Windows 7: Dual Boot problem

I run Windows 7 on my Dell Dimension E510 with an 80G sata hd. I added a 300G sata hd for movies, music, etc...I decided to install XP Pro on the 2nd hd (300G) to make a dual boot machine. Having no clue how to do it I figured I would learn from mistakes. I can only boot to the XP drive now. Once booted I can see the 7 drive. If I unplug the XP drive, I get a BOOTMGR error and can't do anything. Please help this noob fix the problem. Thank you in advance for any help.

This will help.

Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP

Hello Boceefus, welcome to Seven Forums!



You need to do 3 separate startup repairs with restarts to recreate the boot files to needed to dual boot to the Windows 7 partition; leave both Hard Disk Drives connected, have a look at this tutorial at the link below and be sure to post back with any further questions you may have and to keep us informed.

Startup Repair - Run 3 Separate Times

Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP

Make sure you download & Use EasyBCD 2.0 in Win 7 & Win XP.
Download EasyBCD 2.0.2 - NeoSmart Technologies

The best method to Dual Boot with separate HD's is via the BIOS Boot Order (Windows 7 set first to boot) then using the one-time BIOS Boot Menu key to boot the other OS. This keeps the HD's independent to come and go as you please.

Windows 7 might be bootable now - test it by using the one-time BIOS Boot Menu key given on first boot screen. If so, set it as first to boot in BIOS setup, then boot XP when needed using BIOS Boot Menu key.

If Windows 7 won't boot then it's boot files have been moved to the XP partition and need to be repaired. If you'd like to configure this, please post back a screenshot of your full Disk Mgmt drive map using Snipping Tool in Start Menu so we can advise you exactly.