Mavericks, 3TB Fusion Drive, Windows 8 (again!)

I am so confued now, my head is spinning.
I have read probably 18 different posts now on how to install Windows 8 on a 3TB fusion drive, and none of them are complete, or give a step by step.  I'm on a new late 2013 model iMac running Mavericks 10.9.1.
Is there a way to just wipe the whole thing, (after creatin a Mavericks boot disc, I would assume), blow away the current configuration and just re-set it up so that windows gets 4th partition on "core data" volume?
Here's my rundown:
- Boot camp assistant runs, creates windows partition, but then partition is inaccessible for install by windows. (GPT)
- Disk ultility fails to create a new partition if the first mac partition (the main one) after downsizing the main OS X partition
- No further partitions can be created beyond a second Mac partition in disc ultilty.
Fortunately my OS X Mavericks is still working, but my partitions are now what looks like a mess.
In the debug mode of disc utility:
Macintosh HD (Mounted)
EFI (unmounted)
Macintosh HD (Mounted)
BOOT OS X (Mounted)
EFI (unmounted)
Macintosh HD (unMounted)
Recovery HD (unmounted)
I'm about ready to take it to the apple store and jusrt ask if they can thrown in a regular drive, or if they can fix it.  My fear is that if I can't fix it, neither can they.
Anyone find a way to do this?
I found one article that showed an unsupported methog using a time machine backup, but Mavericks has already failed to use my Mountain Lion backup (I had to recover the data manually) so I can't really use it to re-setup this mac.
if anyone has a "clean" install method, please do share!  I'll buy you beer.  Seriously.
Thanks!

OK, I managed to get the computer back to "stock".
I had to used system rescue CD (it's a Linux tool with Gparted) to blow away all the messed up partitions on the 2.7GB hard drive (part of the fusion drive).
Next, I created a bootable USB by downloading the Mavericks installer app from the app store, and then reloaded OS X.  I had to use disc utility to do this, and disc utility picked up the missing and incorrect partitions, and recreated all of it. (There are a lot of steps involved here...)
Anyway, I got back to square 1.
Again, I tried to use bootcamp assistant to install Windows 8, and now it is failing on the partition selection screen. Windows can't install because the bootcamp partition is labled as disc1, and windows can only install on disc zero.
Next?

Similar Messages

  • Can I install Windows on my iMac 27, 3TB Fusion Drive, late-2012 with Boot Camp 5?

    Hello. When I first opened the Boot Camp Assistant app, it said it could not work with the 3TB fusion drive. With the updated version of Boot Camp, the option to install Windows appeared. I tried to install Windows 8, but the loading bar stopped moving. I waited for hours, but it still did not move. I decided to quit the app, and re-open it, in order to try again. It crashed, and would not open. So I restarted my system and when I did that I noticed that I had about 1GB or so left of storage. This shocked me, because the disk was just suddenly filled for some reason. In hopes of fixing this I used an app called 'CleanMyMac' to try and recover the disk space. And as I thought the disk space returned to normal. However when I went to Disk Utility and clicked 'repair disk' it said this...
    There is only 1 partition, so the Boot Camp process did fail.
    I don't know whats wrong with my system though? I would like to install Windows, but I'm worried that I might recieve errors again. I have not got Apple Care, but I'm playing on buying it soon, due to it being almost a year since I bought the system.
    Maybe I did something wrong when trying to install Windows with Boot Camp? I don't know, but if possible can someone please tell me if I can install Windows and if something is wrong with my system.
    Here is some additional screen shots of the type of system I have.
    Thank you for your help with this issue!

    Which copy or version of Windows? and how where was it purchased?
    my window installed itself perfectly on another computer.
    One copy and you want to activate on two computers?
    With 16GB, it will try to create 16GB hibernation file, 24GB page file, and need 20-30GB for the OS, plus room for temp, cache, applications, 9GB just temp to install SP1 update(s). 
    did you create 80GB or larger partition?
    also, some macs with ssd + hard drive have issues, and of course you need Windows 7 64-bit home premium (Pro to use more).
    OWC has up to 32GB, not cheap.
    http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/iMac/2010/DDR3_21.5_27
    Crucial is usally very helpful, try email cs.

  • To install Windows 8 OS on a new iMac using Boot Camp, what size "partition" should I allocate for Windows on a system with 3TB Fusion drive?

    I am trying to install Windows on a new iMac w/3TB Fusion drive. The system crashed on my first attempt but appears to have partitioned the drive correctly before crashing???  So, what size partition does Windows 8 need to operate effectively?  Is "more" better??? or just over-kill?  And, has anyone installed Winodow 8 on an iMac...and how did it work?  Would apps like "Parallel Desktop" or "VM Ware Fusion" be a good idea and troubleless?
    I will try again but not too confident that it may get worse before it gets better.
    Regards....?
    P.S.  I configured this iMac with the i7 processor 3.5GHz with Turbo Boost to 3,9GHz.  When I select "About this Mac" it diplays my i7 processor as a 3.4GHz instead.  Do you think they ran out of the i7 3.5GHz and shoved a i5 3.4Ghz in the iMac to meet deliver schedule???  I there a way to check the real-time speed of my processor??.

    It depends on your uses. See > https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3321 Windows 8 works properly in Boot Camp, always that your iMac is compatible > http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5634?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US You can only use the 64-bit Windows 8 edition.
    Respecting to your processor, you may want to contact with Apple, as they may have sent you the iMac with a wrong processor

  • Can I partition a 3tb fusion drive on a 2014 imac27", with boot camp, to let me install windows 7?

    I have used boot camp to create a partition for Windows 7 on 3 earlier Macs (iMac 24" 2007 / Mac Pro 2009 / Macbook Pro 2009) as well as a recent Macbook Air 2012.
    My main reason for this is to use Sage Account/Payroll, and also a couple of other Windows-specific programs.
    I have just replaced the old iMac with a new iMac27", with a 3tb fusion drive, and want to partition it to install a new oem copy of Win 7 sp1.
    However, I found an article on this (link: http://twocanoes.com/winclone/support/installing-windows-on-a-boot-camp-partitio n-on-a-3-tb-fusion-drive) implying this might not currently be officially supported by Apple & boot camp assistant, and providing a workaround procedure to create 3 partitions. The article begins with this note: "Important Note: This help document is for reference only, superceded by updates to OS X that include support for 3TB drives and Fusion drive in Boot Camp Assistant.  Use Boot Camp Assistant to create the Boot Camp partition."
    I have two questions:
    1 - Can anyone advise if updates have now been made, to provide this support for partitioning the 3tb fusion drive?....and if not, is this likely to change soon?
    2 - If this is still not officially supported, can anyone advise if they have successfully created a Windows partition on the 3tb fusion drive & installed Win 7?
    Thanks in advance. 

    Based on Apple's knowledge base. this configuration is supported for Windows 7 x64 and 8 using Mountain Lion 108.3 or higher. Simply use BootCamp Assistant to set it up.
    See here:
      http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5639?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
    and here:
      http://support.apple.com/kb/TS4441
    For your application, you might also consider virtualization software like VMWare Fusion or Parallels.
    I use both BootCamp and VMWare Fusion. Fusion is much easier to install, more flxible, runs at the same time as your Mac applications etc. For typical applications, there is no notable performance degradation.
    If you need high performance graphics for gaming, BootCamp is still the best way to go. For all other applications, I prefer VMWare.

  • Windows 8.1 on 3TB Fusion drive

    Hello,
    i want to install Windows 8.1 on 3TB Fusion drive iMac 27 Late 2013. I intended once but have only problems. I have a 64 bit version of Windows 8.1 on a USB 2.0 Stick and run Bootcamp. At the weekend I want to intend one more time, after a crash of the Fusion Drive and reinstall of Yosemite, but my question is if it will work on my system? I have found some comments on the web that its very difficult to install Windows 8.1 on a 3TB Fusion Drive.
    You have some suggestions I have to do?
    This time I will reconnect all USB devices and put only the USB Flash direct into the Mac.

    Hello,
    i want to install Windows 8.1 on 3TB Fusion drive iMac 27 Late 2013. I intended once but have only problems. I have a 64 bit version of Windows 8.1 on a USB 2.0 Stick and run Bootcamp. At the weekend I want to intend one more time, after a crash of the Fusion Drive and reinstall of Yosemite, but my question is if it will work on my system? I have found some comments on the web that its very difficult to install Windows 8.1 on a 3TB Fusion Drive.
    You have some suggestions I have to do?
    This time I will reconnect all USB devices and put only the USB Flash direct into the Mac.

  • How to reset 3TB fusion drive to original partition scheme

    When I first purchased my 27" iMac in early 2013 I was unable to use Boot Camp to create a Windows partition (with the version of OSX it shipped with bootcamp was initially disabled but added in an update later).  I found a guide online for untangling the Fusion Drive partitions and essentially setting up bootcamp manually.
    However, a few days ago I had Windows 8 get screwed up and needed to reformat.  I figured that since Apple now updated Mavericks to allow my machine to use bootcamp I would start from scratch and do it properly.  The problem is, I cannot seem to get my machine back into a "factory default" setup.  I tried removing the CoreStorage volume and letting the Disk Utility tool "reset" the drive, and that -seemed- to work.  I had one 3TB partition (according to the GUI) and re-installed OSX.  I used Bootcamp to split 2TB for Windows (games) and leave 1TB for Mac.  Everything went fine and I restarted into the Win8 installer.  However, at this point Windows refused to install to the 2TB partition.  I tried formatting it, and delete/create but it said it couldn't install to that partition.  The confusing part is that according to Windows I had about 8 partitions (EFI and Recovery I understand but the rest I don't know the reason for).
    So now I'm back at the OSX Recovery and this is what "diskutil list" is giving me.  Why are there all these 524.3 KB partitions?  I can't seem to remove or merge them.  I know I should have recorded what the original structure is, but it's too late now.  Can someone tell me what the 3TB Fusion Drive *should* look like, and how I can get back to that? 
    bash-3.2# diskutil list
    /dev/disk0
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *121.3 GB   disk0
       1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
       2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         121.0 GB   disk0s2
       3:                 Apple_Boot Boot OS X               134.2 MB   disk0s3
    /dev/disk1
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *3.0 TB     disk1
       1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk1s1
       2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         144.2 GB   disk1s2
       3:                 Apple_Boot Boot OS X               650.0 MB   disk1s3
       4:       Microsoft Basic Data                         2.1 TB     disk1s4
       5:          Apple_CoreStorage                         801.4 GB   disk1s5
       6:                 Apple_Boot Boot OS X               134.2 MB   disk1s6
    /dev/disk2
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:     Apple_partition_scheme                        *1.3 GB     disk2
       1:        Apple_partition_map                         30.7 KB    disk2s1
       2:                  Apple_HFS OS X Base System        1.3 GB     disk2s2
    /dev/disk3
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD           *1.1 TB     disk3
    /dev/disk4
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk4
    /dev/disk5
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk5
    /dev/disk6
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk6
    /dev/disk7
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk7
    /dev/disk8
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk8
    /dev/disk9
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *6.3 MB     disk9
    /dev/disk10
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *2.1 MB     disk10
    /dev/disk11
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *1.0 MB     disk11
    /dev/disk12
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk12
    /dev/disk13
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *524.3 KB   disk13
    /dev/disk14
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                            untitled               *1.0 MB     disk14
    Also including what my CoreStorage structure looks like...

    Since it won't let me edit my post, here is the text from the picture:
    CoreStorage logical volume groups (1 found)
    |
    +-- Logical Volume Group CB783377-EA29-4751-B149-FE6B210648B5
        =========================================================
        Name:         Internal Drive
        Status:       Online
        Size:         1066587906048 B (1.1 TB)
        Free Space:   12288 B (12.3 KB)
        |
        +-< Physical Volume 0221F6E1-8EE1-453A-A0EB-B32348EB6E53
        |   ----------------------------------------------------
        |   Index:    0
        |   Disk:     disk1s2
        |   Status:   Online
        |   Size:     144162512896 B (144.2 GB)
        |
        +-< Physical Volume F74A0E21-6435-4CB2-801F-95682108A391
        |   ----------------------------------------------------
        |   Index:    1
        |   Disk:     disk0s2
        |   Status:   Online
        |   Size:     120988852224 B (121.0 GB)
        |
        +-< Physical Volume C2BD0D1A-7EA2-4E36-A3EF-82A7E63BE439
        |   ----------------------------------------------------
        |   Index:    2
        |   Disk:     disk1s5
        |   Status:   Online
        |   Size:     801436540928 B (801.4 GB)
        |
        +-> Logical Volume Family 9DD06D63-96CD-4088-8F0E-061026E68C29
            Encryption Status:       Unlocked
            Encryption Type:         None
            Conversion Status:       NoConversion
            Conversion Direction:    -none-
            Has Encrypted Extents:   No
            Fully Secure:            No
            Passphrase Required:     No
            |
            +-> Logical Volume A531CC02-E337-473E-8F1F-F462595E1354
                Disk:                  disk3
                Status:                Online
                Size (Total):          1060804022272 B (1.1 TB)
                Conversion Progress:   -none-
                Revertible:            No
                LV Name:               Macintosh HD
                Volume Name:           Macintosh HD
                Content Hint:          Apple_HFS

  • How to Repartition 3TB Fusion Drive?

    Hi, I've noticed an interesting phenomenon of my iMac, which has a 3TB fusion drive. The phenomenon is that the fusion drive has a 2.2 TB + 800GB partitions. I understand fusion drive is actually a 128GB flash drive plus a 2.87GB hard drive. Then why is the fusion drive divided into a 2.2 TB and a 800 GB partitions?
    Anyways, that was just my curiosity. I have a practical question. I am trying to install Windows 8.1 on this iMac to do some development/environment testing works. I realized when I use Boot Camp 5.1, it will not let me install Windows 8.1 successfully. The error is when I head to Windows installation, formatted the Boot Camp partition to NTFS (or simply just format it), it will keep telling me:
    "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. The selected disk has an MBR partition table. On EFI systems, Windows can only be installed GPT disks"
    I then tried making a USB bootable disk through UNetBootin. It tells me the same thing. I don't have a CD or DVD drive on my iMac, so I cannot try burning a DVD. So then I started my research about this error.
    And it seems to be a common error based on my research. The solution is that I should remove the bootcamp partition from Boot Camp Assistant and then use the Disk Utility to create a new partition for Windows. I did the first part, but then I head to the Disk Utility, it says:
    "The full size of the Fusion Drive is not available for repartitioning."
    I restarted the computer, and it tells me the same message.
    Now I guess I have two questions, answering either one can help me through my goal.
    1. How to create partitions on a 3TB fusion drive?
    2. How to install Windows 8.1 on a Boot Camp partition?

    Hey I meant to answer my own question! Thanks for reminding me.
    A good reference link is on Super User where some other users already answered methods for Macbook Pro. Here is the link:
    http://superuser.com/questions/481650/cant-use-bootcamp-partition-for-windows-8- installation/846439#846439
    I am going to copy my reply from the thread. Here we go:
    I was stuck with this challenge last night as well. After 10 hours, I finally have resolved this. As it turns out, not all OSX are the same. For example, I have Macbook Pro Retina, iMac, and Mac Pro. ClaitonLovatoJr's solution works on Macbook Pro Retina but not iMac or Mac Pro.
    Here is why:
    iMac (2014) and Mac Pro (2014) have different types of hard-drive. So far I haven't gotten Mac Pro to work, because it has the most particular type of hard-drive, perhaps Windows simply does not support. But again, I haven't tried for very long.
    On iMac, here is how you can get Windows 8.1 (Professional) to install.
    Since late 2012, iMac have fusion drive, which means its hard-drive is combined with SSD and traditional hard-drive. As a result, Apple has an interesting way to manage it. I am not going to the details. In short, EFI would not work with the hardware, so we must go through Apple's Boot Camp.
    The first thing to do is to find a USB flash drive. Many people including me failed because we try to use SD card. This won't work because SD card is too advance for what we are doing. It will load the install program, but after loading it becomes all Windows, and then it will fail the installation. So what we need is an old fashion flash drive. I tried using SD card adapter, it failed too. It might have something to do with the type of adapter I have. But to be safe, we should USE FLASH DRIVE.
    Then we will create an installation stick with Boot Camp Assistant. Be sure to use the latest 5.1 version. And we must check downloading from Apple, because it will give you drivers you need to complete the installation. If downloading failed for some reason, we can download the files here:
    http://supportdownload.apple.com/download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Appl e_Software_Updates/Mac_OS_X/downloads/031-3384.20140211.Xcc3e/BootCamp5.1.5621.z ip
    And then manually place the files to the installation disk.
    I suggest not to check install just yet, in case you need to manually place the file.
    Now we can finally use Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows. We must use it because Boot Camp is the only application that can create usable disk space for the installation. Disk Utility or other type of applications will not work. Apple has a very specific design for the hybrid EFI-MBR system for iMac's fusion drive.
    Then the computer should restart, and very likely to stuck in black screen. Don't panic, this is because there is a bug in Apple's Boot Camp loading system. The wait time is too short, if you have many devices connected it will not load correctly. We can power off the computer by holding the power button and then power up while holding option key.
    Now we cannot choose EFI-Windows when booting up, we must choose Windows. EFI is faster and more advance, but we cannot use it.
    Now we should be able to boot into the installation interface, a very lowres one. If you see a highres interface it means it went to the EFI. Power down and try again. If you don't see the lowres interface, something went wrong. Boot into OSX and remove Windows through Boot Camp Assistant (actually just to kill the new partition), and then redo everything.
    If you are in lowres interface, it's not all done yet. You still need to format the new partition, either just by clicking on format or using command center. Now you should be able to install!
    After installation we can set up Windows, but it will die and reboot. Don't panic, because iMac is not design for Windows. Windows thought it had some hardware failure. And then we will be able to login after rebooting, but it will stuck for a long period of time - like 20 to 30 minutes. This is because it needs to download and set up some drivers for the odd environment it encountered. Finally, we will see pop up to encourage us to install Boot Camp on Windows. We don't have to. We can always use option key went starting the computer. But it's up to you.
    When shutting down Windows sometime it will fail and give you errors, this is because Windows ultimately does not work with Apple's driver very well (fusion drive or other hardware). No worry, just power down by holding the power button.
    Hopefully this help!

  • Is it possible to partition a 3TB fusion drive?

    Hi, i'm a bit of a noob when it comes to the new technology. I searched for the answer, but it didnt quite answer my question.
    I have new iMac with a 3TB fusion drive. I would like to create a small *backup* partition where i can create an installer version of mavericks so when i do a clean install, i can select that drive from the bootable disk selection menu and it runs the mavericks installer from that partition, rather than a USB thumb drive. I looked at the recovery mode option however it appears to download a new 5gb installer of mavericks instead of using an already downloaded version of mavericks (updated version).
    I dont want to split the SSD/HDD components of the fusion drive so they are seperate, i just want to add a small partition to be partitioned as a mavericks installer drive.
    I hope someone can answer if this can work. Thanks in advance

    Yes, you can do this.   You can partition the drive using Boot Camp Assistant.  Then instead of installing Windows, quit the Boot Camp Assistant and then use Disk Utility to reformat the BootCamp partition to Mac OS X Extended.
    After you do this, you will have to install Mavericks on the drive.  Then after Mavericks is installed, you can then copy the installer over to it.   I would also recommend that if you have DiskWarrior, Drive Genius, or TechTool to install them on that partition as well.

  • 3TB Fusion Drive dying / dead? iMac late 2012

    I purchased a 'Refurbished 27-inch iMac 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7' from the Apple UK refurb store in March 2013 with a 3TB Fusion Drive. It has been fine up until I installed Yosemite when it started to freeze all the time and I had the spinning ball all the time.
    Only way to get back was to hold the button at the back and reboot. Kept doing this until I backed up and did a clean install of Yosemite. Fine for a week or two then happened again. I have just wasted a whole day trying to go back to Mavericks and it worked fine for an hour or two then went the same way, spinning ball, unresponsive so I can eliminate Yosemite now as it is fine on my Macbook and has been since the day I installed it (same day I installed in iMac).
    Just tried another clean install but it first said the HD had failed and do I want to repair the Fusion drive? My guess is that the SSD is fine but the other drive is dying a slow death.
    Have a genius appointment booked in for tomorrow so will take it up there to see what they say. Any idea on what price I am looking at for a Apple to fit a replacement 3TB HD at all? Paid £2k for this and not done 2 years yet so not best please and dubious about going for another Fusion Drive again. Didn't take Apple Care although should have really, especially with a refurb. Hindsight eh!
    Just tried again to re-install Mavericks and getting 'Install Failed' The Installer could not start the computer from "Macinotosh HD". Try selecting your disk using the Startup Disk utility.

    I purchased a 'Refurbished 27-inch iMac 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7' from the Apple UK refurb store in March 2013 with a 3TB Fusion Drive. It has been fine up until I installed Yosemite when it started to freeze all the time and I had the spinning ball all the time.
    Only way to get back was to hold the button at the back and reboot. Kept doing this until I backed up and did a clean install of Yosemite. Fine for a week or two then happened again. I have just wasted a whole day trying to go back to Mavericks and it worked fine for an hour or two then went the same way, spinning ball, unresponsive so I can eliminate Yosemite now as it is fine on my Macbook and has been since the day I installed it (same day I installed in iMac).
    Just tried another clean install but it first said the HD had failed and do I want to repair the Fusion drive? My guess is that the SSD is fine but the other drive is dying a slow death.
    Have a genius appointment booked in for tomorrow so will take it up there to see what they say. Any idea on what price I am looking at for a Apple to fit a replacement 3TB HD at all? Paid £2k for this and not done 2 years yet so not best please and dubious about going for another Fusion Drive again. Didn't take Apple Care although should have really, especially with a refurb. Hindsight eh!
    Just tried again to re-install Mavericks and getting 'Install Failed' The Installer could not start the computer from "Macinotosh HD". Try selecting your disk using the Startup Disk utility.

  • Boot camp and 3tb fusion drive

    I am planning on buying a new iMac 27" with a 3TB fusion drive. Will I be able to install Windows 8.1 64Bit using boot camp?

    In theory yes. In practice there seem to be problems with 3TB drives. Have a mooch about and see what others have reported.

  • IMac with 3TB Fusion drive will not partition under Boot Camp

    I have a 27" iMac with a 3TB Fusion drive and I am using 10.8.4.
    I am trying to install Windows 8 Pro with Boot Camp.  Everything starts well enough, but once I get to "Create a Partition for Windows" and setting a 505 GB Windows partition, it begins the process, but then seems to stop progressing with the status indicator pretty much stopped at a point directly under the "d" in the "Status: Partitioning disk.."
    I've let it run for the past 1.5 hours and it hasn't budged.
    This is not my first attempt at doing this on this machine.  I tried manually partitioning with Disk Utility which pretty much ended up in a disaster that I was able to repair with some difficulty.  That was covered in this thread.
    I realize that 3TB drives were not supported under 10.8.3, but I thought that was fixed.  Am I wrong? 

    This is a bit of a guess and you might have do a bit of further reading to understand what I am trying to say but basically:
    When you buy a Mac - its Hard Disks come partitioned using the GPT partitioning scheme that is used for the UEFI boot process (All new Windows 8 badged computers have UEFI now as well - Macs have been using it for years). This is opposed to the old MBR partitioning scheme that was used with the BIOS boot process.
    There are quite a few limitations of the MBR partitioning scheme including:
    1. A limit of 4 partitions per volume
    2. A limit of 2 TB per partition
    3. Poor support for AHCI
    When you run Boot Camp - it turns your partitioning into a hybrid of the two, so you get stuck with all the limitations of MBR - with the second bullet point above I suspect of giving you issues.
    You have a couple of possible solutions:
    1. Test with having all partitions less than 2 TB
    or
    2. (Technical) Try and install Windows 8 in EFI mode - its a bit tricky at the moment and a little bit of work - but I have it working on my MacBook Pro (although I do have nVidia graphics driver issues that you may or may not encounter as well). See my wiki at multiboot.info for links if you want to attempt this

  • Retina iMac 3tb Fusion drive Boot Camp failure

    Trying to install Windows 8.1 to a 1tb Bootcamp partition on 3tb Fusion drive. BCA creates the partition, Windows installer sees it, but requires formatting it, but then it can't install to it. I get an error that it can't create or see the partition. I'm assuming this has to do with BCA creating the partition someplace Windows can't handle it (past the first 2.2tb of the drive).
    Here is the info requested in a previous thread.
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ diskutil list
    /dev/disk0
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *121.3 GB   disk0
       1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
       2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         121.0 GB   disk0s2
       3:                 Apple_Boot Boot OS X               134.2 MB   disk0s3
    /dev/disk1
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *3.0 TB     disk1
       1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk1s1
       2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         2.0 TB     disk1s2
       3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk1s3
       4:       Microsoft Basic Data                         1.0 TB     disk1s4
    /dev/disk2
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD           *2.1 TB     disk2
                                     Logical Volume on disk0s2, disk1s2
                                     718A36B4-10B9-49A9-B585-CFC222080507
                                     Unencrypted Fusion Drive
    /dev/disk3
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:     FDisk_partition_scheme                        *8.0 GB     disk3
       1:                 DOS_FAT_32 WININSTALL              8.0 GB     disk3s1
    /dev/disk4
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *4.0 TB     disk4
       1:                        EFI EFI                     314.6 MB   disk4s1
       2:                  Apple_HFS My Book                 4.0 TB     disk4s2
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ diskutil cs list
    CoreStorage logical volume groups (1 found)
    |
    +-- Logical Volume Group 49E959A5-5F3C-4178-8A2D-067D2C853A96
        =========================================================
        Name:         Macintosh HD
        Status:       Online
        Size:         2118855286784 B (2.1 TB)
        Free Space:   114688 B (114.7 KB)
        |
        +-< Physical Volume D9052F80-9907-4815-8AF1-C9FF8D9C3293
        |   ----------------------------------------------------
        |   Index:    0
        |   Disk:     disk0s2
        |   Status:   Online
        |   Size:     120988852224 B (121.0 GB)
        |
        +-< Physical Volume E2271529-B42D-49F9-B231-3CAE6A0FF812
        |   ----------------------------------------------------
        |   Index:    1
        |   Disk:     disk1s2
        |   Status:   Online
        |   Size:     1997866434560 B (2.0 TB)
        |
        +-> Logical Volume Family AAC1C060-264E-4435-9992-5380CAF17B07
            Encryption Status:       Unlocked
            Encryption Type:         None
            Conversion Status:       NoConversion
            Conversion Direction:    -none-
            Has Encrypted Extents:   No
            Fully Secure:            No
            Passphrase Required:     No
            |
            +-> Logical Volume 718A36B4-10B9-49A9-B585-CFC222080507
                Disk:                  disk2
                Status:                Online
                Size (Total):          2112999915520 B (2.1 TB)
                Conversion Progress:   -none-
                Revertible:            No
                LV Name:               Macintosh HD
                Volume Name:           Macintosh HD
                Content Hint:          Apple_HFS
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ sudo gpt -vv -r show /dev/disk0
    WARNING: Improper use of the sudo command could lead to data loss
    or the deletion of important system files. Please double-check your
    typing when using sudo. Type "man sudo" for more information.
    To proceed, enter your password, or type Ctrl-C to abort.
    Password:
    gpt show: /dev/disk0: mediasize=121332826112; sectorsize=512; blocks=236978176
    gpt show: /dev/disk0: PMBR at sector 0
    gpt show: /dev/disk0: Pri GPT at sector 1
    gpt show: /dev/disk0: Sec GPT at sector 236978175
          start       size  index  contents
              0          1         PMBR
              1          1         Pri GPT header
              2         32         Pri GPT table
             34          6        
             40     409600      1  GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
         409640  236306352      2  GPT part - 53746F72-6167-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
      236715992     262144      3  GPT part - 426F6F74-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
      236978136          7        
      236978143         32         Sec GPT table
      236978175          1         Sec GPT header
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ sudo fdisk /dev/disk0
    Disk: /dev/disk0 geometry: 14751/255/63 [236978176 sectors]
    Signature: 0xAA55
             Starting       Ending
    #: id  cyl  hd sec -  cyl  hd sec [     start -       size]
    1: EE 1023 254  63 - 1023 254  63 [         1 -  236978175] <Unknown ID>
    2: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused     
    3: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused     
    4: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused 

    Whoops. Should have caught that myself.
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ sudo gpt -vv -r show /dev/disk1
    Password:
    gpt show: /dev/disk1: mediasize=3000592982016; sectorsize=512; blocks=5860533168
    gpt show: /dev/disk1: PMBR at sector 0
    gpt show: /dev/disk1: Pri GPT at sector 1
    gpt show: /dev/disk1: Sec GPT at sector 5860533167
           start        size  index  contents
               0           1         PMBR
               1           1         Pri GPT header
               2          32         Pri GPT table
              34           6        
              40      409600      1  GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
          409640  3902082880      2  GPT part - 53746F72-6167-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
      3902492520     1269536      3  GPT part - 426F6F74-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
      3903762056         376        
      3903762432  1956769792      4  GPT part - EBD0A0A2-B9E5-4433-87C0-68B6B72699C7
      5860532224         911        
      5860533135          32         Sec GPT table
      5860533167           1         Sec GPT header
    Rogers-iMac:~ reberhart$ sudo fdisk /dev/disk1
    Disk: /dev/disk1 geometry: 97451/255/63 [1565565872 sectors]
    Signature: 0xAA55
             Starting       Ending
    #: id  cyl  hd sec -  cyl  hd sec [     start -       size]
    1: EE 1023 254  63 - 1023 254  63 [         1 - 4294967294] <Unknown ID>
    2: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused     
    3: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused     
    4: 00    0   0   0 -    0   0   0 [         0 -          0] unused     

  • Boot camp Yosemite Win 8.1 3tb Fusion Drive problems

    Hi,
    As many other have reported on the internet I am having problems installing windows on my iMac 27' late 2014 3tb fusion drive, where the partition I create falls outside the 2.2tb limit that prevents windows to be installed when selecting disk under the windows installation (i.e, same problem as Win 8.1, iMac Retina 3TB Fusion, Yosemite, Boot Camp fail!).
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    You are correct. Please see - iMac (27-inch, Late 2012): Boot Camp alert with 3TB hard drive - Apple Support.
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  • Boot camp for Win 8.1 on 3tb Fusion drive, Yosemite

    Hi,
    As many other have reported on the internet I am having problems installing windows on my iMac 27' late 2014 3tb fusion drive, where the partition I create falls outside the 2.2tb limit that prevents windows to be installed when selecting disk under the windows installation (i.e, same problem as Win 8.1, iMac Retina 3TB Fusion, Yosemite, Boot Camp fail!).
    Is my understanding correct that this issue was solved in the OS X Mountain Lion Update v10.8.3 or was all they did to make sure boot camp could create a partition, but windows still couldn't find it?
    I am using Yosemite 10.10.2 and I am wondering if for some reason they didn't include this update?
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    Many thanks

    There is a Boot Camp forum that I'd recommend you post to rather than a general iMac forum.

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    Hi everyone, I know there have be multiple posts on this, however I have a late 2013 iMac with OS X 10.9. I know Apple states support for bootcamp with a 3TB fusion drive from 10.8.3 fowards, however I wish to install Windows 8.1 pro from a full DVD using an external disk drive. All is good for partitioning and then when the mac reboots, it shows an apple (usual boot screen) and the a while after, it shows a "cannot do" sign that looks like (\).
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    Thanks

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    I am afraid I can't help you, but I hope you can help me.  I have been trying to install Win 7 using Boot camp assistant on my new iMac 27 (OS X 10.9) 1 TB HD and I haven't been able to get past the formatting.  After 15 hours I still have a white screen, no Apple logo, or any indication that anything is running.
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