Does installer have to boot EFI to install Windows 8 EFI?

khouli

New Member
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From the following links my understanding is that in order to install Windows 8 with a GPT partition scheme and EFI booting, the install media has to boot in EFI during installation.

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/15458-uefi-bootable-usb-flash-drive-create-windows.html

How To Make UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive to Install Windows 8 | Next of Windows

This seems to be because during installation GPT & EFI vs MBR & BIOS will be selected automatically by the installer based on how the install media itself booted and there's no way to change this automatic choice. Is this correct? Is there a reason it must be this way?

It seems odd that the Windows 8 installation media itself must boot in EFI in order to install Windows 8 that will boot in EFI. I don't see why it should matter how the install media itself boots.

If that's the way the installer was designed then that's just the way things are and it doesn't do much good to ask 'why' but I want to make sure my understanding is correct.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    OS X Yosemite
Here is info about UEFI Boot Mode (installing using the GPT partition style) and Legacy BIOS Boot Mode (installing using the MBR partition style): link
 

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.
That is helpful and something I hadn't found but I want to step back from the what to do and get a sense of why it's being done. Creating the UEFI bootable USB is the only way to install Windows 8 that boots through UEFI, right? And this is because the installer detects how the install media booted and installs Windows 8 accordingly?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    OS X Yosemite

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.
It is best to say the windows setup will according to how the PC booted - If it booted via BIOS it will partition MBR partitions. If it booted UEFI it will create GPT partitions,, so what you get depends on how it booted.. But the windows 8 setup will run on both BOIS and UEFI booted PC'S
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
That is helpful and something I hadn't found but I want to step back from the what to do and get a sense of why it's being done. Creating the UEFI bootable USB is the only way to install Windows 8 that boots through UEFI, right? And this is because the installer detects how the install media booted and installs Windows 8 accordingly?

If your are installing from USB thumb drive, for most PC's, it has to be created a certain way. Formatted in FAT32 instead of NTFS etc. As far as I know you don't have to do anything special if you are installing from a DVD. Other than selecting UEFI mode from the boot list. With my ASUS laptop I can format my thumb drive in FAT 32 or NTFS and still install in UEFI mode. My wife's Acer on the other hand is very fussy about how you prepare the thumb drive. And another odd thing with the Acer is UEFI is not listed in the boot menu as an option for the thumb drive, but it still installs in UEFI mode. :confused: It had me scratching my head for a while.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
As far as I know you don't have to do anything special if you are installing from a DVD. Other than selecting UEFI mode from the boot list.

That's the behavior I was expecting but I don't recall being prompted for that choice when I installed from DVD. Anyway, I could be mistaken and the USB install method did get the job done.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    OS X Yosemite
I've never installed Windows 8 from a DVD, I don't think I've even bothered to burn one. I just use thumb drives. The screen shots indicate you'll see your DVD drive listed twice in the boot devices menu. One with UEFI in front of it and one without, like you see for thumb drives. My desktop PC doesn't have UEFI so I'll never see that option on it anyway. I've seen it on my laptop for thumb drives though.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
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