XP - XP Dual-Boot Questions

Hello

after lots and lots of trouble because I used TI in order to clone my 250gb HD to a 500GB HD and I had OSS installed before cloning but after cloning OSS was totally messed up. God knows why but I could get it to start my windows on the cloned HD.

The reason was something was wrong with my boot.ini.

Anyway, I could solve that now...


My question is now: I need a windows XP - XP dual boot solution. I have a working windows now but I got a new mainboard so I will reinstall windows. However, I want to maintain my 'old' windows.

So how do I procede?

I thought:
1) Create a new partion in front of the old one. So the new windows will be on d(0)p(1) the old one on d(0)p(2).
2) Hiding d(0)p(2) in order to install the new windows from CD will be no problem. And it will be a normal windows install routine.
3) How can I now get OSS or any other bootmanager get to see the old windows?

Will I have to unhide it? so, both old and new windows will be unhidden so a bootmanager can see them and when I start booting each the other windows will be automatically hidden if options are given?

4) Will I have to change then boot.ini on the old d(0)p(2) windows partion? The new windows boot.ini should be ok anyway.
5) I assume that I will have to change setting in the old boot.ini from
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINOLD
to
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINOLD

since the old windows is now on partition d(0)p(2) right?

Or is all this hassle not necessary since when I start the old windows on d(0)p(2) the new windows on d(0)p(1)will be hidden any way and ' boot.ini ' will thing that it starts from the first partition?


thank you very much

 

You may need to do a Repair Install of XP on the "old" Windows or, at least, update drivers so it will work with the new motherboard. Windows reactivation may also need to be done.

Using DD (and possibly other partitioning programs) to create a partition in front of an existing partition will not change the partition's number in the partition table. You'd most likely end up with the "old" Windows still in (1) and the new Windows in (2) even though the (2) partition is physically located before (1). The boot.ini file just needs to reference the correct partition number as it is in the partition table.

Correct. Just hide the old partition and do a normal install. Make sure the new partition is Primary/Active. It should be detected as C: by the XP installer.

OSS should detect both Windows. If it doesn't, it can usually be fixed. Other boot managers usually have either auto-detection features or manual selection options.

For OSS, detection works best if the partitions are not hidden. Once in OSS, you setup the options you need for each OS before you boot in an OS.

See #1 above. You may or may not need to change the boot.ini file.

When you're hiding partitions from Windows, it's important that the booting and OS partitions (usually the same partition) are not hidden. The boot.ini file for the OS being booted will need to be on the unhidden OS partition that's booting (Active).

 

Thank you Mudcrab for answering so fast.

There seems to have been a huge misunderstanding on my side and the crux is I do not get it now

I thought that creating a new partition in front of the formerly first one would change the formerly d(0)p(1) automatically to d(0)p(2).

Wow that might explain years of trouble ever I tried to set up a windows - windows multi boot environment

Since I always had for speed matters my active working windows partion on p(1) and when I ' upgraded ' I created the new working windows partion just in front....


So, the only way to get the old windows to work again from OSS is to edit boot.ini and to try p(1) and (p2) if it is not working just from alone and it never did so for me ...


Then there is the problem of hiding. If I get it right now it is besst or the only right way to start DD before OSS setup on MBR in order to unhide all OS partions?
So when I install OSS there are only unhidden partiotions and then the rest is done in OSS (hiding of other OS...).



thank you

 

You can use DD's Disk Editor to edit the partition table to correct the order to match the physical layout if you want. I agree - it can get confusing when the physical order is different than the partition table order. The last build of TI 9 and TI 10 (all builds) would scramble the partition table in certain situations (usually multi-boot setups) and cause all kinds of problems. TI 11 and later leave the partition table order as it was.

The speed is only affected by the physical location of the partition - not the partition table slot used. Even if the first physical partition (starting at sector 63, for example) were located in partition table slot 4, the speed would be the same because the partition is physically located at the beginning of the drive.

I would recommend you do one OS at a time and deactivate OSS between. That way, OSS only needs to detect one OS at a time and it can be the currently Active OS. This also lets you test that each OS boots properly when its partition is Active and the other is hidden (you use DD to manually set the options before booting).

If you want OSS to detect multiple operating systems, it's best for all OS partitions to be unhidden. This is due to a bug in OSS. If you have a hidden OS partition, OSS will leave it hidden when it sets up the entry and you're left with an Active/Hidden booting partition (which won't work) and OSS won't let you change it. There is an easy fix, though, if you do run into this problem.

Correct.

I usually like to do one OS at a time. For example:

1. Setup your partitions (usually Primary for each Windows OS).
2. Set the XP1 partition Active. Hide all other OS partitions.
3. Install XP1.
4. Install OSS in XP1
5. Make sure OSS works.
6. Deactivate OSS (don't uninstall).
7. Boot to the DD CD and set the XP2 partition Active and hide the XP1 partition.
8. Install XP2.
9. Reactivate OSS (this can be done from the CD or by installing OSS in XP2).

There are many different ways to do what you want. Any of them can run into problems.

 

Happy New Year


thanks alot Mudcrab!


Can you explain me what

"There is an easy fix, though, if you do run into this problem."

means, please?

 

The problem can be fixed by doing a simple edit in the BOOTWIZ.OSS file. This can usually be done using the Notepad program in Windows if one of the Windows that boots correctly has access to the partition on which you installed OSS.

It may also be fixable using the DD CD and OSS.

Post #2 in this thread shows the problem.