Hi
i have 3 partitions on my sata 200 gig hd with WIN2K pro in the 1st
partition - when i installed XP pro in partition 2 i could only boot XP.
after trying win2000 erd and xp erd i reinstalled win2000. then i could only
boot win2000. after trying the above again and bootcfg i still cannot multi
boot. i tried different boot.ini's in both patrtitions and ended up
re-installing again just to be able to boot.
can someone tell me how to get multi boot to function?
TIA
rob
The best way for a flawless dual boot is this:
Your first partition use PM to format the size you want leaving your
second PT blank.....Make sure you obviously make the 1st PT a primary of
course.......Set it active, reboot with whatever OS you want installed
first.....Finish the install. In this case whether Win2K is first or
WinXP is it does NOT matter because you are not using windozes crappy
boot managing. I see you have been through the install process already
with Win2K so I am assuming the SATA drivers are pre-installed from a
floopy? I haven't experienced SATAs yet so I'm not sure.
Now when alls done & installed use PMagic again to format your 2nd
partition as a primary and make sure you "hide" it after....Re-boot, you
will not see it in the 1st OS install..........
Install BMagic to your 1st partitions OS....Add each OS to the menu when
it's finished installing, you will be able to setup the 2nd partition
even though nothing is installed......Make sure you check off
"indefinite" in the options otherwise it won't stop at the boot
options.....
Here's the trick for your second OS.....When you see the BMagic menu,
boot to the PT with no OS on it....An error will come up saying "invalid
system disk" don't panic this is good.....Insert your other OS CD and
either hit the Enter key to boot to the CD or just reboot & watch the
screen.......
The reason I state to do it this way is because by booting to an empty
partition it automatically sets it to "active" status and will "HIDE"
your 1st partition from the second OS install......You will see this
when you are given the option of where to install....Your first OS will
say "Inactive OS boot manager" something like that(make sure it says
that). Why I prefer installs this way is because each OS will be
assigned the standard "C" letter and will be totally hidden from each
other......DO NOT let the windows install format your drives, do it
yourself with PMagic...........
Repairing your above issue would be a pain I suppose, but you appear to
have the patience to re-install again.....I think it's a good thing as
it's a fun experience.......I myself have 4 OS's on one drive
multibooting using PM & BMagic so I have been there & done that and
still am doing it.
Good luck!
