Vista - Dual boot Vista 64 and XP

draconis · 06-12-2009

HI, can anyone tell me the best way to dual boot XP and Vista 64?
Can't run so many games so have decided to try dual boot.

Current OS is Vista 64 Ultimate

Thanks

**luckystar** · 06-12-2009

Well, your best bet really is to uninstall vista then partition your drive, so you have two partitions. install xp on one and completely finish installing xp with all the latest drivers and updates, then with the other partition you can install vista and do the same with updates and drivers.

Its best to do it this way as vista will take the boot manager, just remeber to wait for the boot loader screen to pop up when booting up, so you can chosses what installation you wish to use.

The main reason for this is because xp is older, its alway best practice, with dual booting, to put the latest os on top of the old one, you can do this vise-versa, but it may bugger up your installation's.

Once you have installed all, google BCDedit, download that and install, as this will tell the computer you two os's and then you can choose between them, with out it, the pc will just boot into vista all the time and uignore xp.

Hope this helps

Edit: install BCDedit under vista, little tip aswell, when you install bcdedit under vista, download the tweaker and install that, that way, if you ever forget to choose xp and it boots into vista, you can then choose xp from the menu that will be installed next to your clock, this will allow you to choose xp and it the pc will restart into xp and you wont have to wait for the bootloader screen as it will automaticallly choose xp as it boots. I do believe doing all what i said under xp (install bcdedit under xp and install the tweaker again, this way you can chop and change between with ease.

If this helps, please tip those little ol' scales.

**AstaLaVista** · 06-12-2009

Don't want to throw Luckystar under the bus but, This "How To" can not be easier. I know... that's how I did it!

This is the way to do it if you have XP already installed.

How to dual-boot Vista with XP (with XP installed first) - step-by-step guide with screenshots

Now, this is the way to do it if you Vista is already installed.

How to dual boot Vista and XP (with Vista installed first) -- the step-by-step guide with screenshots

06-12-2009	#1 (permalink)
draconis Ultimate x64 2 posts	Dual boot Vista 64 and XP HI, can anyone tell me the best way to dual boot XP and Vista 64? Can't run so many games so have decided to try dual boot. Current OS is Vista 64 Ultimate Thanks
My System Specs

06-12-2009	#2 (permalink)
luckystar Windows Vista Ultimate x64 Build 6001 and Windows 7 Ultimate x64 RC Build 7100 33 posts	Re: Dual boot Vista 64 and XP Well, your best bet really is to uninstall vista then partition your drive, so you have two partitions. install xp on one and completely finish installing xp with all the latest drivers and updates, then with the other partition you can install vista and do the same with updates and drivers. Its best to do it this way as vista will take the boot manager, just remeber to wait for the boot loader screen to pop up when booting up, so you can chosses what installation you wish to use. The main reason for this is because xp is older, its alway best practice, with dual booting, to put the latest os on top of the old one, you can do this vise-versa, but it may bugger up your installation's. Once you have installed all, google BCDedit, download that and install, as this will tell the computer you two os's and then you can choose between them, with out it, the pc will just boot into vista all the time and uignore xp. Hope this helps Edit: install BCDedit under vista, little tip aswell, when you install bcdedit under vista, download the tweaker and install that, that way, if you ever forget to choose xp and it boots into vista, you can then choose xp from the menu that will be installed next to your clock, this will allow you to choose xp and it the pc will restart into xp and you wont have to wait for the bootloader screen as it will automaticallly choose xp as it boots. I do believe doing all what i said under xp (install bcdedit under xp and install the tweaker again, this way you can chop and change between with ease. If this helps, please tip those little ol' scales. Last edited by luckystar; 06-12-2009 at 04:28 AM..
My System Specs

06-12-2009	#3 (permalink)
AstaLaVista Vista x64 + Windows 7 x64 (Ultimate) 1,209 posts	Re: Dual boot Vista 64 and XP Don't want to throw Luckystar under the bus but, This "How To" can not be easier. I know... that's how I did it! This is the way to do it if you have XP already installed. How to dual-boot Vista with XP (with XP installed first) - step-by-step guide with screenshots Now, this is the way to do it if you Vista is already installed. How to dual boot Vista and XP (with Vista installed first) -- the step-by-step guide with screenshots
My System Specs

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