Windows 7: Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista

Brink · 12 Mar 2009

How to Setup a Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista

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Last edited by Brink; 28 Oct 2012 at 09:49 AM..

PESCADORSUB · 12 Nov 2009

THANKS FOR YOUR HELP DEAR FRIEND.
YOUR EXPLANATION WAS HELP FULL.
ERNESTO

Brink · 12 Nov 2009

You're welcome Pescadorsub, and welcome to Seven Forums.

raj1402 · 15 Nov 2009

i installed win 7 on primary HD

and i disconnected primary HD and installed vista on Secondary HD

now i connected Primary HD bbut now boot is going to vista only how to get win 7 too!!!

Brink · 15 Nov 2009

Hello Raj,

You should have left both drives connected, so that when you installed Vista it would have been added to the boot file with Windows 7. Instead, you have a boot file on both drives with Vista being the primary now since it was done last.

You might see if doing a startup repair using the Windows 7 installation disc may be able to add it for you.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

SIW2 · 15 Nov 2009

Hi raj,

Because you are likely to be booting into 7 most, I suggest you go into bios and set the 7 HD as the first HD in bios boot order.

If you prefer, you can simply swap the order the SATA cables are connected to the motherboard.

Then you can add Vista to the 7 boot menu with startup repair, bcdedit, or Easybcd.

Oldroser · 26 Nov 2009

Quote: Originally Posted by Howard Kaikow

Quote: Originally Posted by Mike B

Vista will have all it's programs, applications and shortcuts installed on C.

When you boot to Win 7 and install any programs, applications and shortcuts they will be on C. Install Win 7 from a booted DVD on the G drive, and when you boot to 7, it will be C. It's not like you will be running programs on the G drive when you are booted to Vista.

I've been running multiboot since at least Windows 95.

I some cases a prog can be installed in 1 OS, and run from other OS.
Or, there may be files that one needs to share amongst OS.

Another, better, approach is have another parttion in which shared files/programs can be installed, rather than plopping then on the C drive for an OS.

I use both approaches.

Win 7 seems to want to hide the C drive for other OS.
This forces me to use the better, approach of putting common files in a separate partition.

For some programs, this may be easy, e.g., Firefox an Thunderbird. For others, it might be difficult to have thg prog and related files in separate partitions.

I guess that I'll yell Uncle! and use the approach of creating a separate programs partition, as well as a separate data partition, or have separate folders in a separate partition.

More importantly, as I look at my calendar, I note that we are now in 2009, with 2010 not far away.

Isn't it about time that MSFT dropped all this partition/drive letter nonesense, and just used mount points?

Re: the program files on a separate partition. I have installed programs in Vista to a separate D: drive, where I also have files.

If I install upgrade or clean/custom Windows 7 (new partition on C: or on separate D: drive?), is there a way to get the programs to run in both Vista and Windows 7? Would I just reinstall from each O.S. and point to the separate D: for programs and files? They would then keep overwriting themselves. Wouldn't that cause problems?

If anyone has got this to work, please let me know before I install 7. Thanks.

Brink · 26 Nov 2009

Hello Oldroser,

Sorry, but you would need to reinstall each program in each OS for them to work properly.

Pedro38 · 28 Dec 2009

I intend to install Windows 7 HP 64 bit on a new additional HDD which would be my 'D' drive with the already existing 'C' drive containing VistaHP 32 bit.

Once Windows 7 and all programs are installed and properly running on 'D', will I be able to change 'C' to drive letter 'E', then change 'D' to drive letter 'C' and then reformat 'F' to just leave me with Windows 7 on 'C' as the sole OS

Thanks in advance
Pedro38

SIW2 · 28 Dec 2009

Hi Pedro,

The way to do that is to disconnect the HD containing Vista.

Have only the new HD connected. Install 7 onto it.

Make sure the 7 HD is first in Bios HD boot order.

Reattach the Vista HD.

Add an entry for Vista to the 7 boot menu by installing Easybcd on 7, or by using bcdedit.

Mike B · 28 Dec 2009

What I hate about 7 is the Access Denied on some folders. Is there any way around that? As administrator, I want to look at all my folders.

Windows 7: Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista

Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista problems?