Dual Boot Questions

Jimmy Macintosh · 05-15-2008, 12:02 PM

I've just spent the past couple of hours searching past threads and none seem to address the questions I have so hopefully there is an untapped wealth of knowledge out there.

I've just bought a new PC, (AMD X2 4200+, 2Gb RAM, Windows Vista Home Basic, nothing special just an all round upgrade, very cheap) it's replacing a P4 2.8Ghz, 1Gb, Windows XP Home.

I've heard lots of mixed reviews about Vista and am thinking about making my system a dual boot.

My first thoguhts are just to pull the XP HDD from my old machine and plug it into the new machine, is there more to it than this? I'm guessing I might need to do a Vista repair so it can find my old XP install, but I don't know.

My primary questions are to do with capabilities:

-Will I be able to access files from both hard drives?

-If I have software installed in XP, will I be able to use it if I boot up in Vista? Would I need to install the software under both OS's?

-Can I make one directory common i.e my documents where both OS's use it but each Hard drive has a copy of the directory (essentially backing up my data) I think this used to be possible in ME with the briefcase facility.

-Is it worth running both OS's? Would running Vista negate the hardware upgrade essentially making it run slow? I use MS Office, and Flight sims mostly.

-Does XP run a version of DirectX 10, or do I have to have Vista in order to use the more capable graphics features?

Thanks for any advice or help.

JM

**sobeit** · 05-15-2008, 02:08 PM

You cannot pull the harddrive from your old system and expect to use the operating system. Different system, different drivers. Besides if the operating system on that drive came with that computer, then you cannot legally do this. You cannot transfer oem software from one computer to another. You will have to purchase the full retail version of xp.

In addition you will have to locate xp drivers for your new system.

When you boot to one os, you cannot run programs in the other. In addition, you cannot use the same license for the same program if you install it in both. You can access files between os's.

Theres nothing wrong with dual booting, in fact, since vista is the future, its best to keep it and learn it.

Since there is a xp version, you should be able to use all features - depending upon the system and graphics card.

Jimmy Macintosh · 05-16-2008, 06:37 AM

Excellent, thank you.

The XP is a full retail version, looks like since there is an XP version of DirectX 10 I'll probably go with XP for the immediate future.

05-15-2008, 12:02 PM	#1 (permalink)
Jimmy Macintosh Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 2 OS: XP / Vista	Dual Boot Questions I've just spent the past couple of hours searching past threads and none seem to address the questions I have so hopefully there is an untapped wealth of knowledge out there. I've just bought a new PC, (AMD X2 4200+, 2Gb RAM, Windows Vista Home Basic, nothing special just an all round upgrade, very cheap) it's replacing a P4 2.8Ghz, 1Gb, Windows XP Home. I've heard lots of mixed reviews about Vista and am thinking about making my system a dual boot. My first thoguhts are just to pull the XP HDD from my old machine and plug it into the new machine, is there more to it than this? I'm guessing I might need to do a Vista repair so it can find my old XP install, but I don't know. My primary questions are to do with capabilities: -Will I be able to access files from both hard drives? -If I have software installed in XP, will I be able to use it if I boot up in Vista? Would I need to install the software under both OS's? -Can I make one directory common i.e my documents where both OS's use it but each Hard drive has a copy of the directory (essentially backing up my data) I think this used to be possible in ME with the briefcase facility. -Is it worth running both OS's? Would running Vista negate the hardware upgrade essentially making it run slow? I use MS Office, and Flight sims mostly. -Does XP run a version of DirectX 10, or do I have to have Vista in order to use the more capable graphics features? Thanks for any advice or help. JM

05-15-2008, 02:08 PM	#2 (permalink)
sobeit Mentor Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: NEAR Posts: 3,762 OS: windows/linux	Re: Dual Boot Questions You cannot pull the harddrive from your old system and expect to use the operating system. Different system, different drivers. Besides if the operating system on that drive came with that computer, then you cannot legally do this. You cannot transfer oem software from one computer to another. You will have to purchase the full retail version of xp. In addition you will have to locate xp drivers for your new system. When you boot to one os, you cannot run programs in the other. In addition, you cannot use the same license for the same program if you install it in both. You can access files between os's. Theres nothing wrong with dual booting, in fact, since vista is the future, its best to keep it and learn it. Since there is a xp version, you should be able to use all features - depending upon the system and graphics card. __________________ Do not feed the trolls.

05-16-2008, 06:37 AM	#3 (permalink)
Jimmy Macintosh Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 2 OS: XP / Vista	Re: Dual Boot Questions Excellent, thank you. The XP is a full retail version, looks like since there is an XP version of DirectX 10 I'll probably go with XP for the immediate future.