Installed Win 7 on XP computer now can't use XP

[DeadheadDuke]

I just installed Win 7 on an XP rig hoping to have a dual boot setup. I put Win 7 on a separate drive and somehow the install would never complete so I finally went back and formatted the partition containing Win 7. I downloaded and burned another copy of the Iso file to DVD and this time my install worked. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way the installation made the drive containing XP appear unbootable (not shown as a boot option in BIOS).

I want to somehow get XP back in the boot menu but I am unsure of exactly how to do that other than to uninstall Win 7, do a repair install of XP and go back and reinstall Win 7 and hope it works correctly next time.

I would really appreciate any assistance I can get in restoring XP to the boot menu in Win 7.

[Maleko]

You could try the Vista boot manager:

http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1

which basically lets you edit the boot up option, as Vista and Windows 7 doesn't use boot.ini, this programs lets you edit it, and that MAY help you out.

I assume the Hard Drive still exists and shows up as a drive in the Bios, as well as showing in Windows 7? If the drive itself has exactly vanished from the bios, then would be either a hardware or bios configuration.

[spacesurfer]

The following commands in an elevated command prompt in Windows 7 should add back XP

bcdedit -set {ntldr} device partition=C:
bcdedit -set {ntldr} path \ntldr
bcdedit -displayorder {ntldr} -addlast
bcdedit -set {ntldr} description "Microsoft Windows XP"

Note not to change partition=C: to something else. Keep it C: even though it may not be.

[DeadheadDuke]

Thanks guys! First, I do see the XP drive in BIOS, just not as a boot option. I can also see and access it from Windows 7.

I will definitely try the bcedit commands given me and I will not change any partition letters because I realize that Windows 7 has given itself the letter C:. The old C drive partition is now shown as D:.

[ChiefZeke]

I got the info below whe I asked a question about installin Win7Rc in the Microsoft 64bit newgroup:

A few other tips:

1. Be well acquainted with Disk Management! This tool first appeared

in Windows 2000, but many users - even veterans - still haven't found it.

There are several ways to get there; my favorite is just to press Start,

type in "diskmgmt.msc" and press Enter.

2. Always NAME your volumes. That way, you'll not be TOO confused

when "Win7x86" is Drive C: when you are running Win7 x86 and Drive E:

when you are booted into Vista. It will still be Win7x86 in both

systems, even with different letters.

3. If you want to have consistent drive letters among the various

OSes, then first boot into WinXP and run Disk Management. Create all

your volumes and assign the letters you want - and they don't all have to

be sequential. (I'm currently running Win7 x64 RC in Drive X:, the 10th

volume on Disk 1.) Then insert the Win7 DVD and run Setup from the WinXP

desktop, so that it can "see" and respect the letters you've assigned.

If you boot from the DVD, then Setup will start from scratch and assign

C: to its own boot volume, requiring the system volume be changed,

probably to D:, and other letters to be reassigned, too.

4. Make the System Partition (see KB 314470 for the COUNTERintuitive

definitions of "system volume" and "boot volume", and get comfortable

with those definitions) small - 1 GB is probably more than enough - and

use it only for your startup files. For WinXP, these are NTLDR,

NTDETECT.COM and Boot.ini; Vista and Win7 use bootmgr, bootsect.dos and

the BCD (Boot Configuration Data) files in the hidden \Boot folder in

this partition. All the rest of each OS should go into the \Windows

folder on each boot volume. Then you'll be able to wipe out and reformat

any of the partitions without bothering any of the others. (If you have

multiple HDDs, it's good insurance to create a small System Partition on

each of them and install the latest Windows at least once while each is

the boot device so that Setup can write the startup files to it. That

way, if Disk 0 won't boot, you can still boot from Disk 1 - to fix Disk 0.)

5. Win7 has a smaller on-disk footprint than Vista, since Windows Mail

and other features are no longer imbedded in it. But it tends to grow

after installation! While 20 GB might be enough to start, make those

volumes at least 30 GB each and even larger, since you have "plenty of

hard drive space".

6. Oh, one more. If this is your first 64-bit system, you might be

surprised to find a new folder in addition to Program Files, this one

named "Program Files (x86)". This new PF86 folder is NOT for 64-bit

programs, as I first thought, since it didn't exist in WinXP Pro. In

64-bit Windows, the PF file is reserved for 64-bit apps; 32-bit apps go

into the new PF86. Windows uses these folders to select the proper

drivers and other support files, depending on the "bitness" of the app.

I guess that's enough for now. If you have questions, please post back.

RC White

[spacesurfer]

Thanks guys! First, I do see the XP drive in BIOS, just not as a boot option. I can also see and access it from Windows 7.

I will definitely try the bcedit commands given me and I will not change any partition letters because I realize that Windows 7 has given itself the letter C:. The old C drive partition is now shown as D:.

It doesn't matter what the drive letter assignment is in Windows 7. When XP is booted, it will be C:. Keep it C: is the bcdedit commands. If you change the drive letter for XP, you will have trouble.

And it's bcdedit, not bcedit.

[DeadheadDuke]

Thanks ChiefZeke for that excellent reply. It contains some really good info for all of us. Thankfully I have used user friendly partition names so they are not a problem in most cases.

Sorry about the typo. I know I should have typed BCDedit but my fingeres didn't agree on that point apparently. I understand that the booted partition is going to be C: and I have no reason to ever try to change that.