Oracle Linux: How to Convert a Disk Partition Table from MBR to GPT (Doc ID 2903259.1)

Last updated on NOVEMBER 06, 2024

Applies to:

Goal

Disk devices formatted using traditional BIOS-based Master Boot Record (MBR) partitioning scheme are limited to a maximum disk size of approximately 2.2Tb and four primary partitions.
Whilst this size limit will be of minor concern when using smaller devices (<= 2Tb), it is problematic for larger devices where disk space beyond 2.2Tb will be inaccessible and unusable.
The UEFI-based GUID Partition Table (GPT) partitioning scheme supports a significantly greater device sizes and a limit of 128 partitions.
For these reasons, the use of GPT is increasingly preferred and necessary over the MBR partition table.

Through the use of a real-world example, this document describes how to convert the partition table of a disk from MBR to GPT.
This document primarily focuses on partition table conversion, although provides a complete example of related tasks for completeness.
The process described may similarly be used for other Linux releases using other filesystems types.
Additional information including various filesystem resize use cases are available from the references section below.

Solution

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