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Master Boot Record, MBR
Master Boot Record, MBR
A master boot record has many functions. Here are some of its most common uses:
o Holding a disk’s partitioned tables
o Bootstrapping a system after the BIOS translates execution into machine-code instructions
o Identifying unique disk media; usually something with a 32-bit disk signature
When a storage device has been partitioned with a MBR table scheme, the master boot record will contain all primary partitioned space that has been added to its table. Tables for other partitioned space is stored in BSD disk labels or in the Logical Disk Manager
By default, exactly four primary partitioned table entries are in the MBR table scheme. Some DOS operating systems extended the number to five and eventually eight.
When a storage device has been partitioned with a GUID tables scheme, the MBR will still contain its table. However, its new purpose is to indicate presence of the GUID table and prevent other programs from creating tables that may be viewed as free space on the disk.