How to dual-boot Vista with XP - step-by-step guide

29th May 2007
James Bannan
Vista, Windows

Scenario: You want to install Vista on your PC alongside your XP installation, on the same drive. You have already installed XP. (If you installed Vista first, see our other tutorial on How to dual-boot Vista and XP - with Vista installed first.)

Tutorial Summary: We're going to use the DISKPART utility on the Vista DVD to shrink the Windows XP partition on the hard disk and create enough space for an installation of Vista. We'll then install Vista and use the EasyBCD utility to modify Vista's bootloader to get XP loading properly.

This is an updated tutorial,based on our first Windows XP/Vista dual-booting workshop. The main difference is that we're covering using both the latest version of GParted and DISKPART to shrink the Windows XP partition.

DISKPART can shrink NTFS partitions and it's certainly the more convenient option, but on some systems using DISKPART to shrink the volume will fail, with an vague "Access is denied" error.

This may have something to do with different disk controllers, as this was a problem on the AcerPower test system which has a SATA hard drive, but not on the VMWare system which uses a virtual IDE controller. So we'll cover both processes

EasyBCD has also been updated since the first tutorial was written.

This tutorial was tested on a VMWare Workstation 6 virtual machine and an AcerPower SK50.

Get Started - Using GParted

We assume that before you start this tutorial, you have backed up the drive (partitions and data) that will host the two operating systems.

Your first step will be to modify the Windows XP system partition to make space for Vista using GParted

The GParted Live CD ISO is available here – burn it to CD and boot the system from the disc. The version we used was 0.3.4-7.

Boot the Linux machine from the GParted LiveCD. Depending on your system, you should just need to select the auto-configuration boot option.

During boot, press Enter twice when prompted to select the keymap and language settings.

When the main GUI loads, right-click on the main Windows XP NTFS partition (depending on your setup, probably /dev/hda1) and select Resize/Move.

XP & Vista - Resize Partition

Use the slider to reduce the partition size and free up enough room to instal Vista (at least 10GB) and click Resize/Move.

XP & Vista - Resize Partition 2

The changes haven't actually been made, they've just been scheduled to run. To commit the changes and resize the partition, click Apply. GParted will ask to confirm the changes – hit OK and away you go.

Get Started - Using DISKPART

Boot the machine from the Vista DVD. Select the appropriate language and then "Install Now".

XP & Vista - Load Vista

On the produt key page, press SHIFT + F10 to launch a Windows PE 2.0 command window. Then type in DISKPART and press enter to get into the DISKPART utility.

XP & Vista - DISKPART

Now type in LIST VOLUME - this gives you a readout of the volumes available on the system. Select the main Windows XP volume (probably Volume 0) by typing in SELECT VOLUME 0.

XP & Vista - DISKPART Volume

Now type in SHRINK. Vista will reduce the size of Volume 0 (the selected Volume) by around 50%.

XP & Vista - DISKPART Shrink

Once that is done, type in EXIT and EXIT again to get back to the Vista installation window.

Now Install Vista

If you used the GParted LiveCD to shrink the XP partition, you'll need to reboot the system from the Vista install DVD. If you've used DISKPART then you just need to continue the installation.

Once the install gets to the install location, there should be at least two options: a partition marked as Primary and unallocated space. Select the unallocated space and click Next. The install will then commence.

XP & Vista - Install Vista

The Vista boot manager will take over the system completely, and Windows XP effectively loads via Vista. It's all pretty seamless though, and you shouldn't encounter any technical problems.

Modify Vista's Bootloader

Once Vista is installed and the system reboots, you'll be presented with a boot menu with two options: "Microsoft Windows Vista" and "An Earlier Version of Windows".

XP & Vista - Boot Menu

This is perhaps a little bit bland, so you'll probably want to change it. Here's where one of the new features of Vista comes in, and it's not so terrific. In Windows XP if you want to modify the bootloader, just right-click on My Computer, select Properties, go to the Advanced Tab, and click Settings under Startup and Recovery, then click Edit. This opens a local file – boot.ini. It's just a standard text file and you can change pretty much anything. Unfortunately it's not that easy in Vista – you can still navigate to the Startup and Recovery settings, but all you can do is select which operating system is the default and modify the timeout settings.

To edit Vista's boot manager you have to use the command line BCDEDIT utility. To access BCDEDIT, run the Command Window as an administrator and type in BCDEDIT.

Unfortunately BCDEDIT isn't an easy tool to come to terms with, especially as it's purely command line-driven. So, a great tool to use here is EasyBCD by NeoSmart Technologies. EasyBCD offers a GUI frontend to BCDEDIT, and makes life much easier.

Once Vista is installed, call up the browser and navigate to the EasyBCD download page - download, install and launch the application.

To configure the bootloader go to "Configure Boot" – you'll see the two entries, for XP and Vista. To change the name of Windows XP, just overwrite "Earlier Version of Windows" with "Windows XP" and click Save Settings.

XP & Vista - Modify Boot

Reboot the system and the changes are visible. You have a dual-booting Vista and XP system. That's all there is to it.

XP & Vista - Changed Boot

Open up Windows Explorer and there's two hard drives – the primary disk running Vista and the secondary disk with XP installed. Restart the system and load up Windows XP, and the XP disk is now the primary, with the Vista partition running on the secondary D: drive

If you decide that dual-booting Vista and XP is not for you, EasyBCD lets you wind back the clock.

All you have to do is remove Vista's boot manager – go to "Manage Bootloader", select "Uninstall the Vista Bootloader" and then "Write MBR". Restart the machine and that's it – the XP boot loader is the only one left on the system and XP loads. You can then delete the Vista partition and use GParted to re-extend the partition to take up the entire disk, or the Extend command in Vista DISKPART.

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Other APC dual-booting tutorials:

The definitive dual-booting guide: Linux, Vista and XP step-by-step

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COMMON FAQs

1: Can this be accomplished with an upgrade?

Can this procedure be accomplished using a Vista Ultimate Upgrade DVD? Or will this only work using a full version?

Punchey (354 days ago)

2: no, the Vista upgrade would

no, the Vista upgrade would overwrite the existing XP installation. You would have to install another copy of XP (if on the same drive, repartition the drive to create another partition for the copy) then install Vista over the original XP installation. Presumably you would need a new licence for the second XP, as it's unlikely you would be able to re-register if the previous version has already been upgraded to Vista. Somebody who has done this might know for sure.

Tony Sarno (354 days ago)

3: DUAL BOOT WITH AN UPGRADE??

so basically we have to buy the full version to have a dual boot xp and vista system? am i getting this correct?? i ordered an upgrade but i guess i have to take it back and spend the extra $70 for the full version for a dual boot system. has nayone used the upgrade version to dual boot XP and vista on the same hard drive??

joey (349 days ago)

4: Yes. I Have Windows xp

Yes. I Have Windows xp Professional/32bit
And Windows Vista Ultimate /64bit (upgrade Version) Running Right Now
No Errors No Problems @ Bootscreen It Asks Which OS Do I Want To Boot To
Previous Version Of Windows Or
Windows Vista (THis Is Just The Upgrade )
Which Is The Exact Same Disk As The Full Version.
I Had Xp Pro Installed ,Updated Till It Couldnt Update Anymore.
Ran /Installed The Vista Advisory.
Shut Off Pc/rebooted From Disk (Which I Hear Isnt Supposed To Work) And It Installed Successfully.
So Yes Its Possible.

SS_Camaro_SS (342 days ago)

5: Will this work with Vista 32bit?

Will this work with Vista 32bit?
If so, how about a link to the 'exact' steps?
Also how to make sure my current XP key doesn't get killed by vista calling home?
Thanks in advnace
KLund1

KLund1 (341 days ago)

6: The instructions and

The instructions and screenshots above work perfectly with Win XP Pro and Vista 32 Upgrade. I just finished. Great posting!!!

Scott (281 days ago)

7: Please can you or anyone

Please can you or anyone explain in detail how you did this?

I have windows xp home and will be getting Vista home premium 32 (upgrade) and would like to dual boot.

Thanks.

Pete Davies (319 days ago)

8: Of course it can work on

Of course it can work on vista 32bit.

Sam12342 (315 days ago)

9: Can I install XP without removing VISTA (2 OS in one PC)

Hi
I am having compatability problems with windows vista ULTIMATE.
Can I install XP keeping VISTA i mean both in one system.
Will that work.
Please let me know ASAP

krishna (242 days ago)

10: Dual Boot is the answer

What you ask is what Dual boot is. Two operating systems on one disk with the option to run either one.

DoHi (211 days ago)

11: Hi I am having compatability

Hi
I am having compatability problems with windows vista ULTIMATE.
Can I install XP keeping VISTA i mean both in one system.
Will that work.

chandraprakash (52 days ago)

12: Actually, if you have a copy

Actually, if you have a copy of WinXP, you can install that on the other partition, then upgrade the new installation. The Vista Upgrade disc contains the full version of Vista, but it is "locked" away.

Anonymous2 (74 days ago)

13: Authentication code sames for each partition (with proviso)

I run a dual-boot XPso that I can use one for general computer stuff and one with minimal services for audio recording. As long as you haven't changed the System drive (as opposed to the Boot drive - running OS partition) between installs, the drive letters remain the same and the same Windows authentication codes will work for both.

However, if you swap the System partition between installs, the Boot partition will always be C: and the Windows authentication codes will be different (mainly because the System partition ID will be different).

In multi-HDD systems, to do multi-boot and have the boot partitions all on the same HDD, you will have to disconnect the 2nd, etc, HDDs. Without the disconnection, Windows would allocate drive letters to each drive first, then by partition, so that a two drive system with two partitions on each HDD would have default letter allocations of:
HDD 0:
Partition 1: C
Partition 2: E
HDD 1:
Partition 1: D
Partition 2: F

instead of (preferred?):
HDD0:
Partition 1: C
Partition 2: D
HDD 1:
Partition 1: E
Partition 2: F

While you can change drive letters of partitions, you do NOT want to do this to a Boot partition as the registry entries set at installation will then point to the wrong drive. Reletter partitions after OS install, but before installing applications to minimise reconfiguration of paths to data partitions.

Patanjali (259 days ago)

14: yes, you can. it isnt as

yes, you can.
it isnt as easy but this is what you do...
start the vista install, when it gets to where u put in the key, put in nothing and select vista ultimate edition and continue with install, when its all done, from within vista launch vista installation again and this time put in the key... let it go through all the way again and ure done

u can also do this if ure not dual booting at all.. basically makes an upgrade disc into a full version disc if ure willing to install it twice

adv3rsary (316 days ago)

15: 2 hard drives

Just a quick question about the Vista Boot Manager. If Vista is installed on a different drive than the XP Install, will the Vista Boot Manager see the original XP install and give the option to choose which OS to boot? I'm just afraid that I'll have to jump through the bios and change the drive in the boot priority section in order to change the OS.

Any help on this is greatly appreciated.

Buckskinpass (353 days ago)

16: Vista on seperate Drive

I installed Home Premium Upgrade onto a second drive and the Option to boot to the other drive where XP was installed was setup by the Vista boot manager and it worked.

Mike (350 days ago)

17: what about yhe other way

what about yhe other way around? If I have Vista installed already can I install a copy of XP on a second drive and expect everything to work right? I've got some issues with Vista's DRM features :(

VTmuggle (350 days ago)

18: NOT SO SURE

Every one that I've talked to says to make sure XP is installed first but I have no first hand experience with Vista being pre installed.

Buckskinpass (349 days ago)

19: I just purchased a new

I just purchased a new laptop from HP which cmae with Vista Business pre-installed. I also purchased the CD but instead of getting the full Vista install, it's just a DVD to re-image the hard drive to factory settings

If I install XP and then inert the DVD, I do not get any options on how to install, instead, the HD is re-imaged.

Is it possible to install XP after Vista becuase it seems there is no way for me to do it the other way?

Anonymous94654 (339 days ago)

20: I am in the same situation

I am in the same situation with you. Did you get any solution? If so, please send the solution to me. Thanks.

Nina (335 days ago)

21: Yes, you can...

Here's the link to how you can install XP after installing Vista - you just won't have to do the drive-shrink diskpart portion of the install because you have a second drive.

http://apcmag.com/5485/dualbooting_vista_and_xp

Hagar (325 days ago)

22: Dual booting XP and Vista

Hi! Okay, first of all, I am using two hard drives to do my install of XP. I just got a new PC with Vista preloaded, but I have to keep XP to run programs that are not compatible with Vista. So, I reviewed your steps and the part where you show the XP install screen with the two partitions, on my screen, I get a list that says unidentified something and it says to use the arrows to select but when I do, it gives me an error blue screen. I need to find a way to get my hard drives to show up on this screen. What do I do to get my hard drives to show up on this screen? Please HELP. As long as some of my programs are not compatible with VISTA, I need XP! THANKS.

Leice (223 days ago)

23: Dual Booting and Vista

For the first you didn`t say anything if u have sata disk or ide, if u have sata it`s easy to find in bios and u dont have to juse jumper osv I think u have ide disk and i also think u are using only one cabel from HK and to both HD ?If u can use only one kabel to each of them and set jumper on HD1 to master and HD2 to slave .. Cd rom can use cabelselect. Then i think u will be able to find your HD.
When it`s so many hvo have trubble with dualboot i cant understand what u/they do wrong ??? Here are some good simple advice for dual boot :
1. Innstall XP first on one HD
2. Then Vista on another HD, whwn u do that Vista will take command over the boot section and u vill have a boot screen where u can choose XP or Vista... if u have old version of windows shoving up on the same bootscreen,u go to boot.ini in XP and remove it there.
And you MUST have Wista boot Pro there u go to "system bootloader" and choose WINDOVS WISTA BOOTLOADER and ALL DRIVES under system bootloader, and then remember to INNSTALL BOOTLOADER... Thats all if u do so u will have Vista bootloader with Vista as nr1 and XP as nr 2 on your bootscreen.
Hope`s this will help some of you, i had it for a loong time and still working perfekt.

Zatt (211 days ago)

24: I am in the same situation

I am in the same situation too...
My computer is a brand new HP with Vista Home Premium preinstalled, I tried to follow the instructions, I make a 20Gb partition with Gparted but when insert the Xp Professional install-cd I receive a blue screen with this error "Setup did not find any hard disk drives installed in you computer"
Can someone help me???

gioggio82 (319 days ago)

25: HP SATA Drive issue

Make sure that the "SATA Native Support" option is disabled in the BIOS settings. To install XP from XP bootable CD, you should either disable this option or load SATA drivers from bootable USB/Floppy.

myshop (305 days ago)

26: Yes U can

Dear

You have to download sata hdd drivers & then u have to put it in a floppy.then when u boot frm xp cd then u have to press F6 for giving the sata HDD Drivers.Then it will be installed

Amardeep Singh (274 days ago)

27: Don't interfere or panic!

That's a reason why NOT to get WINDOWS VISTA! (go to top story's and click on 10 REASONS NOT TO GET WINDOWS VISTA!) PROBLEM! PROBLEM! PROBLEM!

Nicholas-Computer Kid (160 days ago)

28: VISTA DVD

I have heard all versions of Vista are
on the Vista DVD so in theory just borrow
a retail version of a Vista DVD and use
your valid key from Vista oem sticker on
your laptop when you re-install after the XP
install.

DONKEYBOY (321 days ago)

29: dualbooting Vista + Xp

same proplem pl solve it to us
any body any body help
what about yhe other way around?
I have Vista installed already and I installed a copy of XP on a second partion drive and expect everything to work right?
only xp work
if i used recovery disk came with veas I loos Xp booting even it still on partion D

omas (281 days ago)

30: Hey, i had the same problem.

Hey, i had the same problem. All you need to do is:
1. Format your HDD(s).
2. Install Windows XP.
3. Install Windows Vista with dual-boot.
4. Throw you computer case through the window.
5. BE HAPPY =P

Angry user with same problem (178 days ago)

31: I need to make a serious

I need to make a serious correction
I did not read the M$oft article
about dualbooting Vista + XP

Vista usses a totally diffderent bootmethod with the BCD so replacing
ntldr + netdetect does not work

look at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/919529/en-us
IT EXPLAINS THE CULPRIT

linosi (57 days ago)

32: same proplem pl solve it to

omas

Nehal Ahmed Jony (48 days ago)

33: Vista on separate drive

Mike,
I too installed Home Premium Upgrade on a second drive,as a custom installation but I did not get any option to boot to my other drive with XP Pro on it. Is this something I can change, like a setting, or is this something that Vista does automagically or is supposed to do in a situation such as this? Any help would be great. Thanks.

Sarge (320 days ago)

34: Vista on separate drive

Sargesilver (320 days ago)

35: Can u help me install XP in my computer i just bought bran new

hey i just bought bran new computer with XP Ultimate and its got 2 hard drive 2 ga ram and 120 each hard drive so is there way i can install XP professional cuz vista isent that good with my work if u can give me step by step instruction it will be grate thanks

HP (297 days ago)

36: 2 HDD

I know its been a while since you post this question and you have probably already did the dual boot. I can say install Vista was quite pain less in comparsion to a fresh XP install. I have XP on one drive and Vista on the other and they work fine.

Ichigo_Bankai (234 days ago)

37: 2 hard drives

I have the same situation 2 hard drives 1 vista 2 XP. did you find a boot loader or other oprogram to load one or the other?

David H H (227 days ago)

38: Thanks for the guide

Thanks for the guide

santiaguito (352 days ago)

39: Dual boot: how to link two separately installed XP & Vista?

Great post.
But my situation is a bit different: I have installed XP on a disk and Vista on another disk separatly. Now how can I link the two together via dual boot? I cannot modift XP boot.ini to boot Vista. But can I modify Vista BCD to include an existing XP on another disk?

Anonymous (350 days ago)

40: I did the same, ie installed

I did the same, ie installed xp and vista on two seperate hard dives with the other unplugged. To convert to a dual boot PC I followed instructions I found at:
http://lards.net/roj/blog.asp?topic=2

Anonymous (348 days ago)

41: blue screen of death

I followed the instructions but get a blue screen when Vista tries to boot. Anyone else have that issue? Unfortunately I flashes too quickly to see what the error is.

Anonymous_bk (305 days ago)

42: SATA drive and RAID 0

I have 2 SATA drives RAID 0 do I need to load extra RAID modules? And is this dual boot achievable with XP pro 64 bit edition.

Anonymous (348 days ago)

43: great question

I'm building a system right now and I have the same question. For performance, I'm putting two 400gb Seagates in a Raid 0 config. But I want to know if it's possible to dual boot Windows XP and Vista on this config.

If you know, send me an e-mail at tenxtone@gmail.com

John Park (339 days ago)

44: Dualboot system under Raid 0 (2No 500GB)

Hi John saw your question on apcmag.com I have same question, did you receive any anwsers if so could you forward them on.
Thanks Marston

Marston (140 days ago)

45: Re: RAID 0

It's possible to do, I just got finished myself. You just have to make sure you have a floppy disk with RAID drivers so the WinXP install can see the array properly. Vista won't need any additional steps, it can see the array by default.

Also, if you have any additional HDDs, make sure your two RAID disks are on HDD connectors 0 and 1, as Windows installs will put the MBR on the first physical drive. After that, it's just partitioning the array like a normal drive in Win setup.

Frank (139 days ago)

46: XP 32 bit and Vista 64 bit Dual Boot

Is it possible to dual boot between the 32 bit edition of XP and the 64 bit edition of Vista? I want to move up to the 64 bit OS, but I need to keep my current XP as there are a couple of apps for my work that will not work under Vista.

tbuzzard (347 days ago)

47: hi

i really dont know...but when i try booting up a x64bit program on my Xp x32 it doesnt work. so i guess you should try it the other way around..but that might prove difficult for you..i have the same problem as you have.

Enok (344 days ago)

48: It is very helpful. Keep up

It is very helpful. Keep up the good work. Thanks.

wkcheng2 (327 days ago)

49: Dual boot XP-32 / Vista-64

Hi,

I insalled Vista 64 in a dual-boot configuration.
I followed a procedure very similar to this one with the following exceptions:
1) I used Acronis Disk Director to create a partition for Vista
2) Acronis Disk Director formats the new partition already so when I installed Vista was not on a "unallocated space" but on an already dedicated partition.

Everything went smooth and Vista ran beautifully but soon I found problems, which are currently unresolved. I don't know whether they are related to the cohabitating of the two OS.

Here are the problems:

First: the letters of the partition are different depending to wich OS are seen from. Vista Partition is L: in XP but is C: in Vista. And C: in XP becomes D: in Vista. This is not a problem, of course, but is fishy.

The problem is that that often both OS complain about disk corruption and they both run DSKCHK almost every other boot.

Now in Vista I start to have problem even to delete or access files, with the error of impossible to find the path or file that I just clicked and, systematically, if I right-click on the C: drive in Vista (its dedicated partition where it is running from (the L: partition in XP, created specifically for Vista)), I get a corruption error and a restart of the explorer.

I don't know what is cousing all this yet. I hope someone who had a similar problem can point me to the right direction.

I am running a Pentium-D 3GHz with 2GB RAM.
Both partitions are 100GB large.

Cheers,
/Flavio

Flavio (316 days ago)

50: Dual boot XP-32 / Vista-64

I am dual booting Vista Ultimate x64 and XP x32 and I hae no problems with corrupt disks or file path problems. Sounds like something else is wrong.

Chris

cdavis (310 days ago)

51: i've got absolutely the same

i've got absolutely the same problem.

mds (175 days ago)

52: Dual booting XP and Vista Ultimate

Can someone please tell me if Vista Ultimate upgrade can be installed onto a logical drive or must it be to unallocated space when setting up a dual boot scenario with XP and Vista. Or are they the same thing? Any help appreciated

Thomas (345 days ago)

53: Can't remove dual bootmanager screen after removal of vista.

I installed Vista in a new partition on Disk1 and on booting was presented with the dual Boot screen offering Vista or "old" OS (XP). On deciding to kick Vista out I deleted the partition (currently unused space) but surprisingly on rebooting I still am presented with the dual boot screen (as above) but only the old OS (of course) does anything. How can I get back to the original situation (before trying Vista) where this screen will not be presented. Is it now written into the MBR? How can I get rid of this screen on booting up into XP in future?
The current boot.ini file in XP shows

;
;Warning: Boot.ini is used on Windows XP and earlier operating systems.
;Warning: Use BCDEDIT.exe to modify Windows Vista boot options.
;
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /NOEXECUTE=OPTIN /FASTDETECT

mikezoe65 (343 days ago)

54: Can't remove dual boot manager screen after removal of vista

http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1

you can try neosmart's EasyBCD 1.52 where it can manage the vista boot manager.

or you can visit http://vista-uninstall-bootloader.freeware-alternative.uni.cc/ which describes the procedures for removing the vista boot manager with VistaBoot Pro http://www.vistabootpro.org/track/click.php?id=3 and the windows xp recovery console.

Cheers
Paul

PaulC (343 days ago)

55: Thanks-Paul

First idea not usable as my Vista installation is no longer and EasyBCD 1.52 will not install in XP!
However the second steer worked- repairing the XP installation via the original setup disk. Worked a treat and now problem solved. Thanks a million!
Mike

mikezoe65 (343 days ago)

56: Any partition manager?

Is it correct to assume that I can use any partition manager to make the required partition?

OzBoy (329 days ago)

57: XP wont Boot

I installed Vista Ultimate 32bit to a new partition on my XB boot disk.

All was working fine but now I cannot boot into XP.

Whilst booting into XP it gets to the "Loading settings" screen then changes to "Saving Settings" and reboots and just repeats the whole process over and over.

Is this due to Vista or is this another problem, and will EasyBCD help in any way?

Thanks

Adam

Groovy (326 days ago)

58: If XP is loading from its

If XP is loading from its own partition then you're past the bootloader, so no I don't think it's due to Vista and I doubt that EasyBCD will help. It just sorts out which OS is on which partition...

To be honest it sounds like something has gone a bit wrong with the XP installation, and a repair install might be necessary.

James Bannan (326 days ago)

59: Can you do this with a

Can you do this with a different partioning program?

Sam (322 days ago)

60: Yes -

I used Acronis' Disk Director and it worked like a charm. Made a primary partition and left it free for Vista 64 to use

mstomaso (183 days ago)

61: How much space do I need to

How much space do I need to carry this out, as my partitions on my hard drive are 37.2 (WIN XP) and 47.9 (Misc Files)

Is there enough space on my WIN XP partition to install vista alongside?

Stewart

StuMcBill (321 days ago)

62: I did the same thing, does not work for me

Ok, i followed all the steps described in the article, but the dual boot doesn't work. I installed xp in a second partition(not C:)m then i ran the recovery disc with vista(my asus came preinstalled with vista, and i repaired the bootloader in vista. Then in the command prompt, i changed the letter of xp os, from C: to F:, which is where xp is. Also i have installed EasyBCD, but still xp won't boot...what i get is missing or corupt /ntldr...Vista, though is working fine...Have anybody run into the same problems?

aszavai (317 days ago)

63: Yea i have exactly the same

Yea i have exactly the same problem. My vista install is on C. My xp install is on E. The boot loader shows both vista and xp, but xp wont continue the installation. It when i select it i get the /ntldr error. I noticed in EasyBCD it says under the windows xp entry, bootloader: ntldr. Can anyone help?

Athor (316 days ago)

64: ntcrap

i also have this problem i boot up and i have an option to choose but xp will not load. vista works fine though c: is vista in vista with D: for xp. i dont know about xp because i cant boot it up

jason lee (201 days ago)

65: Same Here

I am having the same problem, I cannot run XP, its up on the dual boot screen, but it says the XP bootloader is bad. Anyone know how to fix it?

Katie (186 days ago)

66: 2 hard drives vista ok XP \ntldr

I have them both loaded (vista came with hp on c:, added xp to d: drive) and xp was working fine until I changed the bootloader (vistabootpro), now if I select xp I get an error /ntldr path or file missing. How can I fix this (I cannot find edit options in vistabootpro, and the boot.ini when viewed as 'legacy' in the vistabootpro looks fine.

d (185 days ago)

67: Don't reletter an OS partition after installation

During installation, the registry gets set with driver paths pointing to the installation letter. Relettering the partition will not change these and the boot up will fail due to missing drivers.

If you want the OS partitions to have sequential letters on the same HDD, disconnect all other HDDs until the OS installations are done (after ensuring that their letters are after all the intended OS letters).

Patanjali (259 days ago)

68: OK don't use the new Live CD

OK don't use the new Live CD which is 3.4 you need to use the 3.2.

So I get to the partitioning part ok but then I get an error message which I can't save so I am now back to square one.

Can someone advise if I can use another partitioning manager?

OzBoy (316 days ago)

69: how to uninstall windows xp

I had windows xp installed and I add windows vista on a second partition, now i want to uninstall windows xp, how do i do that?

Avi Karpel (313 days ago)

70: Dual Boot w/ Vista Upgrade

I found a great article about installing a clean copy of an upgrade version of Vista and not having to upgrade XP.

http://www.lockergnome.com/nexus/gwhicks/2007/02/16/use-vista-upgrade-cd-for-a-clean-install-then-extend-the-30-day-limit-to-120/

RNA (308 days ago)

71: Clean Install Vista Upgrade Disk

I have a dual boot Vista\XP system. Vista was installed on separate primary partition using Dell Vista Upgrade Disk.

Brian Livingston of Windows Secrets has details in his online newsletter.

https://windowssecrets.com/info/

tassas (308 days ago)

72: Adding Vista to XP Machine

Thanks for all the info, the comments are as helpful as the article!

I am about to attempt to convert my existing Windows XP machine into a dual boot system by adding Vista Home Premium. I have purchased, installed, and formatted a brand new SATA drive just for this purpose. The XP drive is currently C:, and the new HDD is currently D:

My plan is to install vista by booting from the upgrade disc, not entering the product key, then when vista boots, re-installing cleanly and entering my product key. Hopefully this will then give me a dual boot option, which I can customize with vistabootpro or EasyBCD.

Would it be safe to unplug my C: drive while installing Vista to ensure that XP is not corrupted? Or should I leave it on and cross my fingers?

StingrayFL (306 days ago)

73: Update - Dual boot no problem

I decided NOT to unplug my primary XP hard drive, but otherwise followed the process I outlined above, and the default "DOS" dual boot screen appeared upon first reboot of vista. I successfully booted up in both OS's a few times and I'm glad it's working. Now onto configuring Vista....

StingrayFL (305 days ago)

74: Booting Windows XP and Windows Vista from 2 SATA Hard Drives

I want to install Windows XP on one SATA HARD DRIVE and Windows Vista on the other SATA HARD DRIVE.
Should these two be in the SATA RAID 1 and SATA RAID 2 hookup or to the regular SATA 1 and SATA 2 plugins? Or does it matter?
I intend to dual boot them when needed.
I HAVE FOUR SEAGATE SATA DRIVES ALL TOGTHER. My Motherboard is ASUS P4P800-E Deluxe.
Any help given will be greatly appreciated.

GlennD (304 days ago)

75: Vista on new computer. Added an old HD with XP and Ubuntu

Hi,

I have a new computer with Vista using the full HDD.

I have added a second HDD, from my previous computer, that had XP and Ubuntu installed on it (with Grub as the boot).

How can I recover Grub so it allows to boot any of the three OS (Vista, XP or Ubuntu)?

Thanks in advance.

sostenib (300 days ago)

76: Great Instructions!

This is the best site with instructions on how to do this. I will be recommending these to other people. Thanks a bunch APC and all who commented, lots of helpful hints and ideas!!

Kraig Roche (294 days ago)

77: Printer-friendly version of apcmag.com articles

All other computer magazines provide a printer-friendly (a special formatting for printing) version of each article.
Why doesn't apcmag.com offer links to printer-friendly version of its articles?

geo (289 days ago)

78: Share (My) Documents folder

I have 3 partitions on my hard drive. 1st is for XP 2nd is for Vista. The 3rd I had planned to use as a shared (My) Documents for XP and Vista. But Vista doesn't seem to want to share.

Is it possible to share Documents folder for XP and Vista?

bardie (289 days ago)

79: Just out of curiosity, did

Just out of curiosity, did you take the pictures using a camera? They aren't the best quality.

Douglas (286 days ago)

80: Dual boot XP/Vista

I have a 250 GB H.D with XP on it. In order to preserve the
to preserve the XP , can I partition the
drive , install the Xp in the second par-
tition then use Vista upgrade. Will this
preserve the Xp on the first parti.?
without Vista over writing it?
Michael

Michael (282 days ago)

81: XP won't Run

I did the whole dual-boot installation with XP on my PC first, and then Vista. Now, Vista runs, but XP won't even start up -- I'll choose "Earlier Version of Windows" and then the screen goes blank. It doesn't say any files are missing; it doesn't show any errors...it doesn't show anything. Is there a way to fix this without erasing/formatting the partition with XP on it? I also notices that one partition should be "secondary". Within the "Computer Management" that comes with Vista it says that both the C: and D: partitions are Primary. Does that matter?

TBG (278 days ago)

82: Hi! I had the same problem

Hi!

I had the same problem and the strange thing is that i have 2 monitors and when i unplug the secondary monitor, then XP starts fine, but not with 2 monitors. But i can plug in the monitor when XP has loaded, but i dont want to do this every time the computer starts though.

Bjorn (267 days ago)

83: Vista +XP

I have the same problem. XP istall first and then Vista. EasyBCD doesn't show XP at all ! Vista is installed on a principal partition and XP on a logic partition.
Can't find boot.ini in XP partition ?! Trying to place a boot.ini file (from another PC) plus ntldr in Vista partition and trying to modify boot.ini doesn't work as the boot.ini can't be registered in tne partition ?!
What to do ?? thanks.

yahoogerard (267 days ago)

84: Vista corrupted XP's boot.ini

I had the same exact issue with Vista loading, but EasyBCD not recognizing the XP boot.ini to enable the dual boot manager. Vista seems to corrupt any boot.ini's.
What I done to resolve it is to copy the boot.ini from the original XP disc &~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;Disc drive:&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;Explore CD. It now works for me and I can see both partition OS in EasyBCD.
Hope this will work for you.

Michaelt64 (131 days ago)

85: Can you(or someone) explain

Can you(or someone) explain where to copy the boot.ini file? I can find it on the XP cd but where should I put it?

nimos(swe) (95 days ago)

86: How to: sysprep on dual boot Vista?

I've installer XP2 and Vista. Then sysprep xp2, works ok. than I try to sysprep the Vista volume D: from within Windows PE, but nothing happens. I'm using the standard sysprep parameters. I think there's a trick to it, because all the examples I saw sofar with syspreping Vista where with a single Vista installation and not with dual boot.

Please help me out.

Linkeloetje (277 days ago)

87: I tried to run sysprep from

I tried to run sysprep from vista. It had an interface with which I could setup the same parameters, I used from within Win PE. But still no succes. After giving the OK to start syspreping, it gave a screen saying it was preparing the system. But Also, I told sysprep it should shotdown but it didn't. In the same directory as sysprep, it put a file "sysprep_succeeded.tag". So I expect sysprep completed succesfully. But when starting up Vista, it gave an error-message saying "The Systemregistry contains invalid filepaths. The Installation can't continue. This Systeminstallationcopy is done without a garanty that driveletters are the same on other computers." (translated from dutch).
So maybe I can disable the xp-parition including the bootpartition (dual boot) and than, use sysprep or startup after syspreping Vista.
Restoring the laptop after having this error takes about an hour so it takes a lot of time trying one ore the other thingie that comes to mind.

Linke Loetje (275 days ago)

88: Missing hal.dll

XP loaded on C: used Partition Commander 10 to change C: to 97 gig. XP booted fine. Loaded Vista Hm Prm on the free 200 gig partition. all seemed well. I get the boot screen "Earlier Windows..." & Windows Vista. When I select Vista all is good. If I select Earlier Windows..." I get the Can't find hal.dll in \system....

Help Please....

reagards,
Bill

Bill (274 days ago)

89: Missing hal.dll problem solved

Thought I would let you know how I solved my issue. Gateway creates a small recovery partition when they install windows XP. After shrinking the windows xp partition to 97 gig. I installed Windows vista. The install created the dual boot menu however the Boot.ini file had the wrong partition number in it. I used vista diskpart and determind my windows xp partition was really "2" instead of "1" which is what windows vista set up. I had to make the systems files visable in explorer and change the security permision for "user" to allow me to edit the boot.ini file on (in my case) drive D: to change the windows location partition to "2". This needed done in two places. default= and under [operating systems]

boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Media Center Edition" /NOEXECUTE=OPTIN /FASTDETECT

Bill (273 days ago)

90: This tip fixed my system too

This tip fixed my system too !

Dual booted Vista on an existing XP Home edition but the install scrambled the drive assignments. Yikes ! I told the wife her XP would still run ! I unhid BOOT.INI made the same changes and volia !

Eddie (173 days ago)

91: hello there! I had windows

hello there!
I had windows XP previously installed on my hdd wich has two partitions. I installed Vista Ultimate on "D:/" ( XP is on C:/) and when I boot my PC it enters directly on XP. NO DUAL BOOT SCREEN...But if I have the Vista DVD on the drive it boots on Vista, again no dual boot screen =(
Anyone with the same problem? Any solution at all?
Thanks folks!

Guilhas (270 days ago)

92: it boots only to xp because

it boots only to xp because if the which is the xp boot loader. xp boots and overrides the vista bootloader i used vistabootPRO v3.2 (free download) and you can configure the bcdedit to get both OS's to boot in a vista multi boot. it makes it so easy.

patrick (261 days ago)

93: i have a pre-installed vista

i have a pre-installed vista in my laptop. i've learned from you that i have to use GParted to make the partition. just wanna ask. after i made the partition,should i restart my PC and boot off and start a normal installation of XP???won't there be any problem??

zhei (270 days ago)

94: I want my XP back lol

I previously bought 2 laptops.Both came with Vista already installed on them.Im not a Vista fan so please tell me how to delete Vista completely and install a fresh Windows XP.Thank you very much

JOKID (264 days ago)

95: Office 2003 shared across the two OS

OK, I'm wanting to give this a go.. existing XP install , Vista diual boot. However, I want to use office on BOTH OS, sharing files, esp PST for outlook.
Assume i can simply point XP partition's my docs/outlook location to the vista partition and away we go? Anyone see any issues with that?

GaryGeneral (263 days ago)

96: I have the same problem

I cant understand why people is not asking about sharing files between both operating systems in the same computer! Anyway, everytime I want to edit a file in the XPs HD I cant because I dont have "permissions" to do it. I have tried to get them, but even when the explorer says I have them I cant edit files.

It would be a waste of time to copy all my files to the Vista's HD because I have TONS of stuff (about half a therabyte).

How can I share the files between the two OS so no matter which I boot on my files are editable?

Bodhi (218 days ago)

97: try this. . .

in windows vista, try disabling User Account Control (UAC)... see this website.

rei (182 days ago)

98: Win xp then vista

i realize somebody had already asked this question but received no answer.

ive had windows xp on c drive. and later installed vista on d drive (same HD). after deciding vista is the one....i decided to uninstall xp. now how do i do a clean uninstall of xp.

thinking a clean drive is the way to go...i deleted the c: drive partition. and now xp wont boot. if im not wrong some boot program is left on c drive and thus i cannot delete the whole partition of c drive and still expect vista to boot normally. btw dont have a vista install/boot disc but its one of those beta vista programs that work via an installation file (requires a working OS to install...cant do a fresh install).

Ken (243 days ago)

99: This tutorial was awesome.

This tutorial was awesome. XP and Vista are both set up and all is well. Originally I had XP. Then, I decided to move to Vista only. Well, that was a terrible idea because NOTHING. NOTHING worked well. Needed all new hardware because no drivers existed or were planned. So, now I have them both going and its great!

People who are trying this: don't be afraid because they tell you to back up your data. It IS a good idea, but it seems like everyone is having pretty good luck with this whole process (me included)

Jethro (241 days ago)

100: Dual Boot

Here is my problem. I have two hard drives Maxtor 250GB which is already partition to 58.4GB(C:) and 175GB(E:), and another Maxtor 300GB(D:)drive. When I booted GParted it showed the main partition as 233GB which is the total of the first drive, my question how I can just partition the 58.4 GB drive so I can install Windows Vista, already installed Windows XP on it.

Troy (240 days ago)

101: XP and Vista

Hi guys,

I have installed XP on C and Vista on D drives of same harddisk. When setup copies the file and restarts my notebook I CAN load the OS means XP I installed previously but CAN'T load the OS I just installed means Vista. Same case I'm having if I install Windows 2000 on C and Windows XP on D.

Any help will highly be appreciated. Thanks

Sajid (239 days ago)

102: Hello I think its the same

Hello

I think its the same problem with installing NT after win 2000 the
system files NTdetect.com , ntldr
from the 2000 installation get
overwritten with the NT NTLDR + NTdectect
so only NT boots, you will get a dualboot
situatiion if you overwrite the NTLDR +
ntdetect drom NT with the files from
Win 2000 the same applies when you
install XP after vista they are just
older versions of the same file
and M$soft made better/newer versions
so overwrite the NTLDR, netdetect
with the Vista versions of them

also check boot.ini if the right
partitions are used for booting

linosi (57 days ago)

103: Hi guys, I have installed XP

Hi guys,

I have installed XP on C and going to install Vista on D drive of same harddisk. When setup copies the files and restarts my notebook for setup to be completed, I CAN load the OS means XP I installed previously but CAN'T load the OS I just installed means Vista. Same case I'm having if I install Windows 2000 on C and Windows XP on D.

Any help will highly be appreciated. Thanks

Sajid (239 days ago)

104: well let me explain my

well let me explain my situation, installed windows xp (fresh install, needed a format anyway), then i installed Vista after, as per instructions. i restarted a few times while installing drivers and software. it rebooted to the vista boot loader just fine after saying press any key to boot from CD or DVD......(at this point in the bios, dvd-rom drive first to boot, then hard drive)

So at this point i figured o.k. time to switch the boot order so it goes straight to the hard drive, so i changed it in the bois. on the next reboot all i get is that semi-narrow white bar (that shows vista is loading kinda like the resuming from hibernate in xp bar)across the bottom of the screen, and it sits there without loading the bootloader, so i changed it back to dvd-rom first, hard drive second and took the windows Vista DVD out of the drive. Same white bar appeared on next reboot, so i figured what the heck i tossed the Vista DVD back in the drive and restarted, it again asked me if i wanted to boot from CD or DVD....and i didn't hit any buttons, and immediately following that, the vista boot loader loads and i was back in vista.

thanks community

if screen shots are necessary i will get some for you guys.

Brian (238 days ago)

105: Can you go to safe mode?

Can you go to safe mode? There is a way to boot from vista dvd and use the repair feature to fix start up and boot problems. Somewhat like fixboot and fixmbr in xp. Id give that a whack first. Other than that have you had the OS installed already successfully or is this the first attempt. It is also entirely possible that one of those drivers you are installing or a MS update has got you sideways. Good luck.

Russell (236 days ago)

106: I have installed XP. While

I have installed XP. While installing Vista after XP when it restarts my notebook during vista installation I'm unable to boot into vista. I have XP on C: and Vista on D: Could any body of you please solve my problem. I am unable t figure out why its happening. I can load XP but Can't load Vista.

Sajid (236 days ago)

107: Installing Vista on a drive with files

So I currently have two drives. Drive C has XP and files on it. Drive D has files on it. I want to keep the files on drive D, but i would like to install Vista on that drive. So, can I shrink the partition on D and then install Vista? If I do do that, when I boot from XP will I be able to access the files on Drive D? Also, when i put from Vista, can you access the files that were on the drive before (or from Drive A)?

Thanks!

Steve L (235 days ago)

108: Just a small problem that i

Just a small problem that i noticed.

I just got vista, and decided to dual boot it with my current xp pro install.

It worked fine the first time, but then i turned off my computer for a couple of hours.

Upon restarting vista, i was greeted with a BSOD screen, saying there was a problem with
memory_manager.

Anyone know how to fix this, because most of my work is on xp which is running specially designed propriatry software.

Any help would be great

90025309 (234 days ago)

109: Dual boot after upgrade

I bought a computer with XP pre installed and recently upgraded to Vista Home Premium before realising that I actually still need XP to run some programs. Is there anyway I can go back, XP was pre installed and I only have an upgrade CD for Vista

jess1 (233 days ago)

110: no option available at the time of boot up

i have installed xp as well as vista on two seperate drives but at the time of boot up there is no option available to choose from the two windows.
vista starts by itself.
please help i will be greatly thankful

deepak (227 days ago)

111: I believe the reason why

I believe the reason why Vista simply starts by itself is because each OS installation is located on a separate drive, and when your system boots up, it checks the first drive (with Vista on it) and load that operating system and never gets to the second drive. Not too sure how to fix the problem, but try reallocating which hard drive boots up, possibly switching the two in their sequence and that might possibly work. As far as I know, you pretty much have to have both installations on the same drive for your system to recognize them both and then give you the option of choosing which OS to boot.

Michael (222 days ago)

112: You can dual boot xp with vista preinstall

this is the link to dual boot windows xp onto a windows vista preinstall machine....

http://www.pro-networks.org/forum/about88231.html

Mario (225 days ago)

113: help

Well I'm guessing you already know this, as you posted a question about 90 days ago, but the way you convert back is to use the discs you created. If you used the upgrade disc shipped out around May of 2007 for free, then when you install it tells you before installing Vista to create back-up discs in case you do not like Vista, or have other problems and need to revert back to XP. If you made the discs, just put in disc 1, turn the computer off, and then back on. It will bring up the reformat screen, and follow the instructions putting in each disc as it asks for them.

ferrari91169 (143 days ago)

114: Dual Boot work Great

Excellent article. The Boot Utility is fantastic. I've done dual boots before and uninstalling one OS can lead to boot problems. The BCDEDIT program looks like it takes care of that situation.
Thanks for the great tutorial.

RB (210 days ago)

115: unistal dual vista

I did the dual instalation on mi laptop, but now i need more space on my xp vertion so i ereased all data on the partition which vista run, now i have an ntfs partition for my xp (90g) and another ntfs which is empty... my probles is to rezice my 90g to the original 100g... partition magic inform that the partitions arent the same ntfs, i supose that i need to convert the ntfs partition to xp format... but i dont know how..

Regards

Erluiz (201 days ago)

116: Dual Boot Wista with XP installed on RAID 5

I'm building a new system and am putting XP Pro on first. Using RAID 5. How would one install Vista on this system so as achieve the dual boot scenario? Please respond to pyaver@hotmail.com

pyaver (200 days ago)

117: When uninstalling vista, you

When uninstalling vista, you have to run EasyBCD from XP... right? or do you do it from vista?

KingM (192 days ago)

118: Vista

I ran it from within Vista. :)

Anonymous (2) (187 days ago)

119: Thank you soooo much for

Thank you soooo much for writing this tutorial up.

I had a few hick ups along the way but your tutorial helped me out a lot!!

Thanks!
JoblessPunk

JoblessPunk (192 days ago)

120: Hey I'm just about to

Hey I'm just about to install vista on a seperate hard drive to xp. I want to know if i will still be able to run programs installed on the hard drive with xp whilst in vista, or will i have to reinstall them all on the hard drive with vista on it?

Brad1232143 (188 days ago)

121: It Won't Do It.!

My computer, an XP Windows Media Center, will not work with the burnt cd. I can boot up and everything but in the end it says that there is an error and i need to enter Forcevideo i believe?. . .then all it gives me its a whole bunch of input lines. Can someone help me?!?!?! rubenyamigos(at)hotmail(dot)com

Ruben Gonzalez (186 days ago)

122: Hard drive config for Vista/Xp Dual-Boot

I think that the best way to share files across a dual-boot system is to have two separate drives for each OS(Disk 1,2). Then have a separate drive for the files that you want to share (disk 3). Before you dual load install that "shared Disk"(disk 3) as a regular disk and copy your My document "type" folders over to it. Then install "Vista" on drive 2 with XP Pro on Drive 1 then you won't have either OS fighting about whether it wants the other OS to have access to "it's" drive.

Vista has a protection feature that gets picky about you touching the hard drive that it's installed on. Not recommended that you try giving another OS access to a drive that Vista is residing on. Vista actually has the power to "cook" (destroy beyond repair, annihilate, non-recoverable, cause you to need to buy a new drive kind of damage, if you get my drift.) the hard drive. At all costs find alternatives to avoid this. I work at a very large retailer and Microsoft went so far as to send us leaflets to give people to warn them that if they weren't careful that this would happen and that Microsoft would not be accountable for it.

Sorry to sound so Scare tactic-ish I just wanted to get the word out.

Glowing Moose (185 days ago)

123: Did anyone have any trouble

Did anyone have any trouble doing this?

I setup a 100gig partition for Vista but vista, being the fracken dandy it is, keeps saying "the selected drive does not meet the minimum requirements".

I deleted, recreated, formatted, changed type from primary to logical and back to no avail.

Any ideas?

solomani (184 days ago)

124: no one? Thanks.

no one? Thanks.

solomani (177 days ago)

125: Harddrive

I was just wondering...
you see im a newbie so i wouldnt know this but,
to actually dual boot vista and Xp do i need more that 1 harddrive?

neeeeeewbie (183 days ago)

126: Hard Drives

Nope. Read the tutorial and you will note that what you need is more than one partition. A hard drive can have any number of partitions, but you have to create an extra to house your additional OS.

mstomaso (183 days ago)

127: HP/VISTA CUSTOMER SERVICES

After Having problems with HP Customer Service for over 4 months I decided to chase up how many other people have the same problem as me.

I checked on Google and came up with 44,600,000 entries re HP Vista Windows XP.

Most of these people have all had problems with Vista and with HP, so I have now established a site where you can all have your say.

And yes I have told HP and Vista that I am establishing this site and their head Technician Patrick told me to go ahead so have your say now at

http://hpvistacrap.lowry.id.au/index.htm

MICHAEL_LOWRY (176 days ago)

128: Vista screwed up my xp

I already had xp on my hd (2 sata drives)
I left about 200GB on a separate partition designated for vista. Installed vista over xp, now I get no choice screen. Can't log in to xp anymore. I read in Games for windows mag that's all I have to do. Install xp, install vista, and dual boot it will take care of itself. I checked in vista settings start&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;computer&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;properties&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt; &~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;advanced system settings&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt; start up & recovery&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt;settings&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt; under default operating system there is only vista, no xp.
When I check D: drive (xp partition) I see bootsect.bak when checked with notepad, among gibberish I see:
A disk read error occurred
NTLDR is missing
NTLDR is compressed
Can't find any pages with "what if" scenarios if anything goes wrong then what? Every web page so far only assumes everything will go just fine.

Anonymous1000 (175 days ago)

129: You can't install OVER xp...

You can't install OVER xp... you have to install on another partition

Anonymousj============ (167 days ago)

130: exact same problem

im having the exact same problem and as for the other comment here we DID install vista on a different partition what he means by vista over xp is vista *after* xp and yes i created seperate partition for vista, installed on this newly created "unallocated space", and im having the exact same problem with no xp in bootloader and nothing but bootsect.bak in my D drive.

jeffro (162 days ago)

131: I'm trying to dual boot

I'm trying to dual boot vista and xp on different drives. Now I've gotten it to recognize both drives but when I try and launch the one that has xp it starts with the xp logo and looks like it's going to work but then it goes to a blue screen saying windows has stop and check for viruses, remove recently installed hard drives, etc. When I boot vista it works perfectly accept that it asks me to format my F drive (the one with xp). How can I get this all to work

_-_-_ (174 days ago)

132: Is it recommended that you

Is it recommended that you back up your entire hardrive? I have a 320Gb HDD with XP installed, but have only used like 50Gb. So is it necessary to backup?

curious (173 days ago)

133: Windows boot manager help

ok i have win xp on my c drive i only have one drive so i created a second primary partition for vista beta 2 installation went good the problem is i get to the boot manager menu and i choose one if i choose xp it loads it and it say its gots to cheek my vista partition for consisitys i cancel it befor it can do it then when i boot in to vista it loads then it says it has to cheek my xp partition for consisitys is there n e way to stop the conflic please help me e-mail me at horsedentalcarbide@msn.com thank you

William (170 days ago)

134: Sharing Applications

I am about to setup a dual boot system as described here. I will repartition my c: drive (currently with XP) and add Vista as a second partition on the same physical drive.

All of my data (My Documents) sits on a physically separate drive, so sharing files between the two OS's shouldn't be a problem.

My question is whether I can share applications between the two OS's. Can I somehow run applications that sit today on the XP parition by pointing Vista to the existing app on C:, or do I need to re-install the applications again under Vista on the new D: partition?

Paul (164 days ago)

135: can't run GParted

I just burned GParted to a CD, booted it an followed the steps. But after i selected the language, it says a few files is missing in the log, then a critical error: Not enough cache
it continues for a second
Then stops, displaying: Kernel panic - not syncing: Attemped to kill init

And nothing more happens.

If i choose no chache mode i don't get the cache error, but all the other problems. How come?

Ps: The burning went perfectly with CloneCd, no errors.

Oesman (163 days ago)

136: I need help

I have a problem, I have dual booted successfully,(xp first installed then vista) but vista doesn't have internet,can anyone help me.

Josh (163 days ago)

137: GAH where did my xp go!? HELP!

I followed directions step by step with xp installed first, used Gparted to break 40g's off my 160 for a vista install, installed vista on the "unallocated space" partition, on reboot it completely bypasses (perhaps flashes by) the bootloader screen described and goes straight into vista. I downloaded the bootloader tool and the only entry is vista on drive C, when i try to add an entry for xp on drive D it shows up at bootloader screen, however choosing xp gets a cant find Bootloader Path: \ntldr error. And is it normal that my D drive while in vista (what should be my xp partition) is shown as completely empty with only a 1 8kb boot related file in it? I know the 110gig xp partition is still there as i made sure with partdisk but vista wont see it!! argh..

jeffro (162 days ago)

138: dual booting vista and server 2003

is it possible dual booting pre installed vista with server 2k3..? i got some info that server 2k3 is almost d same as xp..

Anonymous1111 (158 days ago)

139: My Dual Boot solution

Removable hard drives. No pain at all. Just un-plug the one and pop in the other. :)

Jeff R (154 days ago)

140: Upgrading to Vista and dual booting

This is probably a naive question(s) but I'll ask it anyway. I'm weighing upgrading my XP Media Center 2005 to Vista but want to dual boot with the old XP to preserve some apps that otherwise won't run under Vista without a significant investment. I want to upgrade rather than perform a clean install to carry over all of my family's settings and files and not have to reinstall the apps under Vista that will run...most of them.
Here's the question? if Vista is installed on the same drive as XP, diff partitions of course, and I follow the dual boot instructions here, and I have apps and files on other drives, (1) will I have to hand-edit all the logical drive references from the old apps moved over to Vista (like drive refs in registry to E: that may now be F:) and will I be able to access my files on all my drives from each OS without running into access issues due to diff. security settings being misunderstood by one OS or the other?

Geoffrey Smith (150 days ago)

141: This my problem, I have a

This my problem, I have a pc with 2 sata HD first I have installed Vista ultimate 32bit and in the first partition of c drive disk0, then I installed xp on the first partition of e drive disk1, then I wanted to install vista64 thinking that it was going to override my first installation of vista32 and would ask me in which drive to install vista64 , instead it installed in the second partition of disk 0 (d).
So at the end I ended up with 3 OS , at startup w.boot manager was showing 3 options, XP,Vista32, Vista64 so far so good , but one day, vista 32 refused to boot, i tryed to repair with Vista DVD but no joy, so I decide to remove the option of Vista32 in window boot manager , so I di it with Vista boot pro.
But i did not delete the partition. Now because not all driver are available for vista64, I want to get vista 32 working without going through the installation process because i did install quiet a lot of software already.
So how do I get this sorted to fix or repair the boot manager .
Please someone help

Regards,

Vince

vincent (44 days ago)

142: Any issues with Vista Upgrade, Dual Boot and Accessing Files

I'm scoping out a dual boot XP Media Center/Vista after an upgrade to Vista and have the following 2 questions so far. I want to upgrade, not fresh install, to preserve the apps installed under XP (most) and the hardware/documents/other settngs for me and my family. After using Laplink to go from one PC to another running XP, I'm a big fan of not spending days reloading and seeing that anxious family stare.Anyway, will the Vista upgrade with a dual boot require me to do quite a bit of hand-editing of registry settings ref. drive locations that have changed and the like because the logical drives will be moved up a letter or is the upgrade "smart" in that sense (I have two hdd's with three partitions now) and (2) will I be able to access stuff, like multimedia edited under XP that I want to access from Vista, on the XP partition while booted to Vista-- and vice versa --without running into access issues from the one OS complaining about the other?
This is probably stupid but I thought I'd ask anyway

Yazfan (150 days ago)

143: Perfect instructions

Followed every bit of instructions. Perfect the first time I tried it. Thanks!

Erwin P (149 days ago)

144: Vista Boot Manager and USB keyboards - can't select OS

I've done my setup just the way it's described here and achieved two fine OS setups that both work just great.

However, for some reason my USB keyboard is not recognized at the time the character-based Vista Boot screen pops up. This means I can't select which OS to use on start up.

It's a bummer to have to start up with the default, then go in and change the default and then reboot.

Has anyone worked around this issue before?

LahLahSr (147 days ago)

145: I have the same issue w/ usb

I have the same issue w/ usb keyboard. Initial setup was fine then I decided to change my dual Intel processor to a quad core. That is when the usb keyboard stopped responding to choose OS to boot. It worked fine before. Any ideas??!!

daygillison (3 days ago)

146: Sofware Sharing in dual boot

Hi Everybody,

I have Windows XP and Windows Vista on the same machine configured as a dual boot. Now, I installed certain softwares in Windows XP mode which are Vista compatible. Now, when I log on to Windows Vista mode, am unable to work on the software which I installed in Windows XP mode. Does this mean that I have to install the same software twice? Please advice.

Vikas (146 days ago)

147: Shrink

Whay du i have to shrink my Windows XP before i install Vista, cant i just make 2 partitions and then install Xp and then install Vista

Mike (145 days ago)

148: Yes, that should work...

Yes, that should work. I would install XP and then Vista to make sure that you can edit the bootloader w/ EasyBCD.

AnonymousPoster123 (141 days ago)

149: Notebooks

Now can these steps be used on a notebook as well,
Its a Acer Aspire T2080 Notebook

Turon Caldwell (143 days ago)

150: Yes, I just did...

Yes, I just performed these steps on an HP 6515b notebook. I'm posting from it right now. This is a great guide!

AnonymousPoster123 (141 days ago)

151: I have a new HP dv6500T with

I have a new HP dv6500T with Vista 64-bit and SATA hard drive.
-- how did you get around the "not recognizing hard drive" error that everyone talks about? (I don't have a floppy drive).
-- where did you get drivers for the hardware so you can run them under the XP boot configuration?

thanks so much!

David P (141 days ago)

152: Nice job

this worked for SHIT... I've spent all day undoing your half-assed project. Thanks for something considerably less than nothing...

reallypissed (140 days ago)

153: Dumbass

guess you never heard of a ghost image rofl

Nivek (138 days ago)

154: Dual boot from XP to Vista and XP problems

HI
I have read something in a magazine where it says that there is one big disadvantage with dual booting XP and Vista. Ever time you boot to XP, This wipes out all of Vista's restore points as well as all shadow copies. Firstly what are restore points and shadow copies and is there a problem?

I am also confused about buying a Vista Home Premium upgrade academic edition (I am a student). Will I be able to still dual boot using the vista I am thinking of?

Also when I install programs will they run on both operating system or just the operating system I installed them on.

Lastly, what about the programs on XP already, will the move over to vista (mainly talking about Itunes and my music collection of 300 songs.)

Can someone please help me I am very confused.

Thanks

Laptop owner (128 days ago)

155: Dual boot from XP to Vista and XP problems

Yes, there are apparently issues with dual-boot scenarios. See MS KB 926185.

"This problem occurs when you start the computer by using the earlier operating system, such as Microsoft Windows XP or Microsoft Windows Server 2003. In this situation, the earlier operating system deletes all the restore points that were created in Windows Vista. The earlier operating system also deletes all Complete PC Backup files except the most recent version of these backup files."

"This behavior occurs because the earlier Windows operating systems do not recognize the new disk structures."

So, it seems to me that dual-boot boot isn't a viable option for anything but testing scenarios.

MichaelP (118 days ago)

156: Sep HDD

i'm thinking of dual booting, but i'm buying another 500gb HDD, so i can put Vista in that, would it be easier if i unplugged the HDD with XP and then install Vista, then plug both back in? Will dual boot still work?

JT (123 days ago)

157: No, it won't work as a

No, it won't work as a standard dual boot. You will have to enter the bios and change the disk boot order each time you wish to change operating systems.

peter laga (121 days ago)

158: install

guys i installed vista first and cracked it no problem. i then installed xp by turningit off and installing it on a DIFFERENT hard drive
it now always opens windows xp
how do i get back into vista?
do i have to stat all over?

timothycashin@hotmail.com (115 days ago)

159: I'm not sure if this has

I'm not sure if this has been asked, but can this dual-boot work using an external hard drive?

Anon (114 days ago)

160: Video Drivers

Does anyone had problems installing video drivers. I installed my 8800GTS drivers on xp, and then tried to load vista, but it was kinda of screwed up... said that some hardware installation wasnt compatible with it. My set up is 2 150gb raptors in raid 0 with two partition, one for each OS. Thx for your replies!

AleXBerg (111 days ago)

161: sharing outlook in vista/xp dual boot system

Dual boot with vista home and xp pro is working. I am using external hard drive for all data. Imported all Outlook data into new pst file using Vista (xp wouldn't do it). On old compuyter, exported to csv (dos) files from archive.pst (office xp version). Imported csv (dos) into outlook.pst (office 2003 version). Everything looks fine. When I open the file using xp, all the one day events become 2 day events. When I reopen using vista, everything still reads as 2 day events. How to fix?

Amy (106 days ago)

162: Gparted no work, Need Alternate Free,RAID capable Partition Soft

Hello.

Gparted lastest 0.3.4-7 and 0.3.4-8 do not appear to work on my machine.

I have also tried Parted Magic which loads fine and has Gparted 0.3.4 but it too does not work.

Gparted will just lock up at boot with some linux-initrd error.
Parted Magic, will load however it sees my RAID0 drive as two seperate drives and only shows unallocated space.

So does anyone know of any other Free Partition software that can do this??

I need to free up my one large RAID0 Partition so i can install vista for dual boot.

My motherboard is a Asus P5B deluxe, which uses intel P965 chipset, and RAID 0 is running off the chipsets ICH8 raid controller. My guess is that Gparted dosent like this for some reason?

Any help is appreciated.

interested (101 days ago)

163: Where to put BOOT.INI?

Hi i have missing boot.ini and hal.dll problem. i made a boot.ini using txt editor and set the partition to 2 and saved the on D:boot.ini and D:windows/boot.ini

but still the same problem when booting win XP

Should i put boot in drive c:? if yes can you pls explain why?

Thanks in advance

Fernando (100 days ago)

164: linux boot gparted trouble

Where it says to press enter on the load keymap bit, it wont let me press enter.. or any key.. any help?

eemeli (99 days ago)

165: help

i had vista installed and then i wanted xp on it as well but wat i didnt no was to put them on different partitions. so i installed xp on the same drive as vista in a sub folder but it doesnt giv me a choice to boot up vista it goes strait into xp and i want to no how to boot up xp please help

andrew (98 days ago)

166: i mean how to boot up vista

i mean how to boot up vista again

andrew (97 days ago)

167: How can i install to XP

How can i install to XP partitions and a Vista partition with a boot loader

Mike (96 days ago)

168: i have windows xp pro

i have windows xp pro installed on Fat32 c drive now i need to install vista too i am totally new to vista and its installation system i wont both working on my pc i can install it in another drive or watever way it will work tell me which tutorial to follow to install it.
all drives on my pc are fat32 but i can format any other drive to ntfs if needed

Ruler (95 days ago)

169: Please Can anyone help???

Please Can anyone help???
I was dual booting Vista + XP without any problem, Vista was partition C, cd drive was D, and XP was partition E.
Then I had an issue with Vista so decided to format partition C and reinstall it. After installation of Vista, I dont have the option to boot into XP anymore, and the partition with XP on changed to D and the cd drive changed to E!! I changed them back but I still cant boot into XP!
Is There anything I can do to make it possible to dual boot again other than reinstalling XP???
Many Thanx In Advance !
Gaz!!

Gaz (84 days ago)

170: on my laptop i have xp

on my laptop i have xp installed, and i have a c drive and a d drive, the d drive is empty and is where i used to save my files, i.e pictures etc. and the c drive is usualy where all the programes are installed, do i need to still sepearte drives?

email me rizwan_kash@yahoo.co.uk help apprecaited :)

124F (73 days ago)

171: You can use the D drive to

You can use the D drive to install vista and Multiboot

Chaos Maker (71 days ago)

172: Hi everyone, i used the boot

Hi everyone,

i used the boot load changing program to make a linux entery(it dint work tho) and then i installed xp on to the Partition, xp auto installed its self.

Liam

coollob (68 days ago)

173: hey dude, i have vista home

hey dude,
i have vista home premiuim. i tried for dual booting with vista and xp professional n edition mui. but it tells me that it can't be installed in this platform. can anyone suggest me what to do??

phsyco (66 days ago)

174: Shrink is not a known

Shrink is not a known command, anyone know how to do it without GParted?

keiz (65 days ago)

175: How to dual boot when I

How to dual boot when I started with Vista?
I try to insert the XP installation CD, but the window tell me that the CD can't read my computer software (vga card, ..., etc).

Anonymous2345678901 (62 days ago)

176: i bought pc with

i bought pc with preinstalled VISTA which already has 2 partitions
i installed xp pro on the other partition as what iv heard with VISTA properties w dual boot

i started having probs booting to VISTA

my XP wont allow me to install vistaBOOTpro and
even the EasyBCD wont install &~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt; ERROr: cant run application
sometimes error: no 2.0 later .net framework

*i tried installing 2.0 .net framewor, XP wont allo it to install&~~SPECIAL_REMOVE!#~~gt; no specific error
*i then tried 3.0 .net framework still no go

what do i do?

nemesis (53 days ago)

177: i have a fujitsu tablet

i have a fujitsu tablet (not my choice, but the engineering department requires it) which came with xp preinstalled. a few months ago i decided to upgrade to vista since we got it for free. i really like it and it works fine, but i decided id like to be able to dual boot with xp installed as well. i partitioned my hdd using the gnome gparted live cd leaving vista on a 60 gig partition and having an empty 30 gig partition. Vista works perfectly fine, but when i try and install xp it does not recognize me having any hdd whatsoever. anyone have any ideas? many thanks, nate

nate_T (51 days ago)

178: Find out what hard drive you

Find out what hard drive you have. You can download a program through majorgeeks.com called everest home edition that will give you all kinds of useful information. After that, download the driver for that particular hard drive. When the XP install starts after inserting the disk, you will see the instructions to press F6 if you need to install any third party drivers. If you have saved the driver to a floppy disk beforehand, you can load it into the XP installation when prompted.

farmer ganj (40 days ago)

179: I am a total newb to duel

I am a total newb to duel booting and have not got a clue do you have a step by step guide for duel booting using 2 hdd's with vista pre installed on the first.. ie i have no disk for vist

danny (38 days ago)

180: Greetings. New Dell Notebook

Greetings.
New Dell Notebook with XP Pro installed on hard drive (120GB).

Downloaded and used newest version of GParted LiveCD to shrink the XP partition.

Created another partititon to use later for data.

Took Business Vista CD and followed the remainder of steps to install.

Vista installed and booted fine. Installed EasyBCD 1.71 and made recommended changes.

Vista boots fine, but when I select XP Pro from boot loader, the screen goes black and nothing occurs. Screen still on, laptop still on, just nothing.

Anybody have a solution to this issue ?

thanks.

ksukat (37 days ago)

181: I used gparted to do a

I used gparted to do a partition on vista Hd every partition went well but I can install my win2000pro.I tried to boot with the win2000 pro cd after the gparted was done but I got a message that said win 2000 system 32\ntoskrnl.exe missing.Any help here would be great thanks.

Al (33 days ago)

182: Would this work if I have

Would this work if I have Windows XP SP2 and Windows XP Professional x64 already dual-booting? What I want to do is Win XP SP2 + Win XP Pro x64 + Vista. would that work? I have the space.

MOCCOR (19 days ago)

183: i have done this it is very

i have done this it is very easy but now i want to format the partition that i have the xp and keep only the vista is this posible?

zafopc (16 days ago)

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