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

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James Bannan05 June 2007, 11:19 PM

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Want to install Vista on your PC but don't want to get rid of XP just yet? Here's how to install it so you can dual-boot between them, in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide.

Page 1 - Intro

Scenario: You want to install Vista on your PC alongside your XP installation, on the same drive. You have already installed XP. (If you installed Vista first, see our other tutorial on How to dual-boot Vista and XP - with Vista installed first.)

Tutorial Summary: We're going to use the DISKPART utility on the Vista DVD to shrink the Windows XP partition on the hard disk and create enough space for an installation of Vista. We'll then install Vista and use the EasyBCD utility to modify Vista's bootloader to get XP loading properly.

This is an updated tutorial,based on our first Windows XP/Vista dual-booting workshop. The main difference is that we're covering using both the latest version of GParted and DISKPART to shrink the Windows XP partition.

DISKPART can shrink NTFS partitions and it's certainly the more convenient option, but on some systems using DISKPART to shrink the volume will fail, with an vague "Access is denied" error.

This may have something to do with different disk controllers, as this was a problem on the AcerPower test system which has a SATA hard drive, but not on the VMWare system which uses a virtual IDE controller. So we'll cover both processes

EasyBCD has also been updated since the first tutorial was written.

This tutorial was tested on a VMWare Workstation 6 virtual machine and an AcerPower SK50.

Continue to page 2: Get Started - Using GParted: Page 1 Intro; Page 2 Get Started - Using GParted; Page 3 Get Started - Using DISKPART; Page 4 Now Install Vista; Page 5 Modify Vista's Bootloader

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Punchey:

Can this procedure be accomplished using a Vista Ultimate Upgrade DVD? Or will this only work using a full version?

29 February 2008, 8:29 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend

Tony Sarno:

no, the Vista upgrade would overwrite the existing XP installation. You would have to install another copy of XP (if on the same drive, repartition the drive to create another partition for the copy) then install Vista over the original XP installation. Presumably you would need a new licence for the second XP, as it's unlikely you would be able to re-register if the previous version has already been upgraded to Vista. Somebody who has done this might know for sure.

29 February 2008, 8:37 PM (9 months ago)report abuse Send to a friend

joey:

so basically we have to buy the full version to have a dual boot xp and vista system? am i getting this correct?? i ordered an upgrade but i guess i have to take it back and spend the extra $70 for the full version for a dual boot system. has nayone used the upgrade version to dual boot XP and vista on the same hard drive??