Xp on 2 hard drives

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I would like to install XP on two hard drives in my system. Is this possible,
and would I need to enter my bios and change the primary boot device to
select which hard drive I would like to boot from?
thanks
 
P.K said:
I would like to install XP on two hard drives in my system. Is this possible,
and would I need to enter my bios and change the primary boot device to
select which hard drive I would like to boot from?
thanks
Click to expand...

An easier way to install WinXP on 2 HDs which run in the same PC
(which gets around Microsoft's activation system) is to install WinXP
on one HD and then make a clone of it on the 2nd HD. I use Casper
XP to make clones since it is the simplest that I've found to use.
You can either reset the HD boot order in the BIOS each time you
switch between the two OSes, or you can use multi-booting by adding
an entry in the boot.ini file of the HD which remains at the head of
the HD boot order. (See the current thread in this NG titled "transferring
HD to HD" for details.) When each OS is run, it will call its own
partition "C:" and the other OS's partition "D:" because each thinks
that it is the OS which was installed on the "C:" partition. This will
not cause any problems as long as you don't make shortcuts which
refer to files in the other OS's partition.

*TimDaniels*
 
When each OS is run, it will call its own
partition "C:" and the other OS's partition "D:" because each thinks
that it is the OS which was installed on the "C:" partition. This will
not cause any problems as long as you don't make shortcuts which
refer to files in the other OS's partition.
Click to expand...

Actually, if each OS had shortcuts referring to files in the other
partition (which it would call the "D:" partition), they would all
work properly since the "other" OS's partition would always be
the "D:" partition - not matter which OS was running. The problems
appear when you put in another device that causes the 2nd OS's
partition to become the "E:" or some other partition. But as long
as the device configuration doesn't change, shortcuts between
partitions will work.

*TimDaniels*
 
umm ok .

Are you saying that the OP should play with their BIOS evreytime they want
to switch installations? Or that cloning and creating a multiboot by
restoring to a different drive is good idea? All with the motivation of
trying circumvent a process that isn't going to stop you in the first place?

And is it possible you simply didn't understand the OPS question?

Is the OP looking for speed or fault tolerance?

Whichever , the answer is hardware based RAID.

RAID 0 for speed, RAID 1 for faulttolerance.

Google can yield copious amounts of information on either of these two
topics.

Or is the OP wanting to run two separate installations of XP?

In that case there is copious information available, or they can just
install and read the screen for all the information they need.

--
Manny Borges
MCSE NT4-2003 (+ Security)
MCT, Certified Cheese Master

There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who do understand binary
and those who don't.
 
Manny said:
umm ok .

Are you saying that the OP should play with their BIOS evreytime they want
to switch installations? Or that cloning and creating a multiboot by
restoring to a different drive is good idea? All with the motivation of
trying circumvent a process that isn't going to stop you in the first place?
Click to expand...

The alternative to playing with bios setup to boot a multi-OS
system is to use a third-party boot manager to select the HD to
use.
 
I presume the OP wants to run either of 2 WinXP OSes, each installed
on its own HD.

He can boot a specific OS by one of two methods:
1) Reset the BIOS's HD boot order during the POST part of booting, or
2) Use a multi-boot manager to load the OS which the user speicifies.

The latter can be done with 3rd party software (e.g. xOSL, Boot Commander,
etc.) or with WinXP's own boot loader/manager, ntldr. Ntldr uses entries in
the boot.ini file to present a menu to the user, and by putting one entry in
boot.ini for each of the 2 OSes, the user can choose at boot time which OS
to load and run.

My comment about cloning is that it obviates the need to do another lengthy
installation with its need for explaining to the Microsoft rep why you're
installing your WinXP twice within 120 days. But since the cloning doesn't
automatically produce a dual-booting boot.ini file for you as two separate
installations will do, you'll have to add the 2nd entry to boot.ini yourself,
and you'll have to set the timeout value in the boot.ini file to some reasonable
non-zero number of seconds.

The problem with RAID Level 1 is that it won't create a system backup in
case of a virus of some file corruption - as soon as a virus gets going on
one HD, or as soon as a file is corrupted, the effects appear immediately
 
GHalleck said:
The alternative to playing with bios setup to boot a multi-OS
system is to use a third-party boot manager to select the HD to
use.
Click to expand...


Why use a 3rd-party multi-boot manager/loader when there
is one already in WinXP?

*TimDaniels*
 
You know what they say about assumptions.

You are assuming that somone who isn't aware of how to a dual install (which
is an unnessasary concept I will fight with my last breath) will be able to
correctly copy and modify the ARC path for the new drive.

You are also assuming that there is a problem with RAID 1 that any other non
SAN form of storage does not share. Fault tolerance does not obviate the
need for a backup. There are several backup utilities out there that will
meet the need to save data easily from disk cloning to data backup only.
Also you seem to have forgotten the power of the system restore tool.

Just to fill in why I am so against dual boots:
Ther intertwine with the basic setup of the system.They lock you into a
static configuration that is not easily modified This is uneeded in a day
and age when virtual pc technology exists.

When one of the very very few valid reasons for a dual boot do pop up, they
are usually easier solved by swappable hard drives.

--
Manny Borges
MCSE NT4-2003 (+ Security)
MCT, Certified Cheese Master

There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who do understand binary
and those who don't.
 
Manny Borges said:
You are assuming that somone who isn't aware of how to [do]
a dual install (which is an unnessasary concept I will fight with
my last breath) will be able to correctly copy and modify the
ARC path for the new drive.
Click to expand...


No, I just gave the options. If the OP considers or chooses
to dual-boot, he'll be back with more questions. I'm not going
to write a treatise on how to dual-boot each time some
poster muses on what to do. If you want the critical information
about ARC paths - the meaning of the "rdisk()" parameter - I
suggest you read my report called 'meaning of "rdisk()" in boot.ini'
posted in alt.sys.pc-clone.dell in January of this year. Once you
really understand how ntldr/boot.ini work, you'll see how easy
multi-booting with WinXP is.

You are also assuming that there is a problem with RAID 1 that any other non
SAN form of storage does not share. Fault tolerance does not obviate the
need for a backup. There are several backup utilities out there that will
meet the need to save data easily from disk cloning to data backup only.
Also you seem to have forgotten the power of the system restore tool.
Click to expand...


I do not understand your point, but neither do I wish to debate it
other than to say that RAID 1 protects against data loss, and backups
protect against data screwups. Clones fail into the latter category.

Just to fill in why I am so against dual boots:
Ther intertwine with the basic setup of the system.They lock you into a
static configuration that is not easily modified This is uneeded in a day
and age when virtual pc technology exists.
When one of the very very few valid reasons for a dual boot do pop up,
they are usually easier solved by swappable hard drives.
Click to expand...


The WinXP boot manager is part of every WinXP installation.
It is, in effect, a multi-boot load manager being used in 99% of
PCs as a uni-boot load manager. All that is necessary to make
it multi-boot is to add an entry in the boot.ini file. That is ALL.
There's no "intertwining" of systems' setups as each of the
"setups" knows nothing about how it got loaded and started.
Each system is as independent as they would be as single-boot
installations on separate HDs.

*TimDaniels*
 
Thanks for the post.

But again you are assuming.

You are assuming that I do not understand arc paths or mulitboot systems.

I understand the ability to create a multiboot system. I have been doing it
since the days of DOS.

I understand your recomendations, but I would recomend you go back read my
post to see what I am actually saying and how I am responding to your
comments.

You are not technically wrong in your advice, But you seem to be stabbing at
unrelated points and not taking in the picture as a whole.
In my opinion what you propose is a time and resource waster, and is not as
flexible as using a virtual set up.

You sound like you have a basic understanding of the technology, which is
fantastic, but understanding how technology works vs how it can be used are
two different realms.

--
Manny Borges
MCSE NT4-2003 (+ Security)
MCT, Certified Cheese Master

There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who do understand binary
and those who don't.
Timothy Daniels said:
Manny Borges said:
You are assuming that somone who isn't aware of how to [do]
a dual install (which is an unnessasary concept I will fight with
my last breath) will be able to correctly copy and modify the
ARC path for the new drive.
Click to expand...


No, I just gave the options. If the OP considers or chooses
to dual-boot, he'll be back with more questions. I'm not going
to write a treatise on how to dual-boot each time some
poster muses on what to do. If you want the critical information
about ARC paths - the meaning of the "rdisk()" parameter - I
suggest you read my report called 'meaning of "rdisk()" in boot.ini'
posted in alt.sys.pc-clone.dell in January of this year. Once you
really understand how ntldr/boot.ini work, you'll see how easy
multi-booting with WinXP is.

You are also assuming that there is a problem with RAID 1 that any other
non SAN form of storage does not share. Fault tolerance does not obviate
the need for a backup. There are several backup utilities out there that
will meet the need to save data easily from disk cloning to data backup
only.
Also you seem to have forgotten the power of the system restore tool.
Click to expand...


I do not understand your point, but neither do I wish to debate it
other than to say that RAID 1 protects against data loss, and backups
protect against data screwups. Clones fail into the latter category.

Just to fill in why I am so against dual boots:
Ther intertwine with the basic setup of the system.They lock you into a
static configuration that is not easily modified This is uneeded in a day
and age when virtual pc technology exists.
When one of the very very few valid reasons for a dual boot do pop up,
they are usually easier solved by swappable hard drives.
Click to expand...


The WinXP boot manager is part of every WinXP installation.
It is, in effect, a multi-boot load manager being used in 99% of
PCs as a uni-boot load manager. All that is necessary to make
it multi-boot is to add an entry in the boot.ini file. That is ALL.
There's no "intertwining" of systems' setups as each of the
"setups" knows nothing about how it got loaded and started.
Each system is as independent as they would be as single-boot
installations on separate HDs.

*TimDaniels*
Click to expand...
 
What is your point? The OP asked how to install WinXp
on 2 hard drives.

*TimDaniels*
 
Timothy said:
Why use a 3rd-party multi-boot manager/loader when there
is one already in WinXP?

*TimDaniels*
Click to expand...

There are limitations to what the Windows XP boot manager can
do. I think the setup being described by the OP is that Windows
XP will be installed independently to 2 different hard drives,
each with its own primary/system partition. Instead of manually
selecting which drive via bios setup, GH might be thinking of
using something that the old-fashioned System Commander to do
the selection.
 
Mistoffolees said:
There are limitations to what the Windows XP boot manager can
do. I think the setup being described by the OP is that Windows
XP will be installed independently to 2 different hard drives,
each with its own primary/system partition. Instead of manually
selecting which drive via bios setup, GH might be thinking of
using something that the old-fashioned System Commander to do
the selection.
Click to expand...


Re-read the thread. I simply pointed out that the 2nd installation
of WinXP can be made by cloning the 1st, and I also pointed
out the it would easier to use WinXP's boot manager to dual-
boot between the two OSes than by going into the BIOS to
switch the hard drive boot order. The standard WinXP boot
loader is fully capable of multi-booting, and there is no reason
use a 3rd-party boot manager just to multi-boot between 2
versions of WinXP. If the OP is still interested, let him ask how
to modify the boot.ini file.

*TimDaniels*
 
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