Installed Windows, OSXRESERVED partition still exists

This small partition roughly (500 mb) is for Windows EFI system reserved files and OS X system reserved. Do Not Delete!!

Cheers!!

I'm also getting the same problem, OSX 10.11 on a new mid-2015 iMac.

Installed Windows 8.1 with Bootcamp, followed Apple's Upgrading to Windows 10 instructions, then upgraded to Windows 10, and the 8GB OSXRESERVED partition is still there, so maybe this issue is caused by upgrading to Win 10 from 8.1?

I'd rather install Windows 10 without having to install 8.1, but Microsoft doesn't give you a serial number when you upgrade, so it's not possible. But I think that's a rant for another time and place 😉

Hi,

You successfully upgraded to Windows 10. No product key necessary. Go to Microsoft and download Media Creation Tool. The tool will allow download of Windows 10 ISO or Upgrade for licensed 7 and 8 Users. Your Windows 10 reports "Activated" it's yours for your Mac - Non Transferrable the MS License is clear. If approached with a Product Key screen during install, simply click "Skip" or "Do This Later". Windows 10 does create a System Reserved Partition. Just let it. Enjoy!!

Cheers!!

Hi I also have the same issue

Installed Windows 8.1 Pro through bootcamp but didn't upgrade to Windows 10 and OSXRESERVED is still there taking up 8g.

So I really don't think it's an issue with upgrading to 10.

Really hope someone figures this out though because it would be a real pain to have to reinstall.

Hi,

These two links may shed some light as to what OSXRESERVED is for with Windows 8.1 and 10. In El Capitan on newer Macs it seems that the next boot cycle puts the partition back into core storage. So this OSXRESERVED is where your Windows Installation media resides. So you can just let it be. Good reads by the way.

http://blog.twocanoes.com/post/130203487014/apple-boot-camp-no-longer-requires-u sb-flash-drive

http://www.macrumors.com/2015/09/30/el-cap-boot-camp-no-usb/

Cheers!!

There is the possibility of deleting this 8 GB partition. It is Fat 32. Is it worth it? By trying to add it to the Mac partition or the BOOTCAMP partition, you might boink up either the OS X installation or Windows installation. A small partition like that is not even worth the risk. Since these are Windows Setup and Installation files, it might be worth just hanging on to them and adding a 16 GB or 64 GB Thumb Drive for extra storage. This is just my conclusion after reading up on the matter. (Yes, I know, 8 GB is space for a Movie after formatting)

Cheers!!

For an EFI Installation, adding/removing partitions is not an issue, unlike the old legacy BIOS/MBR installations. This partition is meant to be deleted and is deleted by BCA after the installation completes. I suggest you create a disk image using Disk Utility to a 8GB USB, for future use as an installer. This is your golden master.

Thanks. What I've read barely touches on that point. Thank you for the input.

Cheers!!

PharmDLy, I had the same issue. I am using OSX El Capitan and installed Windows 10 on the Bootcamp partition. After the Bootcamp drivers installed and the computer restarted, the OSXRESERVED partition was still there. Here's how I fixed it. Boot to the computer into OSX and open up Disk Utility. Click on the top apple hard drive icon in the left panel (physical disk, not logical). Next, click on the partition button at the top center of the window. Now in the pie button on the left, select the OSXRESERVED slice and click on the minus button below. This will allocate those 8 GB back to the Mac partition. Hope this helps.

When I did the same Windows 10 returned an error during next boot on my MacBook Pro. I think it is because its partition boot order has changed.... What I also mentioned is that such thing happens from time to time. I did tried to clean install OSX and then Windows few times. In ideal case 8 GB space automatically attaches to OSX partition during next boot into OSX...

Hope someone can find proper solution to this problem...

BC Assistant is failing to remove the OSXRESERVED partition. IN most cases, it will be deleted. Please check OS X Applications -> Utilities -> Console logs for any disk-related messages.

I prefer creating a USB Installer that can also be used for future Windows Repair. The OSXRESERVED method removes the ability to keep a 'golden' Windows installer, because every new attempt causes BCA to look for newer drivers, which some users may not want.

i have try your method, but that doesn't work, after i do that, i can't boot into windows 10, it said some error occur on start up and ask me to plug in CD or usb for recovery.....

i am now downloading the win10 iso to usb again and see if it works...

honestly, the new bootcamp *****...

johnmok wrote:

i have try your method, but that doesn't work, after i do that, i can't boot into windows 10, it said some error occur on start up and ask me to plug in CD or usb for recovery.....

i am now downloading the win10 iso to usb again and see if it works...

honestly, the new bootcamp *****...

Install Yosemite on an external disk - How to install OS X on an external drive connected to your Mac - Apple Support - and use BCA 5.x, which also supports W10.

thanks, i have try to use bootcamp to cancel the partition and do it all over again, and it finally can auto delete the osxreserved partition.

there are three main differences between this time and the failed on before, in case someone also come across this problem, for your reference.

1. i have plug in the empty usb stick in first time, but i remove it in the second try.

2. i have install the update before restart the computer after installing the bootcamp driver in first time, but i immediately reboot the computer after installing the bootcamp driver in second trial.

3. i install win 8.1 and upgrade to win 10 the first time, and i do a direct install of win 10 the second time.

hope can helps. i do the change stated above is mainly because i thought that the main concept for the new bootcamp is that you don't need usb to install windows, and the partition created is for installing the windows, and it will be deleted after rebooting when you complete the install process.

therefore i try to prepare the whole process so that it strictly follow the concept from Apple, and avoiding anything that might interrupt the process.

but i guess Apple should still investigate into the matter and try to make the process smooth even users not installing in the ideal way that apple think users should done.