Solved What is the partition after my primary partition?

jerryferreira

New Member
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I have a Gateway computer that came with Window 8 preinstalled. I removed their recovery partition after making recovery disks.

There are 5 partitions left on Disk 0. I know what the first 4 partitions are for, but not sure what the 5th one is for. When looking in Windows Disk Management, it has a blank name. Does anyone know?

Here is a screen shot from DISKPART.

Capture.JPG

Thanks so much.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
I know this 350MB hidden partition is a reserved partition. Can you post a screen shot of your layout in the disk management ?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
Thanks for your quick response.

As you probably know, the 128MB partition doesn't show in Disk Management because it's a hidden partition.

Here is the snapshot from Disk Management:

Disk Management.JPG

Thanks!
Jerry
 

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    Disk Management.JPG
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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
It's true the 128MB partition will not show up in disk management, it is hidden, unallocated and reserved by Microsoft.
When installing Windows using EFI mode, you'll get a total of 4 partitions created.
When installing Windows using the Legacy MBR, you'll get 2 partitions created ie. a 350MB hidden partition (no letter assigned) and the Windows OS C: partition.

By looking at the disk management screen, you only have Windows 8 running with EFI mode. So I guess at one point in the past, you did install Windows using the Legacy MBR. This partition is currently unused and you can delete it if you wish.

@Jerry: To be cautious, before you wish to delete this extra partition, Make a backup of this partition only (350MB).
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
topgundcp, actually all of them have to stay. Windows 8.1 creates the extra partition. If you remove the extra one. Windows will not work.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Linux Mint 17.2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Satellite C850D-st3nx1
    CPU
    AMD E1-1200 APU with Radeon (tm) HD Graphics 1.40 GHZ
    Memory
    12GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon™ HD 7310 Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LCD
    Screen Resolution
    1366 x 768
    Hard Drives
    Crucial M500 240GB SSD
    Mouse
    Logitech M525
    Internet Speed
    45/6 - ATT U-Verse
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    Google Chrome
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    None needed. It is Linux.
    Other Info
    Arris NVG589 Gateway; Router - Cisco RV320; Switch - Netgear GS108 8-Port Switch & Trendnet TEG-S50g 5-Port Switch; Access Points - Engenius ECB350, Trendnet TEW-638APB; NAS - Lenovo ix2-4; Printer - Brother HL-2280DW; Air Print Server - Lantronix XPrintServer

    A/V UPS - Tripp-Lite Smart 1500LCD 1500 Va/900 W.
The 350 MB partition is the one an 8 to 8.1 update adds. It is nomally designated as a Recovery partition.

Have you changed it, or reset back to Windows 8 then updated again?

Running the reagentc /info command in an Administrative Command Prompt might tell us if your recovery process is still operational and where it is looking for the Recovery Tools.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Grown
    CPU
    i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    ASUS P8Z77 -v Pro, Z87-Expert
    Memory
    16 G
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GTX 680 Classified (2)
    Hard Drives
    Kingston SSD 240 GB
I've enabled Legacy boot in BIOS months ago.

I haven't gone back to 8 from 8.1. When I received my Gateway, Windows 8 came preinstalled and have been getting the usual updates from Microsoft, which included 8.1 at some point.

Here is a screenshot of the results of reagentc /info:

reagentc info.JPG

Thanks!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
@topguncp--we need to find out which partition is the active Recovery Tools Partition. This is a UEFI install, so Legacy should have nothing to do with it. Any install that has an EFI partition is configured as GPT, and cannot be a Legacy install.

@ Jerryferreira, as you can see, the Recovery Options are disabled. You might try running the reagentc /enable command and then the reagentc /info command again.

The 350 MB partition is showing a configuration that was not done by Windows, at least as far as I know... It should show as hidden and designated as Recovery just as the first one. Since this one takes the place of the first one, it should not be removed until we know for sure which one has been set by Windows for your recovery options.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Grown
    CPU
    i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    ASUS P8Z77 -v Pro, Z87-Expert
    Memory
    16 G
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GTX 680 Classified (2)
    Hard Drives
    Kingston SSD 240 GB
Thanks to all for your help. I really do appreciate it.

Saltgrass---I ran reagentc /enable and this is what I got:

reagentc enable.JPG

Thanks.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Interesting thread this and it gave me the answer with regard the extra partition. My machine came pre-installed with Windows 8 and had a split drive, there were the usual recovery ones and then a C: and D: drive, the overall size is 320GB and I'd been thinking about including the D: partition into the C: one but before I did I upgraded to 8.1 then the other upgrade.

I now have another partition splitting the C and D so I'm unable to do it.

I didn't know how this partition got there but after reading this thread I now know what it is and who put it there. :huh:

Thanks. ;)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 32 bit/ Windows 8.1 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Zoostorm/ Asus K55A Notebook
    CPU
    Intel Core 2 Duo E4600 @ 2400 MHz
    Motherboard
    Foxconn 45CMX/45GMX/45CMX-K
    Memory
    2048 MB (2 x 1024 DDR2-SDRAM)/8GB DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Corp 82945G Integrated Graphics Controller
    Sound Card
    Onboard Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hanns.G HH221 22" Widescreen
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    ExcelStor (250GB)
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 (UK)
    Mouse
    Microsoft Optical Wheel Mouse
    Internet Speed
    Just under 4MB download it's ADSL.
    Other Info
    Epson Stylus SX415 All-in-one Printer,
    Seagate Expansion 500GB External Desktop Drive

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo G580
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-3230M
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, standard user account
    Other Info
    UEFI firmware (BIOS) embedded Windows 8 product key.
We need to re-register your Recovery Tools for the Recovery options. I believe it should be in the 350 MB partition. Since you can access it, you might try to see if there is a Winre.wim file there. Since those files may be hidden, you can use a command prompt to look for it using a dir /a command to show the hidden files/folders.

There is also one probably in the First Recovery Partition, but that would have been for Windows 8.

Once you find the image and the path to it, there is no problem re-registering it as long as there is a drive letter on that partition.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Grown
    CPU
    i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    ASUS P8Z77 -v Pro, Z87-Expert
    Memory
    16 G
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GTX 680 Classified (2)
    Hard Drives
    Kingston SSD 240 GB
What I'm going to try is this...clone my C drive to my D drive (they are exactly the same size).
Then delete the last partition on the cloned drive.
Remove my C drive. (My BIOS settings won't let me turn off/disable any hard drives...thanks to Gateway).
Try to boot from the cloned drive.

I'll let you know the results soon!

Thanks.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Well, I was able to boot from the cloned drive without the last partition. The only thing I didn't try was a recovery, which I'm not too worried about because I'll be using that cloned drive for backups.

Thanks to all who helped!

Jerry
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    Intel Core i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
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