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Options for multibooting Windows XP alongside Win 10+

  • 08-02-2024 06:40PM
    #1
    techguy
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,238 ✭✭✭


    Hello,

    For legacy support reasons I will need to multiboot my computer with Windows XP and Windows 10.

    I understand Windows XP doesn't support GPT formatted hard drives.

    Before I waste an afternoon trying things out.. what would my options be, here.

    Would it be possible to have two separate hard drives installed on the computer - so, 1 x GPT(Win10) and 1 x MBR (WinXP) ?

    Is this a configuration commonly supported by boot loaders? I would plan on using EasyBCD to configure.

    Or would it be easier to run two separate computers.

    Oh and for a variety of compatibility reasons, I won't be able to run XP in a Virtual Machine, which would be the most ideal solution, by a longshot, if it worked!

    I'd be interested in any opinions you guys might have.

    Cheers



Comments

  • #2
    ItHurtsWhenIP
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 2,298 ✭✭✭ItHurtsWhenIP


    I would think the two HDD solution should work as described and I don't think you would need to go down the boot loader route if they were separate bootable drives.

    Just have the OS you use most as the default boot device, and whenever you need to load the other OS, just use the BIOS boot selection menu (F12 maybe on startup?) to boot from the other drive.



  • #3
    techguy
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,238 ✭✭✭techguy


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121742931#Comment_121742931


    Sweet that's a good idea. Hassle free.



  • #4
    AllForIt
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,748 ✭✭✭AllForIt


    Is this a configuration commonly supported by boot loaders? I would plan on using EasyBCD to configure.

    I'm not sure if one disk in GPT and another on MBR at the same time would be supported by your BIOS.

    I had a laptop where this was not possible. So I had go into the bios to change what mode it was in and change it to the appropriate mode otherwise the disk would not be 'seen' and fail to boot. You'll might have to do that, better than nothing though.



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