sgdisk

Scriptable GPT partition table manager

TLDR

Show partition table

$ sgdisk -p [/dev/sda]

Create new GPT

$ sgdisk -o [/dev/sda]

Create partition

$ sgdisk -n [1:0:+500M] [/dev/sda]

Set partition type

$ sgdisk -t [1:8300] [/dev/sda]

Delete partition

$ sgdisk -d [1] [/dev/sda]

Change partition name

$ sgdisk -c [1:boot] [/dev/sda]

Backup partition table

$ sgdisk -b [backup.gpt] [/dev/sda]

Restore partition table

$ sgdisk -l [backup.gpt] [/dev/sda]

SYNOPSIS

sgdisk [-n part:start:end] [-t part:type] [options] device

sgdisk is the command-line, scriptable counterpart to the interactive gdisk partitioning tool, designed for manipulating GUID Partition Table (GPT) disk layouts. It performs all operations through flags and arguments rather than an interactive menu, making it ideal for use in scripts, automated provisioning, and disk imaging workflows.Partition creation uses flexible notation where sizes can be specified with + prefixes for relative sizing and 0 to fill remaining space. Type codes such as 8300 (Linux filesystem), EF00 (EFI System Partition), and 8200 (Linux swap) identify the purpose of each partition. Multiple operations can be chained in a single command to build complete partition layouts atomically.The tool also supports backing up and restoring entire partition tables, converting MBR disks to GPT, and verifying table integrity. All changes are written in a single operation when the command completes successfully.

PARAMETERS

-p, --print

Print partition table.

-o, --clear

Create new GPT.

-n, --new PART:START:END

Create partition.

-d, --delete PART

Delete partition.

-t, --typecode PART:TYPE

Set type code.

-c, --change-name PART:NAME

Set name.

-b, --backup FILE

Backup table.

-l, --load-backup FILE

Restore table.

-L, --list-types

List known partition type codes.

-i, --info PART

Show detailed information about a partition.

-v, --verify

Verify disk's GPT data structures.

-Z, --zap-all

Destroy both GPT and MBR data structures.

-g, --mbrtogpt

Convert MBR to GPT.

CAVEATS

Destructive operations are immediate and cannot be undone. Specifying the wrong device will destroy data. Only works with GPT partition tables (use fdisk for MBR). Use `-b` to back up the partition table before making changes.

HISTORY

sgdisk is part of the GPT fdisk suite by Rod Smith, first released around 2010. It was created as the scriptable counterpart to the interactive gdisk tool, filling the need for automated GPT partition management in scripts and deployment workflows.