Cannot complete XP install on W7 side. So No boot.

D

doncarlos

Member
I have been trying to add a dual boot on the windows side of my platform. I currently use a mac, and using Bootcamp I loaded and successfully have been using Windows 7.

I have valid and authentic cd's of both windows systems, and I have used the XP disc before with no issues when it was just a mac-XP dual boot.

I decided to go with a clean install of Windows 7, and removed the XP OS.

Now I decided to try having a triple boot mac.

1) I have successfully loaded Windows 7 Home edition using bootcamp. The system had no issues.

2) I made a 20 GB unallocated partition in Windows 7 for XP Pro/SP3. Shut it down and restarted with the XP disc (using the "Option" key and selecting the disc).

3) XP seemed to fully install and I had the XP disc format the unallocated partition as NTSF. But at the very end of the installation when it read "Press any key to restart", I got the message "Windows could not start because of a computer disk hardware configuration problem". So XP would never re-start.

4) Checking the partioned files while in Windows 7, the unallocated volume was successfully formated by XP as NTSF and it looks like all of the XP files are there.

5) I did this several times while in Windows 7, of wiping out the partition and going through the xp install process with no successful restart of XP after the instal point is reached "restart using any key".

Each time when I would check while in Windows 7, the windows xp files and format appeared in the new partition. But never a success restart of XP after installation says it is complete, to be more precise.

I used EasyBCD while in Windows 7, and added the XP to the boot ladder. I was able to get a dual boot screen in windows, and anytime I chose Windows XP I got the message "Windows could not start because of a computer disk hardware configuration problem".

So is it because of Bootcamp? I just thought that as long as I was in Windows 7 I could create a seperate dual boot for XP.

I know that virtualization is an option, but my preference is not to go that route and keep the OS's on a seperate platforms.

In the end I can live without XP, but I thought it would be nice to have all three systems, so I gave it a try and became more and more obsessed with trying to get it to work.........LOL. I know that none of you have been in that obsessed mode before.

Thanks for reading this long post and your thoughts and comments are appreciated.
 
Hi
Thanks for the suggestion, and I did use the updated easybcd, but came up with the same results. I am considering that the issue is with bootcamp and it is preventing the XP installation from restarting to complete the install. I have loaded XP approximately 10-12 times since starting this journey and I am afraid I am giving up at this point. I am really hesitant with continuing this attempted tweaking for fear of screwing something up like the present W7 install and OS SL.

I have thought of doing the elaborate task of rewriting a new cd install disk and loading xp onto the external for a boot. We'll see if that actually happens.

Again I appreciate the input but this.
 
Do you have CD set to boot before HDD in the BIOS ? (Just dynamically overiding the BIOS to install Windows isn't enough - the reboots during install need to find the CD first)
 
Terry
I am running a mac mini so I don't think there is any BIOS to command in the thing. So what I am going to try is this:

With xp disc installed while in OS Mac SL, point to the disk as the restart while in system preferences and hopefully it remembers that during the disc install attempt.

>System Preferences>Start Up> will choose XP disc,instead of Mac or Windows 7.

Thanks for your interest, there must be some sort of solution I would think.

Regards,
DonCarlos


Addendum:


Well it booted to the CD and I did the installation again but I same error message"Windows could not start because of a computer disc hardware configuration problem...." Before that message I was given the option to hit any key to restart the CD. When I did that all it did was start the XP disc again to begin a new installation.

So it does not correct the issue.

It needs to restart in Windows XP to complete the XP installation and booting back to the CD only starts that option to start the installation again. :lup:
 
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I've no experience of Macs, but an XP install needs to reboot to the CD. It will bring up the "press any key ...." message each time, but you must not press a key except for the first time.
Pressing a key will start the whole install from scratch again. Ignoring the message on the reboots allows setup to enter the next phase of the install.
 
Right.

I understand, and those times when I just did not hit the "press any key" the error message came up and remained there. I left the message there for almost an hour with it never going away and there was not an install continuing for restart in new XP installation.

Terry.............. I do appreciate you taking the time to respond. If I ever happen upon a solution I will definately post a thread with an answer for others who have run into this problem.

Thanks again.
 
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