Multi boot

[jfail]

I want to use multi boot with Windows 7 and XP SP3 on separate drives.

I have a hard disk (SATA) installed on SATA 1 on my computer with XP fully loaded.

I installed a new hard disk on SATA 0 formatted it and installed Windows 7 on it. Windows 7 was installed after the XP drive

From what I have read on the forums I should be getting a multi boot menu when I boot up with Windows 7 on it and an older version (My XP drive) on it.

Instead I get no multi boot menu at all and the computer goes straight to Windows 7. The Windows 7 drive is recognized as drive C and The XP drive is recognized as drive D.

I have been trying to figure this out for hours, what am I doing wrong? I have looked at several threads on the forum but none of the suggestions seem to get it working correctly

Thanks for any guidance.

John

 

[ddeen]

The 7 installer may not have identified the XP installation as a bootable OS installation and so it didn't build the dual boot menu. Only 1 thing to check, what is your OS choice(s) in System Properties/Advanced/Startup and Recovery/Settings/Default Operating System pull down? If there is just 7 on the pull down menu the 7 installer did not build the dual boot menu, if XP is there as well then increase the time to display the OS. You can add the XP install by hand using BCDEdit or EasyBCD I think but you'll have to search how to do it, I have never done that before.

 

[gregrocker]

Download free Easy BCD and post a screenshot back here of the listings it gives on the front page. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9733-how-post-screenshot-seven-forums.html

Go to EasyBCD Add/Remove tab and add XP (if missing) by selecting Type: XP, Name it XP for your boot menu and Drive D. Make sure Win7 listing is C: drive and Longhorn/Vista type.

Next, unzip these 3 boot files View attachment Boot Files.zip and make sure they are in the C: root drive of XP. You will need to go to Control Panel>FOlder options>View to show protected system files and hidden files.

Now restart your computer. If it doesn't boot up, boot into the Win7 installer>Repair my Computer and run Startup Repair until it boots up.

 

[jfail]

My grateful thanks for the help. I have been distracted by my wife's health problems for the last couple of days. Hopefully I will have time to work on this in the next week. I am also having some strange multi display problems but that is another subject.

Again thanks for the help, I really appreciate it.

John

 

[gregrocker]

Let us know how it goes. Hope your wife is feeling better soon.

Can you boot into your XP separately by setting its drive first to boot in BIOS, or using BIOS shortcut key (often f10) at startup. That might be all you need since many are wanting to bail out of XP dual boots quickly, and this way you can just unplug it when the time comes.

 

[richie5678]

Hello guys and hi gregrocker, i'm having the same problem..

I'm using Windows 7.. & i have a win XP SP3 on another drive in the same hard disk.

I need it so miserably.. But no boot screen,straightly loading into win 7..

Please help. I'v already tried all those windows recovery console n stuffs. It detects the other OS,, but no help to enable booting into it.. Do help to resolve, if possib step by step.

 

[rsvr85]

Hello guys and hi gregrocker, i'm having the same problem..

I'm using Windows 7.. & i have a win XP SP3 on another drive in the same hard disk.

I need it so miserably.. But no boot screen,straightly loading into win 7..

Please help. I'v already tried all those windows recovery console n stuffs. It detects the other OS,, but no help to enable booting into it.. Do help to resolve, if possib step by step.

Hi richie5678 & welcome to Seven Forums

May i suggest starting your own thread here, this thread is a little old and may not recieve many responses.

Also could you please ;

Download free Easy BCD and post a screenshot back here of the listings it gives on the front page. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9733-how-post-screenshot-seven-forums.html