FDisk and DualBooting

[ciscoman1]

I am in the process of doing an image of my current 98SE hard drive to a new hard drive and then I will partition it so that I can use an EVALUATION WIN2000 Pro copy on the new hard drive also. I just read an article which said that you can use fdisk to set another partition to be ACTIVE. I will do the 98SE image to the C:\ drive of the NEW HD which would make the image ACTIVE, wouldn't it? Then I will install the 2000 evaluation copy on the D:\partition. Now I read that you can just go back into fdisk and then you can change which OS will be ACTIVE, correct? Is this a very good way to change which OS is active or can you suggest some alternative methods I can or should try??
Thanks ciscoman

[BertImmenschuh]

You probably will not need to change the Active partition from C:. When you install WinNT4/2000/XP in the second partition, it will set the boot sequence and give you a choice menu. Please avail yourself of this article:
<a target="_blank" href=http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q306559>http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q306559</a>.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
Could you think of a good purpose or reason to use FDisk and then change to another partition and make it active? Also, the link you provided is for XP but will this also apply to 2000 Pro, 2000 Server, Advanced Server?
Thanks for the link ciscoman
ciscoman

[BertImmenschuh]

The fdisk process could be used but why bother with the extra time to do it. You'd have to boot to a floppy EVERY time you wanted to change it, make the change, then re-boot. Fdisk should only be used to establish the boot partition and any logical/extended partition, or to delete any [which will also destroy any data on it].

In dual-booting, the programs built on the NT core [WinNT4/2000/XP Pro/HE] should be the last installed, mainly because they use ntloader, which controls the boot-up process. WinNT4 can't use FAT32 and Win9x/ME can't use NTFS.

I find it much preferable to use PartitionMagic [which includes BootMagic] from PowerQuest <a target="_blank" href=http://www.powerquest.com>www.powerquest.com</a> to resize/move partitions.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
I definitely want to add Partition Magic to my collection of utilities. I have checked out the price around town and it goes for $69.95 anywhere I've called. Do you or others have any online places that I can find it cheaper? Thanks ciscoman

[BertImmenschuh]

That's about the going price. PowerQuest has it for the same price but they do have it for downloading [50MB], which for me was quicker than anything else. I've been doing the upgrades so I got to save $20. Nearest retail place for me is 110 miles away, or use UPS/FedEx for 5-10 working days.

You might try <a target="_blank" href=http://www.directdeals.com>www.directdeals.com</a>.

<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by BertImmenschuh on 02/09/02 13:49.</FONT></P>

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
I have noticed all new software such as Norton Ghost, Drive Image is the same price. I did find a store that sells Partition Magic for $63.00 so I'll have to go for it, then use Partition Magic and Boot Magic that comes with it and see how I like it. Thanks ciscoman

[BertImmenschuh]

You're welcome. Yeah, I think most software developers/publishers have hit upon a price range most people can live with. I dread the thought of MS Office 2000 at $449. Haven't even looked at Office XP yet.

[DeQuincey]

ciscoman, why so complicated?

Just install Win98SE in to the first partition, install Win2k into a different one and edit the boot.ini file that ends up in your C: drive.

<a target="_blank" href=http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q99743>Purpose of the BOOT.INI File (Q99743)</a>

[ciscoman1]

To DeQuincey
When I first bootup my pc, Won't Win2000 automatically ask you what OS you want to boot up to after installing 98 to the first partition and then installing 2000?
ciscoman

[BertImmenschuh]

As you said, that is an excellent tool for a toolkit, wouldn't be without it. I use it about twice a week and already have two clients scheduled next week. And it does a nice job of converting Win95B/C and Win98 partitions to FAT32 before resizing and quicker than the FAT32 Converter in Win98. A tip: delete all the disk compression icons for DriveSpace/DriveSpace3 from the menu/s after converting, can't use them with FAT32.

[BertImmenschuh]

ciscoman1, when you get PartitionMagic, be sure to register it. If you get version 7, there is a free upgrade to version 7.01 on their site. Same with BootMagic.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
Yeah I will remember to register Partition Magic. Also I just installed a new 20 Gig HD from Western Digital and it came with a utility called "Data Lifeguard Tools" and lifeguard fits on a floppy. After starting with the utility it partitioned and formatted my new hd(I have 3 different partitions) on the new HD and after copying the system files from my old HD I then selected to copy the contents of my old HD to the FIRST Partition and EVERY program that I have tried has worked perfectly. I first disconnected my old HD and plugged my new HD to the primary controller connector so I DID NOT even have to do an IMAGE file using NORTON GHOST 2002(which I just purchased) but I know that I can use Ghost to clone to CD-RW's so it is not a complete waste of money. I couldn't believe that a FLOPPY utility could clone my HD like that(pretty cool) Anyway I am going to install Win2000 Pro on another partition of my new HD. My last question is, WILL 2000 Pro AUTOMATICALLY prompt you when you are booting up as to which OS you want to use???????

Thanks again ciscoman

[DeQuincey]

Yup. It's a text menu similar to NT's boot-up menu. You can edit the "boot.ini" file to modify this menu.

<a target="_blank" href=http://www.winguides.com/registry/category.php/201/>WinGuide's Section on Boot.ini</a>

[BertImmenschuh]

ciscoman1, You're welcome, glad to help you. WinXP does a good job with a simple menu at boot-up, puts itself at the top and the other OS next. They can be switched.

I had heard of the floppy accompanying the drive/s but haven't seen it with the OEM purchases yet. Guess not needed for those. The only thing I'd be wary of on older computers is if the BIOS doesn't recognize the drive, it may offer to install an overlay. Not necessarily a bad thing, just not always needed.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
My Bios date is 7/19/99 so it's not exactly new nor too old either as it had no problem identifying my new HD and the partitions. The only thing I have noticed during bootup is that there is a presense of EZ-Installer which will ask if you want to boot to the floppy and then it just loads the OS if you don't select it. I don't think it is an overlay program though. Isn't the overlay for bios's that don't recognize larger hd's?? ciscoman

[ciscoman1]

To DeQuincey
Just one last question which is, say I choose to load 98SE to run first(after selecting it from the bootup option), and after a while I choose to use Win2000 Pro, will I need to reboot to be able to use the Win2000 OS??
Thanks ciscoman1

[BertImmenschuh]

ciscoman1

"Isn't the overlay for bios's that don't recognize larger hd's??" Exactly.

I haven't used the EZ-installer yet but I feel that anything that gives the message about booting to the floppy is an overlay. It has changed the Master Boot Record [MBR] of the hard drive [maybe unnecessarily]. Usually it is not a problem but it does introduce a delay in the boot process.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
I am going to see if there is a way to delete that part of the bootup process. I already looked through msconfig and noticed that EZ-Installer had placed itself in the startup area for some reason so I disabled that part. I probably will ask Western Digital Technical support about what I can do about the section it put prior to loading the OS. ciscoman1

[BertImmenschuh]

ciscoman1

You should be able to get rid of it by booting to a Win98 boot disk and type fdisk /mbr and reboot. I usually do it twice. That will replace the Master Boot Record and should get rid of the message. But be sure to check the WDC web site for the diagnostic, they may have additional information.

[ciscoman1]

To Bert
I posted my question to the Western Digital Forums so I will see what they have to say about my questions and I still might try your suggestion ciscoman

[DeQuincey]

Yes, most certainly. Both os's will need to shutdown, write things to disk, the usual stuff.

[ciscoman1]

DeQuincey
Thanks for your input
ciscoman1