XP/Vista/Win7 Triple Boot, NTLDR error

M

morhavoc

Member
So, like a lot of others, I've recently been muddling around with Windows 7. Prior to this, I had XP and Vista all installed on separate hard drives and had a very nice EasyBCD dual boot going on. When I tried to install Windows 7 on a third hard drive, I ran into some problems.

Before I installed Win7, I booted off of the XP drive. However, when I tried to boot to Win7 after the installation, I would receive a missing bootmgr error message. I tried booting to the partition Win7 was on, I tried booting to an entry called "BOOT," and I tried booting to a new partition that showed up called "System Reserved." Nothing worked. I knew the installation was fine, though, because when I booted to the Win7 hard drive, everything worked just fine.

After reading about how Win7 handles bootmgr, I decided to install EasyBCD on Win7, boot to that drive, and then have it triple boot from there. Now, however, XP doesn't boot up. I get a message about NTLDR, and receive a code of 0xC00000F (or something to that effect - sorry, it's late and I'm tired :tongueout:). I know XP is a legacy booter (I DO have it booting from drive C:, I should point out), so I know NTLDR would need XP's location, and it would appear as if it doesn't have it.

So basically, I just need help fixing one of two problems, if you'd all be so kind:
1) Why can't the XP installation of EasyBCD find Win7's bootmgr, even though the installation is fine? (I'm using it right now, even.)
2) How can I copy the NTLDR from my XP drive onto the Win7 drive? (Or point my existing NTLDR in the right direction - whichever is easiest).

Whichever way is easiest to do it is fine by me. In case you can't tell, my system's a little bit absurd anyway :tongueout: Thanks in advance for the help! (By the way, I still love the program!)

--- Addendum ---
Here's my bootloader file:

There are a total of 3 entries listed in the Vista Bootloader.
Bootloader Timeout: 30 seconds.
Default OS: Windows XP

Entry #1

Name: Windows 7
BCD ID: {current}
Drive: C:\
Bootloader Path: \Windows\system32\winload.exe
Windows Directory: \Windows

Entry #2

Name: Windows Vista
BCD ID: {f4e94f70-8c5f-11de-bd4f-b63cfc523f4f}
Drive: E:\
Bootloader Path: \Windows\system32\winload.exe
Windows Directory: \Windows

Entry #3

Name: Windows XP
BCD ID: {default}
Drive: \Device\HarddiskVolume6
Bootloader Path: \NTLDR
 
Last edited:
Hi morhavoc, welcome to NST.
Make sure you're using EasyBCD 2.0 latest build, it automates everything that used to be done manually.
From W7, delete the XP entry, add it again, accept the offer to auto-configure.
 
Has W7 created an unlettered partition with the boot files in ? (check for "system" flag in disk management)
If so, you're another of the few, for whom the handling of this condition doesn't work in build 63 (which should cope automatically).
Assign a letter to the unlettered partition and delete/add the XP entry again.
 
I have to admit, I'm not sure... There are two things that showed up after I installed Win7: A lettered partition that was called "System Reserved" and an entry in the drop-down list on EasyBCD just called "BOOT." I only see it in EasyBCD though. There aren't any signs of an unlettered partition in any of the partition management programs I used to look for one.
 
Control Panel/Admin Tools/computer management/disk management.
That will show your HDD layout and enable you to set a letter if needed.
 
Ntldr problem in vista

I get this message as well. I tried installing a new hard-drive and after installation of hard-drive I got this message "NTLDR is missing" press Cntl+Alt+delete to restart. I read online and a website says that if I run EasyBCD 1.7.2 during booting It will fix the solution. Is this true and if so will it erase anything on my computer I already have?
 
Hi droppin, welcome to NST.
Check your BIOS HDD boot sequence.
It sounds like you've installed a new HDD, and it's trying to boot from that instead of your old HDD.
 
Hi, instead of starting a new thread I use this one to ask how to create a triple boot starting from a fully functional dual boot.
Thanks to the software and Terry's advices I managed to configure my computer to run both Win Vista and XP on separate hard drives. Though, I'd like to install the Win7 demo version on a third drive. What should I do? Connect the third drive, install the OS and let EasyBCD do the rest?
Thanks!
 
Some people have had problems (invalid signature on the W7 loader) trying to boot W7 from Vista.
Booting Vista from W7 doesn't have a problem, so
Define and format your new HDD with your desired partition structure.
Disconnect your other HDDs temporarily.
Install W7 to the partition you created for it. (don't let W7 install to empty unformatted space if you want any kind of control about where the boot files end up)
Reconnect all your HDDS, putting W7 at the top of the BIOS boot sequence.
Boot W7 and install EasyBCD 2.0 latest build.
Add an entry for Vista and one for XP. Let it auto-configure XP for you when it offers.
If/when you want to get rid of W7, just put your previous boot disk top of the boot sequence and remove the new HDD and the status quo ante will be restored.
 
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