Dual-Boot Issue With Wiin10 & WinXP As Second Os

C

caxtin

Member
Dell NoteBook / Single Drive / Windows 10 Pro (32Bit) / WindowsXP Pro (32Bit) / EasyBCD 2.3

Ok, I need help in what I am doing wrong here. I love EasyBCD and in the past has shouted about it to people.
Now, something is not working for me, I believe and hope it is the OS.

GOAL:
Currently running Win10 and need to dual-boot WinXP.

ISSUE:
Installed Windows XP from CD created from an ISO file. After installation, it booted into the new OS, WinXP. I installed EasyBCD in XP and all went well. After, I decided to change the location (drive partition) and re-installed it again since I had installed it in the wrong partition by mistake. This is when the nightmare started. Have re-installed XP five times still, I get same error
DualBootXP.jpg
In one of the occasions, after loging into XP, it asked me to insert the XP disk to finish the installation which show me that XP has not been installing completely.

I kept Repairing Win10 and removed the the XP entry to try again. So now, XP will not finish installing and cannot be repaired after trying three times of the re-installations. I have had XP in a partition right after Win10 and had XP as the last partition on the drive. Any help will be so much appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
 
UPDATE

While playing with EasyBCD, I got more error. Now, my PC got to this, won't boot.
 

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caxtin said:
UPDATE

While playing with EasyBCD, I got more error. Now, my PC got to this, won't boot.
Click to expand...

Googled and I got the whole PC boot error fixed by using 'BootRec' commands:
  • bootrec /RebuildBcd
  • bootrec /fixMbr
  • bootrec /fixboot
  • Exit
Now, am left with my first issue on Dual-Booting Windows XP.
 
Don't "repair" XP when it says there's an XP boot problem.
That message from XP is assuming (was written when) XP's the OS in control of the boot.
Installing XP after any newer Vista/7/8/10 will overwrite the PBR with NTLDR specific code, preventing the newer OS from being able to boot.
You obviously know this from your previous post mentioning repairing W10 boot, but if you subsequently allow XP to try fixing the boot, you will just go round in an infinite loop of replacing bootldr with NTLDR and vice versa.
If you install XP after V/7/8/10, it's best to do it into a primary partition which you first set "active" (temporarily for the duration of the install). This will prevent XP setup from touching the W10 boot files, and flipping the "active" flag back to the status quo ante after XP install, gets W10 booting without needing a repair.
In your case, using a logical partition for XP, you don't have that option so the W10 repair is mandatory.

At that point, put the XP CD away in a dark cupboard and forget it.
All subsequent action to dual boot XP is done from W10.

If you add an XP entry with EasyBCD to the W10 BCD, let it auto-configure and don't subsequently change anything it sets up even if you think it made a mistake.
EasyBCD will add copies of any necessary XP boot files to where they must be and adjust the boot chain pointers appropriately.
Don't make the mistake of trying to "correct" it to where you think things are, or should be.

Post back if you have any further problems, including the text from EasyBCD's "view settings" (in detailed mode)
 
Just wondering. I read to dual-boot, I would have to create the new partition at the end of the drive. True?
I currently have one drive in the laptop with "C" as Windows 10 and another partiton I called "Data" with I changed to Drive "E"
so I can have the new partition for Windows XP as "D" (just to be alphabetical). Which means, I would have:
Partition C: Wiindows10
Partition D: Winidows XP (Set to "Active" before installing Windows XP)
Partition E: Data

Am I on the right track?
 
If you set your new partition "active" before you install XP, it will be unaware of W10, and it will install itself as C.
When you set the current "active" partition back again, W10 will boot as C, and be unaware of XP. You can call the XP partition D from W10's viewpoint. It's of no relevance what W10 thinks about it. (see new mobo, no boot menu for more details about disk letters)
When you're back in W10, use EasyBCD to add an XP entry and let it auto-configure.
Don't change anything it sets up and you'll then be dual booting with a choice in your boot menu.
Check this out
Windows 8 (or 10) boot problems ? Please read this before posting
because W8/10 doesn't play nice in a dual-boot.
 
Terry60 said:
When you set the current "active" partition back again, . . .
You instructed to set the new partition active for WinXP, then install WinXP.
This means, after the installation, the system will boot to WinXP since its partition was set active. Right?

When you're back in W10,
Here you mention when am back in Win10. How? Won't a re-boot take me back to the WinXP?
Since I don't have EaseBCD installed, would I have the native Windows Boot menu to go to Win10?
Click to expand...

Thanks and really appreciate all your help on my issues.
 
Terry60 said:
When you set the current "active" partition back again, W10 will boot as C
Click to expand...

You are correct. XP will continue to boot all the while it's still "active".
Changing the active partition back to the W10 partition (if I didn't make it clear above) will start you booting into a W10 which won't know that XP is there.
You could just run a dual-boot by flipping that flag back and forth as required (It's what I used to do with duplicate ME systems in the days before MS started to support multi-booting in XP with the introduction of NTLDR)
However, V/7/8/10's bootmgr will make it more convenient for you by adding an XP entry to the W10 BCD as described previously.
 
Terry60 said:
You are correct. XP will continue to boot all the while it's still "active".
Changing the active partition back to the W10 partition (if I didn't make it clear above) will start you booting into a W10 which won't know that XP is there.
You could just run a dual-boot by flipping that flag back and forth as required (It's what I used to do with duplicate ME systems in the days before MS started to support multi-booting in XP with the introduction of NTLDR)
However, V/7/8/10's bootmgr will make it more convenient for you by adding an XP entry to the W10 BCD as described previously.
Click to expand...
WONDERFUL, THAT WORKED!
Followed your direction and all went well. I used Easeus Partition Master to set the Windows 10 partition 'active'.
I shut down and logged back in on both OSs three different times, just to be sure.
Terry60, I sure appreciate all your help here. Thank you!
 
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