Virtually given-up on OSS!

Hi All,

After making a previous thread asking for help on what’s the best way to create a multi-boot system (properly). I’ve just about come the end of the line with DDS & OSS – I just cannot get things to work!

All I want to do is have 3 (preferably 4) independent installs of XP Pro and have a boot screen that allows me to choose which one to go into – simple? Errrrrr……no!

Some of the advice on here is very well written and helpful but I still cannot achieve my goal.

The latest situation is:

Using Partition Magic (only because I’m used to it, and because I didn’t get on with DDS, and because others on here still use it for partitioning) I created 4 primary partitions, all hidden form each other, and installed XP Pro independently on each. Using PM I can make each drive, in turn, active and all works fine.

Then I installed DDS and then OSS on the first partition. On boot, OSS shows each install. If I try to boot in any partition other than the first (default) I get the Autochk error. Fine, I think, as that’s because they’re hidden – I’ll go into the bootwiz file and edit as per Mudcrab’s instructions. However, there is NO bootwiz file to edit!!! And yes, I have folder options set to “show hidden files”. And I’ve checked each install just in case it got written to the wrong place.

So back to OSS. If I go into the properties of each listed OS and then Partitions I can set how it sees the others, i.e. hidden. It doesn’t seem to help if I un-hide or change any of these settings, I still get the Autochk error.

If there is anyone out there (i.e. Mudcrab?) who can shed any further light on this, I’d be forever in your debt.

Kind regards
Prof

 

To be honest with you, I do things the other way around, ie. use DD for making the partitions and then a different bootmanager. I use GAG, I've found its OSS that sucks when it comes to booting xp.

Best regards

Tony

 

TheProf,

The hidden BOOTWIZ folder must be on one of the partitions one one of your hard drives. It should be in the first Windows partition since that's where you installed it. I assume you did an Automatic Install and not a Custom Install (you didn't select the OSS partition during the installation).

If you can find the BOOTWIZ.OSS file, it would help if you could attach it to a post. Make a copy and rename it to BOOTWIZ.TXT.

The first thing you want to look for when OSS is installed the way you did is the Partitions section of the Properties of each OS in the OSS menu. If you can boot into the first Windows, you can run OSS from there or you can check when booted to the OSS menu.

Make sure the each of the Windows has the correct partition checked as Active. When you highlight the partition in the list, it should show the Active checkbox as checked and grayed-out. The Hidden checkbox should be grayed-out and not be checked.

The next thing to look for is whether or not the "boot flag" is on the partition. The little black & white checkered flag should be shown in the partition list for each Windows entry on the that Windows partition (the Active/Booting partition for that Windows). If the flag is on another partition, a setting is wrong.

Below is a sample of my Work XP partition:

The Work partition has the "boot flag" and is set as Active and not Hidden:


The Games partition is checked as Hidden (as is the Vista partition):


To view the BOOTWIZ folder, you also need to uncheck the Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) option:

 

I'm with Tony on this one. I use True Image 10 and Disk Director 10 (and so far I'm quite happy with them), but after trying to get OSS to work, I quickly switched to GAG. Had I persisted, I might have got OSS working, however after reading up on it I much preferred the approach of GAG, which only writes to the MBR and track 0 of the HDD; it doesn't touch any partition. It is simpler than OSS, but is more robust (in my layman's opinion). So far it works for me.
Just my two cents ...

JustAnotherNoob

 

Firstly, thanks for everyone’s replies. I hadn’t come across GAG. To be fair I bought DDS/OSS and was determine to make it work.

Hi MudCrab,

You know sometimes in life you feel so stupid and about an inch tall – well for me this is one of those times.

I now have OSS fully working and it was so easy.

After un-hiding “Protected operating system files” (not just the Hidden files) the BOOTWIZ.OSS file magically appeared and I was able to edit out the “hidden=”1” elements for each OS – job done!

Can’t thank you enough – spent far too long on this and for it to be something so simple is incredibly annoying.

Take care.
Prof

I would just like to add.....What sort of company expects their customers to have the ability to "fix" bad system files in order to get their "off-the-shelf" product to work. Cmon Acronis - you have to get this sorted!