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Question

How to install windows XP as a second OS after VISTA?

Jan 9, 2013 3:40AM PST

my notebook pc is ASUS X58LE series. with original Vista SP1 installed. I need to have a windows XP(SP3) to work with GAMS prog. I choosed drive D to install the second windows. put the CD and it started (from the system boot not from the windows vista) installing Windows XP normally but after restarting for the second time it kept starting installation from the beginning. after several restarts I tried to go back to my own windows vista and check the situation from there. but it didn't get loaded. non of two windows worked. but both were in their drives. at last I had to use the Win Vista recovery CD and reinstall it on drive C. is there any way to check why second windows got installed but didn't work? how can I have windows XP as my second OS?

Discussion is locked

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Answer
You'll get varied answers to this
Jan 9, 2013 3:49AM PST

Some folks have complex answers for doing this, but I have a "quick and dirty" unsophisticated way of doing this that works unconditionally and easy for me. If you have both XP and Vista installed, create a new partition and install a bare bones Vista or Windows 7 on it. You don't need more than a 20 GB partition, and the install only takes about 30 min. to do. You don't need to activate it, update it, or install anything after that. That will re-create the BCD (Boot Configuration Data) to allow you to boot to all 3 partitions. Since right now you can't boot to either one, you'll probably need to use something like UBCD (Ultimate Boot CD) to do this. You can download UBCD from download.com or other places.

Good luck.

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Answer
The X58LE has SATA drives
Jan 9, 2013 5:57AM PST

So you should research the F6 FLOPPY DRIVE XP INSTALL to see if you have all the right tools and diskettes before you start.

In this case you can't use any BIOS IDE emulation since that will toast your current Vista install.

And you'll need your XP CD to be the XP Sp2 or XP Sp3 or you'll repeat what others have learned.

Yes, it's been done before but do you have all that it takes? And does Asus have the drivers for this?

THAT IS!!!! We can install the OS for sure but do you need sound, more than 800x600 256 color, WiFi and all that other non-OS features?
Bob

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drivers is a problem!
Jan 9, 2013 4:36PM PST

thank you for your help. yes you're right. I doubted about how it would work without drivers. since my driver CD is just for Vista. but I need Win XP just to work with a special program: GAMSIDE 21.3. I don't know if not installing drivers is going to make a problem when I'm working with this program or not. I have to try it again.

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I've used such special programs inside Virtual Box.
Jan 10, 2013 2:22AM PST

I have this old USB Microscope that is XP only. Odd thing but for that I have XP SP3 in Virtual Box and for that work it's grand.
Bob