fˈɔːɹmɚli, ˌɔn dˈɪsks fˈɔːɹmæɾᵻd jˈuːzɪŋ ðə mˈæstɚ bˈuːt ɹˈɛkɚd ˌɛmbˌiːˈɑːɹ pɑːɹtˈɪʃən lˈeɪaʊt, sˈɜːʔn̩ sˈɔftwɛɹ kəmpˈoʊnənts jˈuːzd hˈɪdən sˈɛktɚz ʌvðə dˈɪsk fɔːɹ dˈeɪɾə stˈoːɹɪdʒ pˈɜːpəsᵻz.
Formerly, on disks formatted using the master boot record (MBR) partition layout, certain software components used hidden sectors of the disk for data storage purposes.