Dual boot two windows Xp pro

  • Thread starter Thread starter Calvin C.
  • Start date Start date
C

Calvin C.

To All,
I have win xp english loaded on disk1 and another language of xp pro loaded
on disk2. both are ntfs formatted. how do I create a dual-boot loader file
on disk1 so that i can choose different copy of xp to start.

Thanks

Calvin
 
Calvin C. said:
I have win xp english loaded on disk1 and another language of xp pro loaded
on disk2. both are ntfs formatted. how do I create a dual-boot loader file
on disk1 so that i can choose different copy of xp to start.
Click to expand...

Get a third-party boot manager from your local software store to setup
and manage the dual-boot system.
 
Do you happen to know any good software? tks

Thorsten Matzner said:
Get a third-party boot manager from your local software store to setup
and manage the dual-boot system.
Click to expand...
 
Hi, Calvin.

I don't know about mixing language versions. But booting two installations
of WinXP (English) is easy. WinXP Setup takes care of it automatically.
When Setup detects another WinXP (or Win2K, or Win9x/ME), it simply updates
C:\NTLDR and C:\NTDETECT.COM, and adds the new installation to C:\boot.ini,
with instructions as to which physical disk, partition and folder it is in.
My (uneducated) guess is that it would handle a different language version
of WinXP just as simply. No third party boot manager required.

Just be sure to put each WinXP installation in a separate volume (primary
partition or logical drive in an extended partition) on any physical drive
in your computer. And I suppose that you should install your main language
last so that C:\boot.ini will be using that language? (Hmmm... How do you
spell "boot.ini" in French? Or in Chinese?)

If you find out that I'm wrong, please post back for the benefit of others
with the same question.

RC
 
Hi RC,
Here is what I got. I installed XP English on one physical HD, unpluged the
HD, plugged in the other physical HD and loaded XP Chinese on it. Then, I
plugged in these two physical HDs back into the box. Both jumpers are set to
"Cable Select". The system booted up from XP English and detected the 2nd HD
the very first time, and I did see two XP O/S at next system bootup.
However, the system gave me error sth about wrong system path blah...when I
chose the 2nd XP O/S. I went back to "startup options" setting in XP
English, and copied the boot.ini and pasted here...

Do you know if I should manually edit the path in boot.ini file and how?
Thanks

[boot loader]
timeout=20

default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS

[operating systems]

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft

Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /noexecute=optin

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft

Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect

Calvin
 
In order to create a dual boot scenario you should have had both hard drives
installed at the same time. Install the primary language XP on drive C:
then install the secondary language version of XP on the other drive without
removing the first drive. XP automatically sets up the dual boot screen.
Yes, you need to edit the boot.ini file in order to have a dual boot
environment.

Calvin C. said:
Hi RC,
Here is what I got. I installed XP English on one physical HD, unpluged
the HD, plugged in the other physical HD and loaded XP Chinese on it.
Then, I plugged in these two physical HDs back into the box. Both jumpers
are set to "Cable Select". The system booted up from XP English and
detected the 2nd HD the very first time, and I did see two XP O/S at next
system bootup. However, the system gave me error sth about wrong system
path blah...when I chose the 2nd XP O/S. I went back to "startup options"
setting in XP English, and copied the boot.ini and pasted here...

Do you know if I should manually edit the path in boot.ini file and how?
Thanks

[boot loader]
timeout=20

default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS

[operating systems]

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft

Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /noexecute=optin

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft

Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect

Calvin


R. C. White said:
Hi, Calvin.

I don't know about mixing language versions. But booting two
installations of WinXP (English) is easy. WinXP Setup takes care of it
automatically. When Setup detects another WinXP (or Win2K, or Win9x/ME),
it simply updates C:\NTLDR and C:\NTDETECT.COM, and adds the new
installation to C:\boot.ini, with instructions as to which physical disk,
partition and folder it is in. My (uneducated) guess is that it would
handle a different language version of WinXP just as simply. No third
party boot manager required.

Just be sure to put each WinXP installation in a separate volume (primary
partition or logical drive in an extended partition) on any physical
drive in your computer. And I suppose that you should install your main
language last so that C:\boot.ini will be using that language? (Hmmm...
How do you spell "boot.ini" in French? Or in Chinese?)

If you find out that I'm wrong, please post back for the benefit of
others with the same question.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX
(e-mail address removed)
Microsoft Windows MVP
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