Repair XP installation an dual boot machine (with Vista).

[sd]

I have a PC that had XP pro installed 1st. Then I installed Vista using
the dual boot option on the vista DVD.

Everything went well and it all worked fine.

I've been happily using Vista for months now, and I've not used XP for
some time. But now I need to use it, and it won't boot up.

It gets as far as the log in screen. But the keyboard and mouse don't
work. (they do during boot up as I can use the keyboard to choose the
OS). Same thing in safe mode.

How can I repair the XP installation (or do a new one from scratch),
with out messing up the Vista installation and keeping the dual boot
option.

Cheers.

 

[Earle Horton]

I recommend separate partitions or hard drives for this. It is apparent
that you or Vista inadvertently damaged a file that is needed by XP. If you
install or repair XP you might do the same to your Vista files.

Cheers,

Earle

 

[Script]

How do the keyboard and mouse attach to the computer?
(USB, PS/2,..........)

 

[sd]

They are separate partitions. I could just reinstall XP to the first
partition.

But I would then loose the dual boot to Vista, which is on the 2nd
partition. I think?



says...

 

[sd]

As I said, XP doesn't work in safe mode either.

I already have a boot menu with 'vista and xp'.

But my XP is now corrupted somehow and need repairing. Booting from the
XP disc and trying to repair doesn't work as it can't see the XP
installation. Probably due to Vista taking over the booting to allow the
dual boot menu.

 

[sd]

I've tried both. I just get the XP logon screen with the mouse cursor
stuck in the middle. Keyboard and mouse dont work.

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

Yes, you would. However it is easy enough to remedy. One of the easiest is
to download and install VistaBoot Pro 3.3 and use it to regenerate the boot
files need to dual boot with XP.

 

[sd]

So I can do a clean install of XP to the 1st partition. Install
Vistaboot pro onto XP, and then restore the Vista dual boot menu?

That sound good.

Cheers.

 

[andy]

I have a PC that had XP pro installed 1st. Then I installed Vista using
the dual boot option on the vista DVD.

Everything went well and it all worked fine.

I've been happily using Vista for months now, and I've not used XP for
some time. But now I need to use it, and it won't boot up.

It gets as far as the log in screen. But the keyboard and mouse don't
work. (they do during boot up as I can use the keyboard to choose the
OS). Same thing in safe mode.

How can I repair the XP installation (or do a new one from scratch),
with out messing up the Vista installation and keeping the dual boot
option.

If you reinstall XP, don't reformat the partition, lest you wipe out
the Vista boot manager files. Instead, while running Vista, delete the
XP Windows, Program Files and Documents and Settings folders.
Then install XP.

Since the computer boots directly into XP after it is installed, you
have to replace the XP boot sector with Vista's. Load the Vista DVD in
the optical drive, open an XP command prompt window, and change
directory to Boot on the Vista DVD. Then execute bootsect /nt60 sys so
Vista's boot code replaces the XP boot code.

J:\Boot>bootsect /nt60 sys
Target volumes will be updated with BOOTMGR compatible bootcode.

C: (\\?\Volume{ad0c894a-e806-11dc-8253-806e6f6e6963})

Successfully updated NTFS filesystem bootcode.

Bootcode was successfully updated on all targeted volumes.

J:\Boot>