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I'd like to install Ubuntu Precise (current LTS) on a drive, and I'd like to discard the current partitioning and instead create a new GPT on that drive. The ubuntu installer allows me to partition the device, and even allows me to create a new partition table, but I find no option to choose what kind of partition table I want, and the fact that subsequent creation of partition offers me a choice between primary and extended suggests that it will always create a MBR partition table.

So how can I create a GPT during install? Is there some more advanced install tool? Should I do this from the command line?

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Boot Ubuntu off the LiveCD or LiveUSB and run the Gparted tool. Click the Device menu and then click "create partition". You will then need to click the "advanced" widget so that you get the dropdown menu and will be able to select GPT from that. You should then make your partitions, then install Ubuntu and use the advanced partitioner to tell Ubiquity how you would like to use them (or you can just use entire disk, as you wish).

The computer BIOS will need to be able to support GPT. If it's UEFI instead of BIOS this isn't a problem - GPT is part of the specification.

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  • The BIOS does not need to support GPT; it just needs to not be so buggy as to react badly to GPT. BIOS is (or can be) extremely stupid, and in fact a basic BIOS doesn't understand any partitioning system; it just loads the first sector of the hard disk and executes the code there. This code must then parse the partition table and/or load additional code located elsewhere. Some BIOSes are buggy and flake out at the sight of a GPT, but that's because they're doing things outside of their mandate.
    – Rod Smith
    Dec 4, 2012 at 22:50
  • Last time I tried it I did not get the Advanced section hence I was not able to create a GPT type partition table. Is it a known issue?
    – Bucic
    Dec 25, 2012 at 17:49
  • No, you will always get the advanced options but you have to click on it to see what they are.
    – fabricator4
    Dec 25, 2012 at 18:07

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