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General discussion

Instaling Two Operating Systems Into one Hard Drive.

Sep 3, 2007 9:50PM PDT

I recently bought a New Dell Inspiron 531 and it came with Windows Vista.
Since I was Getting Problems With Games Such as BattleField 2142 and punkbuster, I Decided I wanted to Install Windows Xp Home Edition.

The Normal Method was to Install it straight after i logged in. That result gave be a Message saying "There is a Newer version on windows detected on this computer"

The Second Method was making a separate Folder on my HardDrive and instal XP via the boot up selection. That Went well, it installs at first and then at the Setup where there is the blue screen with the new features that comes with XP it Seems to freeze when it says that there is 34 minutes remaining and that Bar is 60% full.

My Current Configuration
Dell Inspiron 531
Cpu= AMD Athlon X2 5600+
Video Card= NVidia 8600 GT
HardDrive=500 GB at 7200rpm

Is Installing Windows XP Home Ed. on to Vista Home Pr. possible or Should i just stick with Vista Home Pr. and forget about XP?

I don't know what I'm doing wrong? On my part!

Try to give me some tips, Thanks!

Discussion is locked

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OH No!
Sep 3, 2007 10:26PM PDT

I can't get back to my Windows Vista!

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clean install
Sep 3, 2007 10:56PM PDT

at this point. i am guessing that either the XP install finished since you said you cannot get to vista, or you shut down the computer during the XP install? well, the only way to get vista back is to reinstall using the restore CD that came with the computer. or do another clean install of XP.

If you want to know how to dual boot follow the link. this is how i have my laptop set up. Vista Ult on C and XP Pro on D
http://apcmag.com/5485/dualbooting_vista_and_xp

Hope this helps

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Hold on there!
Sep 4, 2007 2:19AM PDT

The problem here is that XP overwrites Vista's boot manager during the installation process, making Vista unbootable. However, you can repair this without reinstalling either OS, which would erase any/all current data. One way is to boot to the Vista DVD and look for a Repair option. If you have a retail/OEM copy of Vista it will look like this. You should even be able to borrow a friend's Vista DVD to perform the repair since entering a product key is not required. Just choose the Startup Repair option. If you only have a manufacturer's system recovery system to work with look for a "non-destructive recovery" option...most will have one.

Now, you can proceed with the XP installation now and do the above later. It makes no nevermind as the above will have to be done either way. However, note that if you use a manufacturer's non-destructive recovery method it may render XP unusable. (Most manufacturers don't consider dual-booting.)

Finally, lets address how you were attempting to install XP. Before doing anything else you need to create a secondary partition, not just a folder, to install XP to. Once that's done you can then boot to the XP CD (you can't launch the installer from within Windows) and point it to the newly created partition for proper installation. Then, of course, address the above Vista bootability issue.

Hope this helps,
John

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Ahh I'm so screwed!
Sep 4, 2007 11:05AM PDT

I'm so screwed!
Yes That is exactly what happened I can't get into neither operation systems.
There is no recovery CD!
The Recovery is built into the hard drive and I can't access it the same way I would when I had the Vista.

I called Dell and they agreed to mail me a new disk since I'm still within their warranty.

Is it possible to install it onto the same hard drive though?

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Yes...
Sep 4, 2007 2:08PM PDT

It will, however, get interesting. First you must use the Dell CD to repair Vista (non-destructive recovery). Second, you have to partition your hard drive. You can use the Shrink option under Disk management to reduce the C: drive and use the newly unpartitioned space to create a D: drive. (You can also use the likes of Partition Magic.) Third, boot to the XP CD and install XP on the new partition. Finally, click here and follow the Resolution instructions to repair the Vista boot loader from within XP. If you're up to it we can guide you through any dead ends you may encounter.

John

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Yay!
Sep 14, 2007 11:13AM PDT

I finally got it back and running, now I need to deal with PunkBuster issues on BattleField 2142. Argh! Thanks for the help. Have fun and don't do what I did.

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why xp is freezing
Nov 14, 2007 2:30AM PST

The problem you are have with it freezing at 34 min is that at this point xp is installing the USB. If anything is pluged into the usb it will freeze. you can test this by removeing everything from your usb. The solution is Win xp pro SP2. You will then need a few drivers like video, sound, network, chipset and one that's unknown.

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do a clean install
Feb 14, 2008 10:10AM PST

since you have a dell, do a clean install with the dell recovery OS disc (preferably Win XP Pro). while in XP setup, Create a partition about 50 to 100 gb in size maybe 200 (depending on the OS's you install)(basically make the partition large enough to support the software you will frequently use). after you fully install the first OS, do the same as stated above except do not format the drive and install in a different partition. since you have a large HD feel free to split the partition in half (230 gb /230 gb)

i hope this helps