Windows 7: Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP

You're most welcome Mike, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Hey all.

I used this guide to create a dual boot system on a clients laptop. I have Windows 7 Professional and Windows XP Professional. I repartitioned the drive in windows 7 and installed Windows XP on the second partition (drive D: ) from a bootable cd. I then used the Windows 7 boot cd to repair the windows 7 master boot record as shown in the guide. My boot.ini menu was messed up (showing 2 windows 7 boot options and a windows xp option) so I edited the boot.ini on the C: drive (windows 7 partition) to read as follows:
[boot loader]
timeout=60
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Windows 7" /fastdetect



I used BCD (the gui program) and made sure that the windows 7 entry was the only entry shown in BCD. I then rebooted my computer. I saw the windows 7 entry, on the boot menu and booted to it. I then ran bcd again and followed your steps to add the windows xp parition to the boot configuration. I believe this is erroneous because in bcd 1.7.2 you are only allowed to point to the C: drive for the Windows XP install. My windows xp files are installed on the D: drive. Also there is a new version of BCD out, 2.0.2. Anyway, my question is when I attempt to boot to my windows xp partition in the boot menu, i get an error message saying thus: "Windows Could not start because of a computer disk hardware configuration problem. Could not read from the selected boot disk. check boot path and disk hardware. Please check the windows documentation about hardware disk configuration and your hardware reference manuals for additional information."
Do I need to add a second line to the boot.ini file? How do I fix this problem?

RazorWire81

I used the BCD 1.7.2 from the XP OS not the Windows 7.
I used the Method 2 of Brinks step-by-step. Just make sure you do step 7 with the .net to open the BCD file.

I set up the partions per Brinks Method 2 then installed the XP on E on my drive. Downloaded all the service packs. You especially need SP1.
Downloaded the BCD on XP and it didn't work. Then I found M-2 Step 7. My bad.
Did step 7. BCD opened and followed the directions.
Rebooted and it went to XP with no BCD window the first time.

Rebooted a second time and the BCD screen appeared.

I guess it decided once to install a second to show.

Any way BCD 1.7.2 worked from the XP OS using Method 2 once I found step 7.

Hope that helps. All I know on the subject.

It worked for me and it is still working.
Mike

Brink, I thoroughly read your tutorial and find it very useful, I'm tempted to try it on my system. But before doing so I have two concerns:
1) Is this process risk free? I mean, can I mess up my original XP installation and not be able to recover it later?
2) If everything goes OK, how can I revert back to the original state, i.e., single XP partition?
Thanks.
Finally, what is the main purpose of having a dual boot system? Testing the new OS? Have the choice of driver compatibility?

Hello Antares,

Q1) Well, nothing is risk free. A mistake can be made, or some unknown issue may affect the outcome. To be safe, it's always recommended to backup anything that you do not want to lose.

Q2) If XP was installed first, then you could just delete the Windows 7 installation and remove the Windows 7 entry in the EasyBCD "Add/Remove Entries" section.

Q3) The main purpose is to be able to use either installed OS when you like from the same computer for whatever reason that fits your needs.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

If I may expand on Brink's answer to your last question... Probably the biggest reason to have access to two totally different OSes, like Windows and Linux. There are things you can do with Linux you can't do with Windows, and vice-versa.

A close second would be to try something new. A lot of people like to dual-boot when a beta of a new OS comes out so they can test it without screwing their working system.

Maybe the third most common is when you upgrade to a new OS, then realize that a program you use all the time isn't compatible. For me, when I went to Windows 7, I found out that an older game that I was playing on XP didn't work very well. I wanted to keep Windows 7, so I came here to find out how to dual boot so I could finish it up on XP.

In my opinion, if you don't have some sort of pressing need to have multiple OSes AND if you aren't really comfortable messing with your system, I would leave it as-is. As Brink said, this kind of thing is NOT risk-free, and it can sometimes be a total pain in the rear to get it working right.

Ditto on the older games.
Virtual XP on the Windows 7 doesn't have enough resolution and only 24 color option.

I just installed the Windows 7 on a new system twelve days ago so doing the dual boot option now made sense.
The worst that could happen was a Windows 7 reinstall and the ASUS drivers and utilities.
I hadn't transfered all my personal stuff yet.

I figured now or never.

Down the road I might not have tried it but would have possibly installed a seperate HD for the XP.

This saved the cost of a seperate HD just for the XP and it was a great learning experience and I found this web site which I have resolved three more issuses from the forum info since Tuesday and it is only Thursday.

Mike

To morrow should be the great day.

I'll try to install Windows 7 ultimate on a second HHD.
My config is as follows:
HDD1: partitions C,D,E,F. WinXP on C
HDD2: partitions:G,H,I. G being a primary partition. All volumes in this disk are empty.

I have a question: Where do I install EasyBCD, if necessairy: WinXP or Windows 7?

Hello Scipion, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Since you have XP installed first and would be using METHOD ONE, you would not need to use EasyBCD in Windows 7 to fix XP unless the NOTE under step 6 applies to you.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Using Method Two all was well till the XP CD tried to load Windows and then I got a blue screen of death, I do have a SATA drive but never got to the part about "Slipstream SATA drivers into windows". Any ideas, this is new laptop that I need to run a couple of programs that Windows seven won't let me run. Hoping to get XP on here so I can run those two older programs.

Thanks
Tom