Windows Xp and vista Dual Boot?

Snaggle · 21 Jan 2008 at 18:54

Is it possible to duel boot xp pro and vista prem ?

I used to run win98/xp dual boot but will vista do it? What gets installed first? Xp or vista and will they deal with each other np or do i need a third party app?

Regards

Persil

Borden · 21 Jan 2008 at 18:56

Install XP first. Then just go through the vista installation and it will sort out the boot options itself.

Then you can use a program called EasyBCD to tweak the bootloader settings such as the default OS etc.

GazD · 21 Jan 2008 at 19:09

Try this easy to follow guide.
http://apcmag.com/5485/dualbooting_vista_and_xp
I used it and it was easy.

mattyrigby00 · 21 Jan 2008 at 19:41

aslong as xp is installed first its easy, just start the installation from windows and install it to a second partition

if its xp x32 and vista x64 then you might need to boot from the cd to do it, but itll still detect the xp install and create the dual boot.

Greenboi · 24 Jan 2008 at 17:08

By having XP and Vista installed on one hard drive, would you..

A) Have to have games installed on both OS's for them to work at all?
B) Lose performance on either OS?
C) Could there be any driver problems?
D) Once XP is installed again, im guessing it will be just like a total fresh install?

I want to keep vista but i also want XP back for games performance, but i dont see the point if it will hinder performance in any way.

Sorry for thread hijack / question barrage but i dont see the point opening another thread when one i can ask in already exists!

Senture · 24 Jan 2008 at 17:43

I wrote an idiots guide for some 1 on another forum with pictures

http://ut2004.titaninternet.co.uk/forums/showpost.php?p=249190&postcount=7

sepulchre · 24 Jan 2008 at 18:17

Greenboi said:
By having XP and Vista installed on one hard drive, would you..

A) Have to have games installed on both OS's for them to work at all?

Some games need to be installed in Both OS's, some will run fine from a single installation, I'm tending to install them in one OS, then do the install again in the other OS to the same location, this simply sets the reg keys.

B) Lose performance on either OS?

Not that I've noticed, and I don't see why you would.

C) Could there be any driver problems?

Only driver problems you will get will be the same as if you had either OS installed on its own, but tbh Vista has pretty decent driver support now.

D) Once XP is installed again, I'm guessing it will be just like a total fresh install?

If you format the drive removing both OS's then yes, or have I mis-understood you here?

I want to keep vista but i also want XP back for games performance, but i don't see the point if it will hinder performance in any way.

If your running a decent spec system I don't think you will see a huge amount of difference, I still have dual boot PC but I've not been back to XP since installing Vista a few weeks ago and I find COD/Crysis/Bioshock all run great

Greenboi · 24 Jan 2008 at 18:28

Ty very much for the help, but i have noticed quite large drops in FPS in Vista. If i install XP and the drops are still there then i know its something else, but i dont see what else it could be.

sepulchre · 24 Jan 2008 at 19:58

I guess you can only try it, there were a few hot fixes not available through windows update, one of which IIRC sorts some of the performance issues. Will go look...

OK, this is the one I as thinking off - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/940105

I cant say if it made any difference to me as I installed it pretty much straight after installing Vista and before doing any gaming...

Microsoft has made available the following Windows Vista KB940105 hotfix. All NVIDIA GeForce 6, 7 and 8 series users should install this update in order to resolve potential Graphics Virtual Address problems that may occur when running Windows Vista OS. This hotfix resolves abnormal application behavior such as crashes and extremely low frame rates when running some 3D applications at very high graphics settings. This issue has been most commonly noticed on high-end graphics cards and the following applications: Battlefield 2, Battlefield 2142, Civilization IV, Company of Heroes, Half-Life 2, Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth II, Supreme Commander, and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas. In order for this hotfix to be effective, GeForce customers must also update to the latest ForceWare Release 163 drivers.

Might be worth a try?