenshot below) - it means you have not turned off Secure Boot and Windows cannot proceed with the installation ...

After disabling Secure Boot (how to do it - see above in the article) - there will be no such error and Windows will continue to install normally.

System default selection, timeout setting

After installing the second Windows system - when you turn on the computer, you will have a boot manager that will display all the available OS on the computer to give you a choice of what to download (screenshot below).

In principle, this could be the end of the article - but the default parameters are painfully inconvenient. First, this screen appears every time for 30 seconds. (5 is enough for a choice!), secondly, as a rule, each user wants to designate himself which system to boot by default. Actually, we will do this now ...

To set the time and select the default system, go to the Windows Control Panel at: Control Panel / System and Security / System (I set these parameters in Windows 7, but in Windows 8/10 - it's done in the same way!).

When the "System" window opens, on the left side there will be a link "Advanced system settings" - you need to open it (screenshot below).

Next, you can select the operating system that is loaded by default, as well as whether to display the OS list, and how long it actually takes to display it. (screenshot below). In general, set the parameters for yourself, save them and restart the laptop.