Can't boot from cloned drive?

[Olav]

I had Windows XP installed on a 32GB C partition on a 250GB disk. Then I
wanted to move the OS to a 32GB partition on a 120GB disk instead.

To clone the disk, I took the 2 disks (the 250 GB OS disk and the new 120 GB
disk) and mounted on a Windows Server 2003 computer. Then I converted the
disks to Dynamic and used NTFS mirroring to clone the 32 GB OS partition to
the 120GB disk. This disk has been used as Windows XP OS disk previously.

The problem now is that neither the original disk or the new one will boot.
I only get the Windows XP logo for 2-3 seconds and then the machine
restarts.

Can anyone explain what's going on here?

Olav

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Error Message About Partition Appears When You Install Windows XP
to a Dynamic Volume
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/283421/en-us

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows - Shell/User
Microsoft Community Newsgroups
news://msnews.microsoft.com/

---------------------------------------------------------------------------­----------------

:

| I had Windows XP installed on a 32GB C partition on a 250GB disk. Then I
| wanted to move the OS to a 32GB partition on a 120GB disk instead.
|
| To clone the disk, I took the 2 disks (the 250 GB OS disk and the new 120 GB
| disk) and mounted on a Windows Server 2003 computer. Then I converted the
| disks to Dynamic and used NTFS mirroring to clone the 32 GB OS partition to
| the 120GB disk. This disk has been used as Windows XP OS disk previously.
|
| The problem now is that neither the original disk or the new one will boot.
| I only get the Windows XP logo for 2-3 seconds and then the machine
| restarts.
|
| Can anyone explain what's going on here?
|
| Olav

 

[Olav]

How is this relevant when Windows XP was already installed on the disk?

Olav

 

[Timothy Daniels]

Read the web page:

"Dynamic volumes that are created by Windows XP
do not place volume information about dynamic volumes
into the MBR partition table. In a Windows XP-based
computer, dynamic disks store their partition or volume
information in a database at the end of each dynamic disk."

When you converted the partitions to dynamic volumes,
the MBR lost the partition table information about the
partition locations. Just don't convert them to dynamic
volumes, and use a utility like Ghost or Casper XP
to clone the partition. You can download Casper XP for
a free 30-day trial from www.FSSdev.com/products/casperxp/.

As for all WinXP clones, when the cloning is complete,
shut down and disconnect the source HD. Then boot the
PC, and the destination HD will automatically boot up.
Then shut down, and position/jumper the HDs so that the
clone will be on the HD at the head of the HD boot order.
You can do this the no-brain way by jumpering the clone as
the "parent" had been jumpered, or in the case of Cable
Select, by swapping positions of the clone and "parent".
Or, you can go into the BIOS and simply move the clone
HD to the head of the HD boot order. Thereafter, the
clone may be started with the "parent" OS visible to it,
and it will only see its "parent" as just another file structure.

*TimDaniels*

"Olav" asked:

 

[Olav]

So, if you invoke Disk Manager on Windows XP and do a "Convert to Dynamic
Disk" on your system disk, you shoot yourself in the foot and will not be
able to boot again?

Olav

 

[Mario Schmidt]

So, if you invoke Disk Manager on Windows XP and do a "Convert to Dynamic
Disk" on your system disk, you shoot yourself in the foot and will not be
able to boot again?

Haha you' re lucky if you can anything of your DATA back, dreaming of
booting...

That' s Windoze, you know

 

[Olav]

Diskpart retain fixed the problem, but I'm amazed that Windows isn't more
clever about theese situations.

Olav

 

[Timothy Daniels]

I'm glad it worked for you. I just learned something new.
The caution to hide the "parent" when booting the new
clone for the 1st time still applies, though.

*TimDaniels*

 

[Robert Moir]

Diskpart retain fixed the problem, but I'm amazed that Windows isn't
more clever about theese situations.

It doesn't do this automatically. If you insist on doing stupid things it
assumes you must know better.