Dual Boot with 2 windows 2008 partitions

V

vermio

Member
Hi,
I have cloned my windows 2008 partition to a new one for backup purposes.
But I want to be able to boot from this new partition.
So, I made it active.
With the use of EasyBCD, I created a new entry.
So, I now have the following 0two entries:

Entry #1
Name: Microsoft Windows Server 2008
BCD ID: {current}
Drive: C:\
Bootloader Path: \Windows\system32\winload.exe

Entry #2
Name: Windows 2008_WD
BCD ID: {4de66843-55fe-11e3-bcf8-902b349ffaf4}
Drive: K:\
Bootloader Path: \Windows\system32\winload.exe

What else should I do in order to be able to boot from drive K?
As it is right now, when I choose Entry #2 in boot menu, I have the (known) error "Winload.exe Is Missing"
 
dm.jpg
Yeap!. Here it is. C: is the partition I work on and K: is the one I have cloned and I want to make bootable.
Basicaly, I want to install a different os in C: but first I want to be sure that I'll have one more bootable option...
 
You've cloned Windows to a logical drive.
Windows recognizes one primary partition as "active" per device. There is no concept of an active logical drive. Presumably you used some 3rd party (Linux ?) software to flip that bit, but it means nothing to Windows.
Nevertheless, Windows since XP can be installed to a logical drive, but its boot files must be located in an active primary.
You meet that requirement by chaining it from C, but unfortunately, there's no way of checking whether your clone is bootable at all, by swapping the HDD priorities in the BIOS boot sequence and trying to boot it directly.
It would need to be in a primary partition for that to work. As it stands that HDD is completely unbootable with no active primary.
The "..winload missing or corrupted..." message is a catch-all and isn't really to be taken at face value. It really means "I can't find this !" and mentions winload merely because it's the first thing bootmgr has to locate in the rest of the long chain of events between power-up and your desktop.
The message is just indicating that there's something wrong with the copy of Windows you're pointing at.
How did you clone it ?
Can you see a K:\Windows\system32\winload.exe ?
 
Last edited:
Back
Top