Windows/Recovery Partitions and New SSD

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Level 1

5 points

Windows/Recovery Partitions and New SSD

Hey, guys:

I have a late 2011 MBP running Mavericks and Windows 8, for which I'm buying new RAM and replacing the optical drive with an SSD. I also recently installed the another OS on a separate partition, which caused two issues: Windows is no longer bootable and I can't remove and merge the other OS's previous partition with the main one -- when I try in Mavericks, it appears as though it removes it and resizes the main partition, but then is reverted, and if I try in recovery, I get an error saying that it couldn't unmount the disk. I've only been able to erase and format it. I've verified and repairs the disks' permissions, which were all okay.

My question is, how can I fix the Windows partition and merge the two others? Also, I'm going to be re-installing Mavericks on the SSD, but I was wondering if I need to move the recovery partition?

Any help would be really appreciated. Thanks!

Mario

MacBook Pro (13-inch Late 2011), OS X Mavericks (10.9.4)

Posted on Aug 12, 2014 5:49 AM

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Answer 1

keg55

Level 6

11,755 points

Aug 12, 2014 6:38 AM in response to ourcore

ourcore wrote:

Also, I'm going to be re-installing Mavericks on the SSD, but I was wondering if I need to move the recovery partition?

As far as the above, when you reinstall Mavericks, a Recovery HD will be written to the target partition. That's part of the OS X install process. So, no need to move it anywhere. Just point to the partition you want to install OS X Mavericks on and the installer will install the OS and its Recovery HD.

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Answer 2

ourcore Author

Level 1

5 points

Aug 12, 2014 6:42 AM in response to keg55

That makes sense. Thanks, buddy. On that note, what should I do with the recovery partition on my HDD? Wondering since I can't access it in Disk Utility.

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Answer 3

Loner T

Level 9

59,536 points

Aug 12, 2014 6:52 AM in response to ourcore

ourcore wrote:

My question is, how can I fix the Windows partition and merge the two others? Also, I'm going to be re-installing Mavericks on the SSD, but I was wondering if I need to move the recovery partition?

Please start a new thread about your Windows issue in Bootcamp section, assuming you are using Bootcamp. In general, a single-disk system cannot have more than 4 partitions if it has Bootcamp, an additional partition breaks Bootcamp because it uses a Hybrid MBR.

From Bootcamp FAQ - Boot Camp 5.1: Frequently asked questions

How can a Windows partition be resized after Windows is installed?

You need to delete the Windows partition using the Boot Camp Assistant, and start over to change the size of the Windows partition. Back up your important Windows files first.

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Answer 4

keg55

Level 6

11,755 points

Aug 12, 2014 7:09 AM in response to ourcore

ourcore wrote:

what should I do with the recovery partition on my HDD? Wondering since I can't access it in Disk Utility.

Since you're installing OS X Mavericks to a new drive (SSD), you don't need to worry about your OS X install or its Recovery HD on your HDD. You can simply erase that OS partition which will also erase its Recovery HD. Make a back up prior to doing this so you don't lose any of your User account data (Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures, etc.).

One thing you might consider doing is keep a USB thumb drive around with the Recovery HD on it. All you need is a 4GB USB thumb drive and the OS X Recovery Disk Assistant. What this gives you is a bootable Recovery HD in case you ever lose the one on your internal drive. Be aware that this app will erase all the contents on the USB drive you point to.

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Answer 5

ourcore Author

Level 1

5 points

Aug 12, 2014 8:17 AM in response to keg55

Thanks again, that really helps. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't need to separately remove the recovery partition. I'll definitely use the disk assistant too.

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