I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using Disk
Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither Vista nor
XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C: which has
Vista on it as usual).

How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?

If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a third,
unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole partition with
XP on it).

The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard drive
in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make your
Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair. That
would make it so you could change your drive letter.

"Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
> I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using Disk
> Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither Vista
> nor
> XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C: which has
> Vista on it as usual).
>
> How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
>
> If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a third,
> unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole partition
> with
> XP on it).

- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are marked with
"System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
- I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see hidden files
as well).
- What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two points
above?


"John Barnes" wrote:

> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard drive
> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make your
> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair. That
> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
>
> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using Disk
> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither Vista
> > nor
> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C: which has
> > Vista on it as usual).
> >
> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
> >
> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a third,
> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole partition
> > with
> > XP on it).
>
>

You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different hard
drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux, System
Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of ways you
could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything you
have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy your
data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if fixing
the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would help,
seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could change
the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry and
let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries are
somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore point
beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be the
only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make sure
that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post back, it
would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your partitions
on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they are on
from the lower panel. Good luck.

"Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
>- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are marked
>with
> "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
> - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see hidden
> files
> as well).
> - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two points
> above?
>
>
> "John Barnes" wrote:
>
>> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard
>> drive
>> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make your
>> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair. That
>> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
>>
>> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> message
>> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using Disk
>> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither
>> > Vista
>> > nor
>> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C: which
>> > has
>> > Vista on it as usual).
>> >
>> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
>> >
>> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a
>> > third,
>> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole partition
>> > with
>> > XP on it).
>>
>>

Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted the
partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
Map:

==Disk 0==
> C: - 60GB - Vista install
> G: - 190GB - files...

==Disk 1==
> unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
> V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
> Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some programs
to work)

==Disk 2==
> S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
> Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed Win XP
before!!!
> D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!

So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista won't
boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"

HELP !



"John Barnes" wrote:

> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different hard
> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux, System
> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of ways you
> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything you
> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy your
> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if fixing
> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would help,
> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could change
> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry and
> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries are
> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore point
> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be the
> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make sure
> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post back, it
> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your partitions
> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they are on
> from the lower panel. Good luck.
>
> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are marked
> >with
> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see hidden
> > files
> > as well).
> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two points
> > above?
> >
> >
> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >
> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard
> >> drive
> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make your
> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair. That
> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
> >>
> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> message
> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using Disk
> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither
> >> > Vista
> >> > nor
> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C: which
> >> > has
> >> > Vista on it as usual).
> >> >
> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
> >> >
> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a
> >> > third,
> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole partition
> >> > with
> >> > XP on it).
> >>
> >>
>
>

Using your Vista install DVD, go into the install process past the language
screen and the next screen has Install now. On this screen you should
choose the repair your computer (lower left) then on the next screen you
should run startup repair. Sometimes it has to be run more than once, up to
three times. If you have your MBR non standard due to installing Linux, it
may be necessary for you to repair it. If this is necessary, the WinXP disk
using the recovery console and fixmbr and fixboot would be the easiest
way to reset them to Windows standard. Then startup repair should work. It
would be preferable to do these tasks with disk 1 and disk 2 disconnected
initially. After you get Vista to boot, you can reconnect them. Also you
didn't indicate if you recreated and reformatted the D partition.
Also do you now have any other operating system on the computer. It appears
you have had Linux and XP and have some leftovers, but no OS.
Is that correct?


"Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:242F5C6B-9CF5-43B8-B3B5-(E-Mail Removed)...
> Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted the
> partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
> Map:
>
> ==Disk 0==
> > C: - 60GB - Vista install
> > G: - 190GB - files...
>
> ==Disk 1==
> > unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
> > V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
> > Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some
> programs
> to work)
>
> ==Disk 2==
> > S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
> > Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed Win XP
> before!!!
> > D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!
>
> So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista won't
> boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"
>
> HELP !
>
>
>
> "John Barnes" wrote:
>
>> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different
>> hard
>> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux, System
>> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of ways
>> you
>> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything you
>> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy
>> your
>> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if
>> fixing
>> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would help,
>> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could change
>> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry and
>> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries
>> are
>> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore
>> point
>> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
>> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be the
>> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make
>> sure
>> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post back,
>> it
>> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your
>> partitions
>> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they are
>> on
>> from the lower panel. Good luck.
>>
>> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> message
>> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are marked
>> >with
>> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
>> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see hidden
>> > files
>> > as well).
>> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two
>> > points
>> > above?
>> >
>> >
>> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >
>> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard
>> >> drive
>> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make
>> >> your
>> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair.
>> >> That
>> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
>> >>
>> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> >> message
>> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using
>> >> > Disk
>> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither
>> >> > Vista
>> >> > nor
>> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C:
>> >> > which
>> >> > has
>> >> > Vista on it as usual).
>> >> >
>> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
>> >> >
>> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a
>> >> > third,
>> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole
>> >> > partition
>> >> > with
>> >> > XP on it).
>> >>
>> >>
>>
>>

John, problem isn't solved yet but thank you so much for your detailed
answers. It's great to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking about


Back to the problem - I never installed Linux on this machine (I plan to in
the future - the partitions I indicated for Linux are a provision). All the
OSs I installed on this machine are XP and Vista.
As you suggested I used Vista's startup repair, and it solved the "BootMGR
missing" problem. BUT it miracoulesly reincarnated the demi system partition.
So I'm back to the previous problem.
To clarify - Disk Management shows this (corresponding to the drive map in
the previous post)

==Disk 0==
> C: - Boot, Active, Crash Dump, Logical Partition
> G: - Primary Partition

==Disk 1==
> V: - Primary Partition
> Z: - Primary Partition

==Disk 2==
> S: - Page File, Primary Partition
> D: - System, Active, Primary Partition

Notice the problematic D: partition which I deleted, got recreated by
Vista's Startup Repair, and that has no system file whatsoever on. Also, for
some reason C: stoped showing "System" now.....



"John Barnes" wrote:

> Using your Vista install DVD, go into the install process past the language
> screen and the next screen has Install now. On this screen you should
> choose the repair your computer (lower left) then on the next screen you
> should run startup repair. Sometimes it has to be run more than once, up to
> three times. If you have your MBR non standard due to installing Linux, it
> may be necessary for you to repair it. If this is necessary, the WinXP disk
> using the recovery console and fixmbr and fixboot would be the easiest
> way to reset them to Windows standard. Then startup repair should work. It
> would be preferable to do these tasks with disk 1 and disk 2 disconnected
> initially. After you get Vista to boot, you can reconnect them. Also you
> didn't indicate if you recreated and reformatted the D partition.
> Also do you now have any other operating system on the computer. It appears
> you have had Linux and XP and have some leftovers, but no OS.
> Is that correct?
>
>
> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:242F5C6B-9CF5-43B8-B3B5-(E-Mail Removed)...
> > Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted the
> > partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
> > Map:
> >
> > ==Disk 0==
> > > C: - 60GB - Vista install
> > > G: - 190GB - files...
> >
> > ==Disk 1==
> > > unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
> > > V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
> > > Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some
> > programs
> > to work)
> >
> > ==Disk 2==
> > > S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
> > > Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed Win XP
> > before!!!
> > > D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!
> >
> > So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista won't
> > boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"
> >
> > HELP !
> >
> >
> >
> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >
> >> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different
> >> hard
> >> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux, System
> >> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of ways
> >> you
> >> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything you
> >> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy
> >> your
> >> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if
> >> fixing
> >> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would help,
> >> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could change
> >> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry and
> >> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries
> >> are
> >> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore
> >> point
> >> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
> >> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be the
> >> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make
> >> sure
> >> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post back,
> >> it
> >> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your
> >> partitions
> >> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they are
> >> on
> >> from the lower panel. Good luck.
> >>
> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> message
> >> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are marked
> >> >with
> >> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
> >> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see hidden
> >> > files
> >> > as well).
> >> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two
> >> > points
> >> > above?
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >> >
> >> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first hard
> >> >> drive
> >> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make
> >> >> your
> >> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair.
> >> >> That
> >> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
> >> >>
> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> >> message
> >> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using
> >> >> > Disk
> >> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition (nither
> >> >> > Vista
> >> >> > nor
> >> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C:
> >> >> > which
> >> >> > has
> >> >> > Vista on it as usual).
> >> >> >
> >> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
> >> >> >
> >> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on a
> >> >> > third,
> >> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole
> >> >> > partition
> >> >> > with
> >> >> > XP on it).
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >>
> >>
>
>

If the information you have here is complete, it pretty much explains you
situation. Windows installs the boot files (and makes the system drive) on
the first active primary partition, which in your case here is D. Since
your system lost the BootMgr when you deleted the D drive the files must be
there. A logical partition should not be marked active. Your cleanest bet
would be to mark the G partition as active and rerun startup repair to put
your boot files on that partition. That should make that your system
partition and you would then be able to rename your D drive.

"Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:4D7B47E7-4805-444A-9A2F-(E-Mail Removed)...
> John, problem isn't solved yet but thank you so much for your detailed
> answers. It's great to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking
> about
>
>
> Back to the problem - I never installed Linux on this machine (I plan to
> in
> the future - the partitions I indicated for Linux are a provision). All
> the
> OSs I installed on this machine are XP and Vista.
> As you suggested I used Vista's startup repair, and it solved the "BootMGR
> missing" problem. BUT it miracoulesly reincarnated the demi system
> partition.
> So I'm back to the previous problem.
> To clarify - Disk Management shows this (corresponding to the drive map in
> the previous post)
>
> ==Disk 0==
> > C: - Boot, Active, Crash Dump, Logical Partition
> > G: - Primary Partition
>
> ==Disk 1==
> > V: - Primary Partition
> > Z: - Primary Partition
>
> ==Disk 2==
> > S: - Page File, Primary Partition
> > D: - System, Active, Primary Partition
>
> Notice the problematic D: partition which I deleted, got recreated by
> Vista's Startup Repair, and that has no system file whatsoever on. Also,
> for
> some reason C: stoped showing "System" now.....
>
>
>
> "John Barnes" wrote:
>
>> Using your Vista install DVD, go into the install process past the
>> language
>> screen and the next screen has Install now. On this screen you should
>> choose the repair your computer (lower left) then on the next screen you
>> should run startup repair. Sometimes it has to be run more than once, up
>> to
>> three times. If you have your MBR non standard due to installing Linux,
>> it
>> may be necessary for you to repair it. If this is necessary, the WinXP
>> disk
>> using the recovery console and fixmbr and fixboot would be the
>> easiest
>> way to reset them to Windows standard. Then startup repair should work.
>> It
>> would be preferable to do these tasks with disk 1 and disk 2 disconnected
>> initially. After you get Vista to boot, you can reconnect them. Also
>> you
>> didn't indicate if you recreated and reformatted the D partition.
>> Also do you now have any other operating system on the computer. It
>> appears
>> you have had Linux and XP and have some leftovers, but no OS.
>> Is that correct?
>>
>>
>> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> message
>> news:242F5C6B-9CF5-43B8-B3B5-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> > Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted the
>> > partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
>> > Map:
>> >
>> > ==Disk 0==
>> > > C: - 60GB - Vista install
>> > > G: - 190GB - files...
>> >
>> > ==Disk 1==
>> > > unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
>> > > V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
>> > > Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some
>> > programs
>> > to work)
>> >
>> > ==Disk 2==
>> > > S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
>> > > Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed Win
>> > XP
>> > before!!!
>> > > D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!
>> >
>> > So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista
>> > won't
>> > boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"
>> >
>> > HELP !
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >
>> >> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different
>> >> hard
>> >> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux,
>> >> System
>> >> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of
>> >> ways
>> >> you
>> >> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything
>> >> you
>> >> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy
>> >> your
>> >> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if
>> >> fixing
>> >> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would
>> >> help,
>> >> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could
>> >> change
>> >> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry
>> >> and
>> >> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries
>> >> are
>> >> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore
>> >> point
>> >> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
>> >> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be
>> >> the
>> >> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make
>> >> sure
>> >> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post
>> >> back,
>> >> it
>> >> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your
>> >> partitions
>> >> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they
>> >> are
>> >> on
>> >> from the lower panel. Good luck.
>> >>
>> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> >> message
>> >> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are
>> >> >marked
>> >> >with
>> >> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
>> >> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see
>> >> > hidden
>> >> > files
>> >> > as well).
>> >> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two
>> >> > points
>> >> > above?
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >> >
>> >> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first
>> >> >> hard
>> >> >> drive
>> >> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make
>> >> >> your
>> >> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair.
>> >> >> That
>> >> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
>> >> >>
>> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> >> >> message
>> >> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using
>> >> >> > Disk
>> >> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition
>> >> >> > (nither
>> >> >> > Vista
>> >> >> > nor
>> >> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C:
>> >> >> > which
>> >> >> > has
>> >> >> > Vista on it as usual).
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on
>> >> >> > a
>> >> >> > third,
>> >> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole
>> >> >> > partition
>> >> >> > with
>> >> >> > XP on it).
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>>
>>

I did as you suggested, marked G: as Active, restarted, booted with Vista
install CD, ran the Startup Repair (I don't think it did anything), but the
problem remains - D: is still defined as System and Active.
A few questions:
- How is it possible for Vista to recognize two Active partitions?
- How come Vista shows the System on D: where in fact it is installed on C:?
- C: is marked as a logical drive AND as active. How is this possible?

Should I format all the drives and reinstall everything, or is there a way
out of this mess?
I started to search for a partition management program other than Vista's
"Disk Management" but found out that the latest versions of the most known
programs do not support yet Vista - (PartitionMagic 8", "Acronis Disk
Director 10")


"John Barnes" wrote:

> If the information you have here is complete, it pretty much explains you
> situation. Windows installs the boot files (and makes the system drive) on
> the first active primary partition, which in your case here is D. Since
> your system lost the BootMgr when you deleted the D drive the files must be
> there. A logical partition should not be marked active. Your cleanest bet
> would be to mark the G partition as active and rerun startup repair to put
> your boot files on that partition. That should make that your system
> partition and you would then be able to rename your D drive.
>
> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:4D7B47E7-4805-444A-9A2F-(E-Mail Removed)...
> > John, problem isn't solved yet but thank you so much for your detailed
> > answers. It's great to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking
> > about
> >
> >
> > Back to the problem - I never installed Linux on this machine (I plan to
> > in
> > the future - the partitions I indicated for Linux are a provision). All
> > the
> > OSs I installed on this machine are XP and Vista.
> > As you suggested I used Vista's startup repair, and it solved the "BootMGR
> > missing" problem. BUT it miracoulesly reincarnated the demi system
> > partition.
> > So I'm back to the previous problem.
> > To clarify - Disk Management shows this (corresponding to the drive map in
> > the previous post)
> >
> > ==Disk 0==
> > > C: - Boot, Active, Crash Dump, Logical Partition
> > > G: - Primary Partition
> >
> > ==Disk 1==
> > > V: - Primary Partition
> > > Z: - Primary Partition
> >
> > ==Disk 2==
> > > S: - Page File, Primary Partition
> > > D: - System, Active, Primary Partition
> >
> > Notice the problematic D: partition which I deleted, got recreated by
> > Vista's Startup Repair, and that has no system file whatsoever on. Also,
> > for
> > some reason C: stoped showing "System" now.....
> >
> >
> >
> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >
> >> Using your Vista install DVD, go into the install process past the
> >> language
> >> screen and the next screen has Install now. On this screen you should
> >> choose the repair your computer (lower left) then on the next screen you
> >> should run startup repair. Sometimes it has to be run more than once, up
> >> to
> >> three times. If you have your MBR non standard due to installing Linux,
> >> it
> >> may be necessary for you to repair it. If this is necessary, the WinXP
> >> disk
> >> using the recovery console and fixmbr and fixboot would be the
> >> easiest
> >> way to reset them to Windows standard. Then startup repair should work.
> >> It
> >> would be preferable to do these tasks with disk 1 and disk 2 disconnected
> >> initially. After you get Vista to boot, you can reconnect them. Also
> >> you
> >> didn't indicate if you recreated and reformatted the D partition.
> >> Also do you now have any other operating system on the computer. It
> >> appears
> >> you have had Linux and XP and have some leftovers, but no OS.
> >> Is that correct?
> >>
> >>
> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> message
> >> news:242F5C6B-9CF5-43B8-B3B5-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> > Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted the
> >> > partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
> >> > Map:
> >> >
> >> > ==Disk 0==
> >> > > C: - 60GB - Vista install
> >> > > G: - 190GB - files...
> >> >
> >> > ==Disk 1==
> >> > > unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
> >> > > V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
> >> > > Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some
> >> > programs
> >> > to work)
> >> >
> >> > ==Disk 2==
> >> > > S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
> >> > > Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed Win
> >> > XP
> >> > before!!!
> >> > > D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!
> >> >
> >> > So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista
> >> > won't
> >> > boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"
> >> >
> >> > HELP !
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >> >
> >> >> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or different
> >> >> hard
> >> >> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux,
> >> >> System
> >> >> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of
> >> >> ways
> >> >> you
> >> >> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy anything
> >> >> you
> >> >> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and copy
> >> >> your
> >> >> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see if
> >> >> fixing
> >> >> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would
> >> >> help,
> >> >> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could
> >> >> change
> >> >> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the entry
> >> >> and
> >> >> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry entries
> >> >> are
> >> >> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a restore
> >> >> point
> >> >> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case to
> >> >> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should be
> >> >> the
> >> >> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances. Make
> >> >> sure
> >> >> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post
> >> >> back,
> >> >> it
> >> >> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your
> >> >> partitions
> >> >> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they
> >> >> are
> >> >> on
> >> >> from the lower panel. Good luck.
> >> >>
> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> >> message
> >> >> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> >> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are
> >> >> >marked
> >> >> >with
> >> >> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
> >> >> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see
> >> >> > hidden
> >> >> > files
> >> >> > as well).
> >> >> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the two
> >> >> > points
> >> >> > above?
> >> >> >
> >> >> >
> >> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
> >> >> >
> >> >> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first
> >> >> >> hard
> >> >> >> drive
> >> >> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to make
> >> >> >> your
> >> >> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up repair.
> >> >> >> That
> >> >> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
> >> >> >>
> >> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> >> >> >> message
> >> >> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
> >> >> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista using
> >> >> >> > Disk
> >> >> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition
> >> >> >> > (nither
> >> >> >> > Vista
> >> >> >> > nor
> >> >> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to C:
> >> >> >> > which
> >> >> >> > has
> >> >> >> > Vista on it as usual).
> >> >> >> >
> >> >> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this partition?
> >> >> >> >
> >> >> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista on
> >> >> >> > a
> >> >> >> > third,
> >> >> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole
> >> >> >> > partition
> >> >> >> > with
> >> >> >> > XP on it).
> >> >> >>
> >> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >>
> >>
>
>

Acronis Disk Director 10 (latest) and BootItNG both are fully Vista
compliant.
Since it won't take long, run Recovery console from your XP disk and do a
fixmbr That is where the active partition bit is set.
What drive actually has the Vista Boot File and bootmgr on it. Let's
see if we can backtrack.
Since you show no active partition on your Disk 1, set the first partition
active, then you could set it to be the first HDD in boot priority in the
BIOS, run startup repair and see if the boot files get put onto that
partition. I know in the past that it was necessary to have the first
partition on the first drive as a primary partition and since you have a
logical drive first, that may be causing your problem. It was often
suggested to put a small primary partition for the boot files in the first
position on the drive.
If that doesn't work, you may have to backup the Vista partition, change the
partition to primary and active and reload the system. It should not be
necessary to go beyond that.


"Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:E8ADE71F-1859-425F-9046-(E-Mail Removed)...
>I did as you suggested, marked G: as Active, restarted, booted with Vista
> install CD, ran the Startup Repair (I don't think it did anything), but
> the
> problem remains - D: is still defined as System and Active.
> A few questions:
> - How is it possible for Vista to recognize two Active partitions?
> - How come Vista shows the System on D: where in fact it is installed on
> C:?
> - C: is marked as a logical drive AND as active. How is this possible?
>
> Should I format all the drives and reinstall everything, or is there a way
> out of this mess?
> I started to search for a partition management program other than Vista's
> "Disk Management" but found out that the latest versions of the most known
> programs do not support yet Vista - (PartitionMagic 8", "Acronis Disk
> Director 10")
>
>
> "John Barnes" wrote:
>
>> If the information you have here is complete, it pretty much explains you
>> situation. Windows installs the boot files (and makes the system drive)
>> on
>> the first active primary partition, which in your case here is D. Since
>> your system lost the BootMgr when you deleted the D drive the files must
>> be
>> there. A logical partition should not be marked active. Your cleanest
>> bet
>> would be to mark the G partition as active and rerun startup repair to
>> put
>> your boot files on that partition. That should make that your system
>> partition and you would then be able to rename your D drive.
>>
>> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> message
>> news:4D7B47E7-4805-444A-9A2F-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> > John, problem isn't solved yet but thank you so much for your detailed
>> > answers. It's great to talk to someone who understands what I'm talking
>> > about
>> >
>> >
>> > Back to the problem - I never installed Linux on this machine (I plan
>> > to
>> > in
>> > the future - the partitions I indicated for Linux are a provision). All
>> > the
>> > OSs I installed on this machine are XP and Vista.
>> > As you suggested I used Vista's startup repair, and it solved the
>> > "BootMGR
>> > missing" problem. BUT it miracoulesly reincarnated the demi system
>> > partition.
>> > So I'm back to the previous problem.
>> > To clarify - Disk Management shows this (corresponding to the drive map
>> > in
>> > the previous post)
>> >
>> > ==Disk 0==
>> > > C: - Boot, Active, Crash Dump, Logical Partition
>> > > G: - Primary Partition
>> >
>> > ==Disk 1==
>> > > V: - Primary Partition
>> > > Z: - Primary Partition
>> >
>> > ==Disk 2==
>> > > S: - Page File, Primary Partition
>> > > D: - System, Active, Primary Partition
>> >
>> > Notice the problematic D: partition which I deleted, got recreated by
>> > Vista's Startup Repair, and that has no system file whatsoever on.
>> > Also,
>> > for
>> > some reason C: stoped showing "System" now.....
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >
>> >> Using your Vista install DVD, go into the install process past the
>> >> language
>> >> screen and the next screen has Install now. On this screen you should
>> >> choose the repair your computer (lower left) then on the next screen
>> >> you
>> >> should run startup repair. Sometimes it has to be run more than once,
>> >> up
>> >> to
>> >> three times. If you have your MBR non standard due to installing
>> >> Linux,
>> >> it
>> >> may be necessary for you to repair it. If this is necessary, the
>> >> WinXP
>> >> disk
>> >> using the recovery console and fixmbr and fixboot would be the
>> >> easiest
>> >> way to reset them to Windows standard. Then startup repair should
>> >> work.
>> >> It
>> >> would be preferable to do these tasks with disk 1 and disk 2
>> >> disconnected
>> >> initially. After you get Vista to boot, you can reconnect them. Also
>> >> you
>> >> didn't indicate if you recreated and reformatted the D partition.
>> >> Also do you now have any other operating system on the computer. It
>> >> appears
>> >> you have had Linux and XP and have some leftovers, but no OS.
>> >> Is that correct?
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> >> message
>> >> news:242F5C6B-9CF5-43B8-B3B5-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> > Thanks John for the detailed answer. I did as you say, and deleted
>> >> > the
>> >> > partition, and now I'm in trouble. But first...
>> >> > Map:
>> >> >
>> >> > ==Disk 0==
>> >> > > C: - 60GB - Vista install
>> >> > > G: - 190GB - files...
>> >> >
>> >> > ==Disk 1==
>> >> > > unpartitioned - 10GB - for Linux scratch disk
>> >> > > V: - 10GB - Video Scratch (for video editing programs)
>> >> > > Z: - 230GB - My Documents (I need to change this to D: for some
>> >> > programs
>> >> > to work)
>> >> >
>> >> > ==Disk 2==
>> >> > > S: - 10GB - Vista Swap (for the pagefile)
>> >> > > Unpartitioned - 50GB - for Linux installation - here I installed
>> >> > Win
>> >> > XP
>> >> > before!!!
>> >> > > D: - 190GB - files... - this is the problematic partition!!!
>> >> >
>> >> > So I ran WinXP installation and deleted the D: partition. Now Vista
>> >> > won't
>> >> > boot and I receive the following message: "BOOTMGR is missing"
>> >> >
>> >> > HELP !
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >> >
>> >> >> You don't say whether the two partitions are on the same or
>> >> >> different
>> >> >> hard
>> >> >> drives. Are you using, or have you installed a 3rd party (Linux,
>> >> >> System
>> >> >> Commander, etc) boot manager at some point. There are a number of
>> >> >> ways
>> >> >> you
>> >> >> could approach the problem, but the safest would be to copy
>> >> >> anything
>> >> >> you
>> >> >> have on the partition off, delete and recreate the partition and
>> >> >> copy
>> >> >> your
>> >> >> data back. Other options would would include using WinRE to see
>> >> >> if
>> >> >> fixing
>> >> >> the MBR or Boot records (on the partition you want to change) would
>> >> >> help,
>> >> >> seeing if you can change the drive letter from WinRE and you could
>> >> >> change
>> >> >> the letter that mount manager has in the registry or delete the
>> >> >> entry
>> >> >> and
>> >> >> let mount manager remount it on the next boot. While registry
>> >> >> entries
>> >> >> are
>> >> >> somewhat dangerous, if system restore is working and you do a
>> >> >> restore
>> >> >> point
>> >> >> beforehand, you can run system restore from the DVD in a worst case
>> >> >> to
>> >> >> restore the prior registry. The active partition on Disk 0 should
>> >> >> be
>> >> >> the
>> >> >> only one Vista would mark as system under normal circumstances.
>> >> >> Make
>> >> >> sure
>> >> >> that is where your boot files are in any case. If you want to post
>> >> >> back,
>> >> >> it
>> >> >> would be helpful if you would supply the information for all your
>> >> >> partitions
>> >> >> on the hard drives from the top panel and which disk and order they
>> >> >> are
>> >> >> on
>> >> >> from the lower panel. Good luck.
>> >> >>
>> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> >> >> message
>> >> >> news:C9658B68-771E-4523-9C70-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> >> >- Both C: (where my Vista is) and the troublesome partition are
>> >> >> >marked
>> >> >> >with
>> >> >> > "System" and "Active" in the Disk Management.
>> >> >> > - I have no boot files on the troublesome partition (yes, I see
>> >> >> > hidden
>> >> >> > files
>> >> >> > as well).
>> >> >> > - What is the "start-up repair"? Is it still relevant after the
>> >> >> > two
>> >> >> > points
>> >> >> > above?
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> > "John Barnes" wrote:
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> The system partition has your boot files on it. It is the first
>> >> >> >> hard
>> >> >> >> drive
>> >> >> >> in boot priority and the active partition. You would have to
>> >> >> >> make
>> >> >> >> your
>> >> >> >> Vista drive match these criteria and then run the start-up
>> >> >> >> repair.
>> >> >> >> That
>> >> >> >> would make it so you could change your drive letter.
>> >> >> >>
>> >> >> >> "Jonathan Livni" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote
>> >> >> >> in
>> >> >> >> message
>> >> >> >> news:356DF6F3-6D3A-4104-BE2E-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> >> >> >> > I'm trying to change a drive letter to a partition in Vista
>> >> >> >> > using
>> >> >> >> > Disk
>> >> >> >> > Management. I don't have an OS installed on this partition
>> >> >> >> > (nither
>> >> >> >> > Vista
>> >> >> >> > nor
>> >> >> >> > XP), but Vista insists its a system partition (in addition to
>> >> >> >> > C:
>> >> >> >> > which
>> >> >> >> > has
>> >> >> >> > Vista on it as usual).
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > How can I convince Vista that I have no system on this
>> >> >> >> > partition?
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > If it helps - I did have XP installed before I installed Vista
>> >> >> >> > on
>> >> >> >> > a
>> >> >> >> > third,
>> >> >> >> > unrelate partition, that I already deleted (deleted the whole
>> >> >> >> > partition
>> >> >> >> > with
>> >> >> >> > XP on it).
>> >> >> >>
>> >> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>>
>>