Dual or Multi-Booting including Windows XP Professional x64 Edition
Over the years, I’ve run more than one operating system on almost all of my every day systems. As a writer about technology and operating systems, I’m constantly working with new (and often beta) operating systems as I learn their ins and outs to write about them. Since I generally have to buy my own hardware, that means making the most of the hardware I do have, and dual booting, or multi-booting, can be an effective solution. Several years ago, when the Windows Expert Zone was getting started, I wrote a column about multi-booting, and much of it is still true today. But obviously, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition didn’t exist back then, so let’s talk about the specifics of how to do it with x64 Edition.
Installation Order
First, and foremost, as I said in that earlier column – the order of installation is critical. The general rule is: Always install operating systems in the order of their original release date. That has always been true, and is definitely true here. That means that Windows XP Professional x64 Edition needs to be the last operating system you install, at least if we’re dealing with released versions of Windows operating systems. If you want to dual boot with 32–bit Windows XP, install it first. Add any drivers you need, do your basic configuration, etc., and create a system restore point. Better yet, do a full backup. It’s always good to have a solid backup of a known good operating system to fall back on.
Partitions
Next, install Windows XP Professional x64 Edition onto its own partition. As I said in that earlier column, “The first rule of partitions is that every operating system needs one. Actually, every OS needs its own drive letter (technically, a logical drive), but it can share an extended partition with other operating systems as long as they're each in their own logical drive. If your mix of operating systems includes UNIX and/or Linux, they will require their own primary partition, separate from any Windows operating system you have installed.”
Do not attempt to install x64 Edition and 32–bit Windows on the same drive letter. It will not work, it’s not supported, it’s a bad idea, and you’ll have trouble. If you’ve already done this, start over. Re-install your operating systems in the correct order, and do it by formatting the partitions completely.
File Systems
The time for FAT formatted file systems is over. Use NTFS for all your partitions here. It’s faster, it’s definitely safer, and there’s just no real reason to use FAT any more. If you’re going to run both 32–bit and 64–bit XP, I’d suggest a 30Gb NTFS C: partition for 32–bit XP, another 30Gb NTFS D: partition or logical drive for 64–bit XP, and use the rest of your hard drive space as appropriate for your way of working, either one big drive letter or several smaller drive letters, your choice. Personally, I have drive E: strictly for “My Documents”. (Tip: you can share your My Documents folder between 32–bit and 64–bit Windows. If you move them both onto the same location, you’ll find everything easier from whichever OS you boot to.) The next drive letter I have is for my miscellaneous data and downloaded files. Everything from drivers to new versions of the OS’s I’m working with goes on this, and again, it’s NTFS. And, finally, the other trick I do is to set my main DVD drive at the same drive letter on all my OS’s – R: in my case, but choose your own.
Wrong Order
If you've installed the operating systems in the wrong order, you can try to correct the problem by copying "ntdetect.com" and "ntldr" from the \i386 directory of your x64 CD to the root of your boot drive (C:) and then rebooting. If that isn't sufficient, then try:
If your boot.ini file has been lost, or corrupted:
- Insert your x64 CD and boot from it, choosing the Repair option
- Run fixboot (fixes the boot sector)
- Run bootcfg /rebuild (rebuilds your boot.ini)
- Copy over the ntldr and ntdetect.com files
Vista
A final note: If you’re testing or evaluating Vista, keep in mind the order of operating systems. Since it’s the latest one, it goes on last. And given that it’s a beta product at this point, be prepared to format and re-install that partition many times before the product ships. Don’t put it on any partition with other programs or data that you need to keep. Always install a new build on a fresh, formatted, partition.
Edited: 22 Dec, 2005 to add "Wrong Order" section (cpr)