Correct the "msftres" flag bug in GNU Parted

[KESHAV P.R.]

Please correct the "msftres" flag bug in libparted by deleting the
following code from (parted-source-dir)/libparted/labels/gpt.c :-

if (strncmp (fs_type->name, "fat", 3) == 0
|| strcmp (fs_type->name, "ntfs") == 0) {
gpt_part_data->type = PARTITION_MSFT_RESERVED_GUID;
return 1;
}

The "Microsoft Reserved" Partition in GPT is needed only for
conversion from a basic disk to dynamic disk in Windows. Otherwise it
is not at all needed and according to Microsoft, any FAT(16,32 etc..)
or NTFS partition(s) should be "Basic Data Partition" if they have to
be accessible in Windows and Mac (Linux allows access even to a
msftres partition).

Think of it like the 128 MB gap between partitions imposed by Mac OS
X's Disk Utility in GPT disk for future usage which cannot be
anticipated at present. Microsoft creates this partition for any
future usage similar to the 128 MB gap.

The above mentioned code in libparted assumes that any FAT or NTFS
partition must be marked as Microsoft Reserved (the same way any HFS
partition must be marked Apple_HFS), but this is not correct.

This bug can be corrected by either deleting the above lines or by
modifying them as follows :-

if (strncmp (fs_type->name, "fat", 3) == 0
|| strcmp (fs_type->name, "ntfs") == 0) {
gpt_part_data->type = PARTITION_BASIC_DATA_GUID;
return 1;
}


Related Info :-

What is a Microsoft Reserved Partition?

The Microsoft Reserved Partition reserves space on each disk drive for
subsequent use by operating system software. GUID Partition Table
disks do not allow hidden sectors. Software components that formerly
used hidden sectors now allocate portions of the Microsoft Reserved
Partition for component-specific partitions. For example, converting a
basic disk to a dynamic disk causes the Microsoft Reserved Partition
on that disk to be reduced in size and a newly created partition holds
the dynamic disk database.

Will end users see the Extensible Firmware Interface System Partition,
Microsoft Reserved Partition, and OEM-specific partitions?

The user won't see these partitions exposed in Windows Explorer, nor
is any recognized file system exposed to legacy programs such as
Context Indexing. The Extensible Firmware Interface System Partition,
OEM-specific, and other unrecognized partitions will be visible only
in the Disk Management MMC snap-in. Back to the top

What partitions are mounted by default by Windows?

Windows exposes only basic data partitions. Other partitions with FAT
file systems may be mounted, but not exposed (only programmatically).
Only basic data partitions are assigned drive letters or mount points.

The Microsoft Reserved Partition (and any partitions that are created
from the Microsoft Reserved Partition) could have recognizable file
systems; none are exposed.

What happens when a basic disk is converted to dynamic?

For a drive to be eligible for conversion to dynamic, all basic data
partitions on the drive must be contiguous. If other unrecognized
partitions separate basic data partitions, the disk cannot be
converted. This is one of the reasons that the Microsoft Reserved
Partition must be created before any basic data partitions.

The first step in conversion is to separate a portion of the Microsoft
Reserved Partition to create the configuration database partition. All
non-bootable basic partitions are then combined into a single data
container partition. Boot partitions are retained as separate data
container partitions. This is analogous to conversion of primary
partitions.

Retrieved from http://support.microsoft.com/kb/302873 - Microsoft FAQ
about GPT Disk Architecture in Windows XP & Vista.

Bug reports have also been filed at
http://parted.alioth.debian.org/cgi-bin/trac.cgi/ticket/186 and
http://parted.alioth.debian.org/cgi-bin/trac.cgi/ticket/215 .


Other Feature Requests :-

Also implement the ability to type any arbitary Partition type GUID
for a GPT Partition. Parted does not contain hardcoded GUIDs for
partitions like AppleTV Recovery and Windows Recovery Environment
Partitions etc. This particular feature is very important for people
who are struck up with AppleTV or WinRE or any other partitions types
which Parted does not recognise.

Also check out the features of this software GPT fdisk or gdisk -
http://rodsbooks.com/gdisk/ and
http://sourceforge.net/projects/gptfdisk/ . It contains many useful
GPT features which are absent in GNU Parted.

Thank you.