I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt me for which HD I want
to use when the computer starts up? I have been physically switching the
power cable and IDE ribbon cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving
the other drive completely disconnected (both power and IDE).

My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which I could easily
google for) is that those techniques assume two OS installations on a single
hard drive... which is NOT my situation... thus the question here.

Thanks!

"Mac McMicmac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP

May I ask why?

You can change the boot order in the BIOS but even easier would be to
add an entry (ARC path) to the boot.ini file. Try using the msconfig
utility and see if it can add the second installation to boot.ini. If
it cannot add the entry post the contents of the boot.ini file here and
someone will suggest additional entries. The boot.ini is a hidden
system file, you have to use the folder options to unhide it. You will
have one on each of your drives, decide from which drive you want to
boot most often and use the boot.ini file on that drive.

John

Mac McMicmac wrote:

> I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
> Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt me for which HD I want
> to use when the computer starts up? I have been physically switching the
> power cable and IDE ribbon cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving
> the other drive completely disconnected (both power and IDE).
>
> My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which I could easily
> google for) is that those techniques assume two OS installations on a single
> hard drive... which is NOT my situation... thus the question here.
>
> Thanks!
>
>

Do you think that it is very frustrating switching hard disk like this to
dual boot? I think that you had first installed the Windows XP on HDD1 and
then unpluged it and then installed on the HDD2. That is why you need to
switch between hdd like this. The easiest way could be plug in the both hard
disk and whenever you want to boot from another hard disk just change the
Boot Sequence or Hard Disk Periority from CMOS Setup.

As you already installed Windows XP on both hard disk you can also try XOSL
or any other Operating System Loader to create a menu for all the available
operating system on different drives.

http://www.freedownloads.be/downloaddetail/308-XOSL

If you are planning to reinstall then plug-in both hard disk then install
Windows on the first HDD and then on the another one. Windows will
automatically generate the boot menu for both OS either they are on different
partitions of the same hard disk or on different hard disk.

Hope this help, let us know!

"Mac McMicmac" wrote:

> I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
> Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt me for which HD I want
> to use when the computer starts up? I have been physically switching the
> power cable and IDE ribbon cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving
> the other drive completely disconnected (both power and IDE).
>
> My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which I could easily
> google for) is that those techniques assume two OS installations on a single
> hard drive... which is NOT my situation... thus the question here.
>
> Thanks!
>
>
>

"Mac McMicmac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
>Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt me for which HD I want
>to use when the computer starts up? I have been physically switching the
>power cable and IDE ribbon cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving
>the other drive completely disconnected (both power and IDE).
>
> My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which I could easily
> google for) is that those techniques assume two OS installations on a
> single hard drive... which is NOT my situation... thus the question here.
>
> Thanks!
>

AFAIK you cannot do this with the basic Windows boot loader.
I assume that each disk has Windows installed on drive C:. While
both are installed then one would appear as drive D: or E:, which
will cause havoc.

If your BIOS permits it then you could swap the disks during
the early boot phase, as John suggested. If it does not have this
facility then you need to install a third-party boot loader that
allows you to selectively hide partitions. Check Google for
"Boot Managers". Some are free (e.g. XOSL) but they are less
easy to install.

Pegasus (MVP) wrote:

> AFAIK you cannot do this with the basic Windows boot loader.
> I assume that each disk has Windows installed on drive C:. While
> both are installed then one would appear as drive D: or E:, which
> will cause havoc.
>
> If your BIOS permits it then you could swap the disks during
> the early boot phase, as John suggested.

It does support it, no problem.

If you switch boot order in bios, the drive letter of the other windows
installation will still be changed to something else, which is not a problem

"Pegasus (MVP)" wrote:
>
> "Mac McMicmac" wrote:
>>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy
>> of XP Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt
>> me for which HD I want to use when the computer starts up?
>> I have been physically switching the power cable and IDE ribbon
>> cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving the other drive
>> completely disconnected (both power and IDE).
>>
>> My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which
>> I could easily google for) is that those techniques assume two
>> OS installations on a single hard drive... which is NOT my
>> situation... thus the question here.
>>
>
> AFAIK you cannot do this with the basic Windows boot loader.
> I assume that each disk has Windows installed on drive C:. While
> both are installed then one would appear as drive D: or E:, which
> will cause havoc.

Ntldr (the standard NT/2K/XP boot loader) can boot multiple
OSes from the same HD and from multiple HDs. The entries
in the boot.ini file which designate the OS locations (called
"ARC paths") have a parameter called "rdisk()" which
designates the physical HD. The argument "x" in "rdisk(x)"
stands for the position (beginning with 0) of the HD in the
BIOS'es Hard Drive Boot Order (i.e. HD boot priority).
The HD at the top of the list is "rdisk(0)", and the files in the
Primary partition that is marked "active" on the HD will
control booting. Other HDs in the Hard Drive Boot Order
will be designated as "rdisk(1)", "rdisk(2)", and "rdisk(3)",
depending on the number of HDs in the system. The
*default* Hard Drive Boot Order is a subset of:
Master on IDE ch. 0, Slave on IDE ch. 0,
Master on IDE ch. 1, Slave on IDE ch. 1.
If there is not a HD at one of the above positions, that position
is merely skipped when the BIOS builds its Hard Drive Boot
Order list. And of interest to the Original Poster, that order
can be manually adjusted in the BIOS by the User at startup
time. That setting will persist in ROM from startup to startup.
Thus, with a separate OS on each HD, each with its own
boot files, one can accomplish multi-booting via the BIOS.

Since the OP's two copies of XP were apparently installed
independently (i.e. one being out of view of the other OS's
installer), each will call its own partition "C:" WHILE IT IS
RUNNING, and it will call the other partitions by other single-
letter names. This is NOT a problem as long as the partitions
do not have shortcuts that refer to OTHER partitions.

*TimDaniels*

"Gordon" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:fedk68$vfg$(E-Mail Removed)...
> "Mac McMicmac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
>
> May I ask why?
>

Does it matter?

"Timothy Daniels" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:%(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> "Pegasus (MVP)" wrote:
>>
>> "Mac McMicmac" wrote:
>>>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy
>>> of XP Pro/SP2. How can I have the computer somehow prompt
>>> me for which HD I want to use when the computer starts up?
>>> I have been physically switching the power cable and IDE ribbon
>>> cable to the drive I want to use, while leaving the other drive
>>> completely disconnected (both power and IDE).
>>>
>>> My understanding of "standard" dual boot techniques (which
>>> I could easily google for) is that those techniques assume two
>>> OS installations on a single hard drive... which is NOT my
>>> situation... thus the question here.
>>>
>>
>> AFAIK you cannot do this with the basic Windows boot loader.
>> I assume that each disk has Windows installed on drive C:. While
>> both are installed then one would appear as drive D: or E:, which
>> will cause havoc.
>
> Ntldr (the standard NT/2K/XP boot loader) can boot multiple
> OSes from the same HD and from multiple HDs. The entries
> in the boot.ini file which designate the OS locations (called
> "ARC paths") have a parameter called "rdisk()" which
> designates the physical HD. The argument "x" in "rdisk(x)"
> stands for the position (beginning with 0) of the HD in the
> BIOS'es Hard Drive Boot Order (i.e. HD boot priority).
> The HD at the top of the list is "rdisk(0)", and the files in the
> Primary partition that is marked "active" on the HD will
> control booting. Other HDs in the Hard Drive Boot Order
> will be designated as "rdisk(1)", "rdisk(2)", and "rdisk(3)",
> depending on the number of HDs in the system. The
> *default* Hard Drive Boot Order is a subset of:
> Master on IDE ch. 0, Slave on IDE ch. 0,
> Master on IDE ch. 1, Slave on IDE ch. 1.
> If there is not a HD at one of the above positions, that position
> is merely skipped when the BIOS builds its Hard Drive Boot
> Order list. And of interest to the Original Poster, that order
> can be manually adjusted in the BIOS by the User at startup
> time. That setting will persist in ROM from startup to startup.
> Thus, with a separate OS on each HD, each with its own
> boot files, one can accomplish multi-booting via the BIOS.
>
> Since the OP's two copies of XP were apparently installed
> independently (i.e. one being out of view of the other OS's
> installer), each will call its own partition "C:" WHILE IT IS
> RUNNING, and it will call the other partitions by other single-
> letter names. This is NOT a problem as long as the partitions
> do not have shortcuts that refer to OTHER partitions.
>
> *TimDaniels*
>


Thank you for the informative and helpful answer. FWIW, I'm a developer and
support a production system based on .NET 1.1 and SQL Server 2000. We are
migrating the whole thing to .NET 3.5 and SQL Server 2008 (both of which are
not yet RTM). So I have two development environments which should have
nothing to do with each other - thus the separate physical disks. When the
2008 products are finally RTM I'm going to reimage the disk that currently
has the beta versions. When I'm working in one environment there is
absolutely no need to see the other - so no shortcuts between the two disks.
I do not want to have two completely separate development workstations - so
two physical disks gets me what I need and want. I rarely switch between the
two environments - but I do it enough that it's a hassle and I'd prefer a
way to chose from a menu when I power up.

Thanks again!

"Mac McMicmac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> "Gordon" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:fedk68$vfg$(E-Mail Removed)...
>> "Mac McMicmac" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>> news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>>>I have two physical hard drives (IDE) - each running a single copy of XP
>>
>> May I ask why?
>>
>
> Does it matter?
>


No but I would like to know why on earth you have two disks with the SAME OS
on each.....seems a complete waste of time and energy unless you have a very
obscure reason for doing it...