Quote:
Originally Posted by
spiky20008 
Tried and still no joy i also tried running in all versions on compatibility mode
will the dual boot effect my pc in any way?
could i just have XP on a 7200rpm drive i have spare as i dont want to mess with my SSD or my 2TB.
(id like xp to me on a drive of it's own to be left alone etc)
Sorry for the late reply,
Oooook, your dual boot situation, Yes you can have it on a separate drive and not mess with your SSD, The only real issue is going to be installing XP after you've got windows 7 already installed. Basically the way people normally do it is install XP first, then windows 7, why? I hear you asking, basically the boot loader will get overwritten when you install the OS. So if you install windows 7, then install windows XP, the windows XP boot loader will be installed and it won't be able to see your windows 7 partition because it doesn't know how to read it.
Make sense?
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/8057-dual-boot-installation-windows-7-xp.html
You'll need to follow the guide for "Windows 7 is installed first" and then you can get with your dual booting.
I'll throw it in here as a spoiler anyway but you'll be better off following the link.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)1. To Create a New Partition from the Windows 7 Hard Disk Drive
NOTE: If you want to install XP on a separate internal hard drive instead, then skip this step and go to step 2.
A) In Windows 7, select and shrink the Windows 7 volume in Disk Management by how many MB (1024 MB = 1 GB) you want to have for this XP partition. (See screenshots below)
NOTE: You would do all of Method One at that link.
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-1.jpg
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-2.jpg
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-3.jpg
2. Insert your XP installation disc, then restart the computer and press any key to boot from it when prompted. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: Make sure that the CD/DVD drive is selected first in the boot order in the BIOS.
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-step1.jpg
3. From XP Setup, Press Enter. (See screenshot below)
warning Warning
If you have a RAID setup, you will need to have the XP RAID drivers for your specific motherboard on a Floppy disc available to select and load at the F6 prompt while installing XP.
If you have a SATA drive, then you will need to do either one of these options to load the SATA drivers for XP for your specific motherboard.
How to Slipstream SATA drivers into Windows XP setup CD with Dual Boot of Windows 7 or Vista
How to Load SATA Drivers in Windows XP Setup on your Dual Boot PC with Vista or Windows 7 for how to load your SATA drivers from a Floppy disc at the F6 prompt while installing XP.
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-4.jpg
4. Press F8. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: On some multimedia keyboards, you may need to press the F-Lock or Function key before pressing F8.
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-5.jpg
5. Select the partition (step 1) or hard drive that you want to install XP on using the arrow keys and press Enter.
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-6.jpg
6. Finish installing XP.
Tip Tip
If you get Error loading Operating System after XP restarts:
Using your Windows 7 installation disc, boot to the command prompt at startup.
Type in these comands below, and press enter after each one.
bootrec /FixMbr
bootrec /FixBoot
bootrec /RebuildBcd
Exit the command prompt and restart the computer.
At this point, Windows 7 should boot up the same way before trying to install XP.
Continue to step 8 below and run EasyBCD from Windows 7 instead.
7. In XP, download and install .Net Framework 2.0 (32-bit) version or .Net Framework 2.0 (64-bit) version first, and EasyBCD (free version) for your 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x86) XP.
NOTE: In XP, Net Framework is required to be installed to run EasyBCD. After you click on Register (at bottom of link) for the free EasyBCD, registration is not required to download it.
8. Run EasyBCD (free version).
NOTE: This is required to repair the Windows 7 boot file and add XP to the Windows Boot Manager list.
9. On the left side of EasyBCD, click on the Add New Entry button. (See screenshot below)
A) In the top section under Operating Systems, click on the Windows tab. (See screenshot below)
B) To the right of Type, select Windows NT/2k/XP/2k3 from the drop down menu. (See screenshot below)
WARNING: Be sure to leave the Automatically detect correct drive box checked.
C) To the right of Name, you can leave the default Microsoft Windows XP as the name to be displayed in the Windows Boot Manager, or you can type whatever name you would like to have instead. (See screenshot below)
D) Click on the Add Entry button. (See screenshot below)
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-7.jpg
10. On the left side of EasyBCD, click on the BCD Deployment button, select (dot) the Install the Windows Vista/7 bootloader to the MBR option, and click on the Write MBR button. (See screenshot below)
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-w7-xp-9.jpg
11. Close EasyBCD.
12. Restart the computer to have the option to boot from Microsoft Windows XP or Windows 7. (See screenshot below)
Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP-example2.jpg
