Installation problem

login123 · 26 Aug 2013

Please forgive the length of this post. I wanted to include all the relevant details. There is more information available, including links to the win xp installation process, the modified driver, and a couple of screenshots of diskmgmt.

computer description
HP p7 1235 desktop, CPU = AMD A8-5500, RAM = 8.00 GB DDR3, Motherboard = MSI 2AE0 (P0)
Hard Drive = Hitachi SATA Disk, 1 tb, GPT formatted
Optical Drive = hp CDDVDW SH-216ALN SATA CdRom
BIOS = JAS_707.ROM
HP setup utility = American Megatrends ver. 2.14.1219

This computer came with win 7 64 bit on a 1 tb SATA HDD, call it "HDD1".
I Installed win xp onto a different 1 tb SATA hdd, call it "HDD2".
The win xp installation disk was made using nlite to slipstream a custom driver which allowed win xp to
use the hardware on this computer. It works.
I unplugged HDD1 (win 7) during the win xp installation process.
After installing win xp, there was a single partition on HDD2 (win xp) of about 1 tb labelled C:\.
Fwiw, the win 7 OS would see HDD2 as a volume labelled f:\, and the win xp OS would not see HDD1 (win7)
at all.

This configuration allowed me to boot to either OS by selecting its HDD from the BIOS boot menu.
It was not necessary to use a boot manager, just get to the boot menu by tapping esc at startup, then
select the desired HDD (SATA 0 or SATA 1).

This configuration worked perfectly for several months, until now.
A couple of weeks ago I created 3 new partitions on HDD2 (win xp), and a problem started.
I used Acronis (on a different computer) to create 3 new "logical" partitions of 250, 500, and 136 gb.
The OS and the boot flag on HDD2 remained in the C:\ partition, about 50 gb in size.

This is the only change of any sort made to either HDD, so it seems to be what caused the problem.
But since the partitions were created using a different computer, and no change whatever was made to
the original HDD1 (win 7), I can't figure out how partitioning HDD2 (win xp) could have changed the
boot options in the original computer.

The problem in short:
After plugging in HDD2 (win xp), with its new partitions, the computer now will only boot into win xp.
If HDD2 is not connected, the computer will offer to perform "Startup Repair", after which it
will boot to HDD1 (win 7).
But if I reconnect HDD2 (win xp), I get a black & white screen that says "windows is loading files,
then a scroll bar across the bottom of the screen, then it boots into HDD2 (win xp).

More details
1. Booting with HDD2 (win xp) not plugged in, the computer boots normally but slower to win 7.
The boot menu choices with HDD2 (win xp) not plugged in are:
- UEFI: Hitachi ... which is HDD1 ... boots to win 7, but slowly
- SATA 0 ... which used to be the win 7 HDD, now gives a message
- - which includes a client mac address, a GUID number, then
- - "exiting intel PXE ROM, ERROR: no boot disk has been detected or the boot disk has failed.

2. Booting with HDD2 (win xp) plugged in, the computer gives a black screen with a message that
"windows is loading files", a scroll bar at the bottom, then boots straight to win xp.
The boot menu choices with HDD2 (win xp) plugged in are:
- UEFI: hitachi ... hitachi is HDD1 (win 7), but if selected it boots to win xp.
- Windows boot manager ... boots to win xp
- SATA 0 ... (originally was HDD1, win 7) now boots to win xp
- SATA 1 ... (originally was HDD2, win xp), now boots to win xp

3. After unplugging HDD2 (win xp) booting into the bios and navigating to "UEFI: Hitachi ..."
- if HDD2 (win xp), in unplugged, the computer offers to perform startup repair and then restarts,
booting to win 7.
- If HDD2 (win xp) is plugged in, startup repair does not work. But the computer will still boot to
win xp if you select "Start windows normally" within startup repair.

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

theog · 26 Aug 2013

What is the Boot Mode in your URFI/BIOS firmware?
UEFI
or
Legacy
or
UEFI & Legacy.

login123 · 27 Aug 2013

Sorry for the delay, post moved & I just found it.

BIOS UEFI & Legacy.

Under UEFI sources lists Hitachi ... which is HDD1 (win 7)
Under Legacy lists SATA 0, which before this problem was HDD1 (win 7).

Don't know how to determine which mode it is in, tell me and I'll check.

theog · 27 Aug 2013

BIOS SATA order
SATA 0 = Windows 7 HDD installed in UEFI mode.
SATA 1 = DVD
SATA 2 = Win XP HDD installed in Legacy mode.

BIOS OS Mode Selection.
UEFI mode = Windows 7 uefi will boot, Win XP will not boot.
Legacy Mode = Win XP will boot, Windows 7 uefi will not bot.
UEFI & Legacy Mode = Both OS's will boot, but only from the One Time Boot Menu.

BIOS Boot order.
SATA 0 = Windows Boot Manager (Windows 7 HDD)
SATA 1 = DVD
SATA 2 = Win XP HDD

Screenshot of the One Time Boot Menu. (on my Test PC)

Installation problem-windows-8-downgrade-006-sb-posting.png

P0 = Windows Boot Manager (Windows 7 HDD)
P1 = DVD
If I add a HDD for WIN XP.
P2 = Win XP

Did check your BIOS manual for settings.

login123 · 28 Aug 2013

I'm not sure I am answering your question correctly, not sure how to tell if the computer is booting in UEFI mode. Is that determined by where the device shows up in these menus? Is it true that if a device is listed as a "UEFI Boot Source" then it is, and if it is listed as a "Legacy Boot Source" then it isn't?

These pictures show the boot menu in 2012 with one or both HDDs connected.
SATA0 was the win7 HDD, SATA1 was the win xp HDD.
Either would boot when selected from this boot menu.

...

This picture shows the boot menu now with only the win 7 HDD connected.
(Ignore the "Seagate Freeagent...", it is storage, just happened to be connected doesn't affect booting.)
If you select "UEFI: Hitachi..." win 7 starts.
If you select "SATA0", which used to be win 7, you get the error shown in the black screen.

...

.

This is what the startup repair screen looks like. If you try to run startup repair with the win xp HDD connected, it fails as noted in the picture.

...

theog · 28 Aug 2013

Set BIOS OS Mode Selection.
UEFI mode = Windows 7 uefi will boot, Win XP will not boot.
Legacy Mode = Win XP will boot, Windows 7 uefi will not bot.
UEFI & Legacy Mode = Both OS's will boot, but only from the One Time Boot Menu.

login123 · 28 Aug 2013

OK. I don't have a BIOS screen that looks anything like your picture.
And, have been through all the options in this BIOS without seeing anything that looks like that OS mode selection window.
I guess I am missing something that should be obvious, just don't know how to Set BIOS OS Mode Selection.
Must stop for a while now. Back tomorrow.
Thanks.

theog · 28 Aug 2013

If so, how did you install Win XP x32?

Technical Note: UEFI BIOS vs. Legacy BIOS, Advantech(EN) - YouTube

gregrocker · 28 Aug 2013

We really need to see a full Disk Mgmt screenshot with all drives plugged in. If you can't get that then boot free Partition Wizard bootable CD and take camera snaps of the full drive map showing all listings.

login123 · 29 Aug 2013

OK.
Theog, I sent you a PM with a link to some photos.

Fwiw, there is a lot of information about this motherboard and BIOS here:

HTML Code:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c03656066&tmp_task=useCategory&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&os=4063&product=5233649&sw_lang=#N143

I suspect there is something wrong w/ my partition setup on the win xp HDD, but am at a loss for what. Also, I didn't change the C:\ partition on it at all except to shrink it to about 50 gb. I used Acronis Disk Director on a win xp 32 bit machine for that, because I didn't know how to do it in win 7.

Screenshots with win7 HDD only

and with both

.

Greg, if these are not adequate I will take the camera photos.

Theog, I used nLite to make an installation disk for win xp.
The biggest problem was finding a chipset driver that works in win xp for this hardware. HP does not make one that I could find, but there is one available at another forum. Its a legitimate forum, not some sort of questionable hacker site, and I will gladly provide the link if the rules here do not prohibit it.

Installation was done on the win 7 machine with the factory (win 7) disk unplugged. It was not necessary to change AHCI mode to IDE, either for the installation process or to boot either HDD later. The conventional wisdom says that this must be done, but it was not necessary here. More complete details are available at the HP forum, and again I will share the link if it is permissible.

As soon as win xp was running, it was only necessary to install the correct drivers for the rest of the hardware. After that, with both HDDs plugged in, it was only necessary to go to the boot menu and select which HDD to boot from.