This error is caused by trying to install to the GPT disk in Legacy BIOS mode. There are two solutions: ① It is recommended to enable UEFI mode installation, enter BIOS to change the boot mode to UEFI Only or UEFI with Secure Boot, and use the UEFI booted USB disk for installation; ② If the motherboard does not support UEFI, you can convert the disk to MBR, press Shift F10 to open the command prompt, enter diskpart, list disk, select disk X (X is the disk number), clean, convert mbr, and then exit. This operation will clear all data. To determine whether the USB flash drive is UEFI booted, you can check whether there is the word "Windows Setup [UEFI]" in the upper left corner of the installation interface. New computers should choose UEFI GPT. Old computers need to transfer to MBR without UEFI support. Windows 11 must use UEFI GPT Secure Boot. The core principle is to use GPT with UEFI and MBR with Legacy.

This error message: " Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style ", which means: The disk you are trying to install Windows is using the GPT partition format, but the current installer is running in traditional BIOS (MBR) mode and is not compatible with GPT disks .

Simply put: GPT disk requires UEFI boot mode, and your installation environment is in Legacy BIOS mode, so it cannot be installed.

1. Cause of the problem

There are two partitioning methods for modern hard disks:

• MBR (Master Boot Record) : Old-style partition table, good compatibility, but only supports 2TB hard disks at most, and up to 4 main partitions.
• GPT (GUID Partition Table) : A new partition table that supports large-capacity hard disks, more partitions, and is more secure.

There are two startup modes:

• Legacy BIOS : Traditional mode, only supports MBR disks.
• UEFI : Modern mode, recommended to use, supports GPT disk, and boot faster and safer.

This error occurs when you try to install to a GPT disk in Legacy BIOS mode .

2. Solution (two options)

? Method 1: Enable UEFI mode installation (recommended)

This is the most modern and recommended way, especially for new computers or large-capacity hard drives.

Operation steps:

1. Restart the computer and enter the BIOS/UEFI setting interface (press F2 , Del , Esc , etc. when booting, depending on the motherboard brand for details).
2. Find the Boot Mode option, usually in the Boot or Advanced menu.
3. Change boot mode from Legacy/CSM to UEFI Only or UEFI with Secure Boot .
4. Save settings and exit (usually F10).
5. Use UEFI to boot USB drive to re-enter the Windows Installer.
   • Note: Your installation USB drive must be started in UEFI mode , otherwise it will not be able to enter.
   • It is recommended to use Microsoft's official tool (Media Creation Tool) when making USB drives, which will automatically support UEFI.

? At this time, you should be able to choose GPT disk to install normally and no more errors are reported.

? Method 2: Convert the disk from GPT to MBR (suitable for old computers)

If your motherboard does not support UEFI, or you insist on using Legacy BIOS mode, you must convert the disk to MBR.

??Note: This operation will clear all data on the disk! Please backup in advance!

Operation steps:

1. On the installation interface, press Shift F10 to open the command prompt.

2. Enter the following command and press Enter to execute:

    diskpart

3. Then enter:

    list disk

   Find the disk (such as Disk 0) you want to install the system.

4. Select disk (assuming Disk 0):

    select disk 0

5. Clear all partitions and convert to MBR:

    Clean
   convert mbr

6. Close the command prompt:

    exit

7. Refresh the installation interface (click the "Refresh" button), and now it should be a normal choice.

?? The clean command will completely delete all partitions and data of the disk, be sure to confirm!

3. How to determine whether your USB drive is started in UEFI mode?

• If you see the words " Windows Setup [UEFI] " in the upper left corner of the installation interface, it means that UEFI starts.
• If not, it might be Legacy startup.
• When making USB drives, use Microsoft's official Media Creation Tool and make sure the USB drive is formatted as FAT32 , which makes it easier to be recognized by UEFI.

Summary: Which method should I choose?

Basically that's it. The key points are: GPT is equipped with UEFI, MBR is equipped with Legacy , don’t mess it up.
Not complicated, but it is easy to ignore the startup mode settings.

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