install Windows XP to a different partition

[Chris M]

I am currently running WindowsXP. I want to install another copy of XP to a different partition on my hard drive. I ran the Windows installer but when XP checked for existing installations it did not show any other space on the hard drive. I currently have a second primary partition which is 18GB and formatted NTFS. I tried running the installer with the space unallocated, with an extended partition, with a logical partition on top of the extended partition and with a primary partition but the Windows installer will not see the unused space.

I rooted around in the disk manager (right click My Computer --> manage --> disk management) and I noticed that I can change the active partition. I think this may be the key to installing a second OS but I am afraid to make the empty partition active because the Windows boot loader relies on the active partition having Windows on it; I am afraid I will make my system unbootable if something goes amiss. To remedy this, I thought maybe a 3rd party boot loader such as LILO (linux loader) would allow me to safely change the active partition.

Here are my questions. How can I install a second copy of Windows XP to a different partition of my main hard drive? What steps do I need to take? Are there any steps I am missing? If a 3rd party boot loader is what I need, how can I install one without installing Linux?

These questions were posted on a different forum before this one. The only suggestion I have received thus far is to make the new partition visible. How do I make a partition visible?

[Kov-Ice]

Are you attempting to set up a dual-boot system with two different instances of XP?

[Chris M]

Originally Posted by Kov-Ice Are you attempting to set up a dual-boot system with two different instances of XP?

Yes I want to keep my existing installation and install another copy of WindowsXP to a different partition of the same hard drive.

[bozo]

I have dual-booted for a couple of years (XP & 98), using a 3rd party boot managers. I started out using System Commander, but I now use "Bootit" from terabyte. Most of these boot managers have various disk utility tools on floppies, that, for example, allow you to hide any (or all) partitions you don't want to mess with, and make the target partition "Active & Bootable". You can then install your OS to the target partition, without the fear of installing to the wrong partition. After the OS install & reboot, use the same utility floppie to "Unhide" the partitions.

I feel MUCH safer using 3rd party SW to do these operations, since many of them have "Undo" functions. I am using "Bootit" now...it's a boot manager. as well as several other utilities, Partitioning-resizing, disk imaging, and more...free to try for 30 days...then it's only $35 to buy.

I am curious to hear from the experts here about two instances of XP on the same machine...I was thinking of doing the same thing.

[Chris M]

I took a chance. I went and made the empty NTFS partition "active" in disk management and tried the windows installer. It worked and I was able to choose which partition to install Windows to. When I finally booted into my brand new instance of windows I reset the active partition to my original windows installation (the first primary partition) and rebooted. I then edited my boot.ini file. I duplicated the line that was already there and changed which partition the boot loader read from. My boot.ini now looks like this:

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn

Notice the 2 after partition in the second line.

[Chris M]

Bozo, thanks for the input about different boot managers. I would have used one of your suggestions if the built in Windows boot loader had failed to work for me.