I installed a 30 day trial version of Windows Vista. My drives were as follows:-

40 GB Primary Active Partition
37 GB Logical Drive with a single partition

With Vista I split the Primary partition into two (Delete and re-create) 20 GB partitions. Both of them now became Primary partitions. Vista was installed on Drive 1 (20 GB). After the installation, I installed Win XP on the other Primary partition. I thought this would allow me to dual boot Win XP and Vista. But, Win XP setup overwrote the Vista Bootloader.

I changed the active partition to the one where Vista was installed from withing XP's Disk Management tool. It issued a warning that the drive didn't contain any valid system files and the system might not be able to boot. I thought it was just because XP might not be able to understand the Vista startup files and ignored the message. After re-booting, my system hangs on POST where its detecting the HDD. The POST operation completes when I disconnect the Sata HDD's cables from the mainboard.

I wonder why a software change rendered the drive undetectable by the BIOS. The BIOS fails to go past the POST even if its left to for 30-60 mins. I am at a loss on how to solve this problem and if that is possible without loosingmy years of data.

 

 

 

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The bootloader became confused from what I'm reading. Just try to flush the hard drive using a Linux Live CD to boot the computer and completely flush the hard drive and reinstall it. Else, I think your SATA controller driver is broken on Windows XP.

xboxrulz

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The problem is that with the HDD connected to the board, I can't even get past the POST process. On pressing Del or F2, the BIOS displays the message Entering Setup... but still doesn't pass the POST. I have tried setting the CD/DVD drives at the topmost priority in the Booting process, so I could boot from the live CD. But, still the problem remains. The HDD and CD/DVD drive LEDs are turned on during the initial phase of the POST. After a while all LEDs go off and the system doesn't seem to be doing anything. So, I wonder if leaving it on for a few hours would work either.

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Sounds like a broken BIOS, try to flash the BIOS I guess. Else, it's a faulty motherboard.

xboxrulz

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Thanx for the help, xboxrulz. You are absolutely correct! I tried the drive at a local cafe with an ASSUS board where the error "Invalid Operating System" was shown. I booted through his HDD and changed the Active Partition from XP's Disk Management Console; after which my XP was being loaded at his computer. It failed to boot with a BSOD error due to differences in Hardwares of our systems. But, the job was done. I brought back the Disk back to my PC and was able to access all my files without any hitch.

The problem sure is associated with the Motherboard. But, I wonder if it is because of a Hardware fault or a buggy BIOS that you said. I flashed the BIOS sometime back in 2006 and the current version is the latest for my Board. Maybe this latest update is the culprit? At any case, I'll make sure I don't set the wrong partition as active as long as I stick to this 915GAG board.

This little scare had one good thing about it as I got a new 360 GB Seagate SATA HDD. I'll pass this one to dad's old computer making it 120 GB there.

Once again, thanx.

- Partho

 

 

 

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don't know if you figured this out already but...

you installed vista on primary drive, and you then installed XP on the same drive, though different partitions, that caused windows XP to overwrite boot instructions on the hard drive to only recognize XP. After you changed to boot the other partition (vista) there was no boot info hence the error you get at POST, because, BIOS doesn't know where windows is.

You should format your drive and install only one of the SO, then check on the internet for intructions for dual boot (sorry I don't know how to achieve this with XP and vista).

You could also boot with a linux live cd and install grub, though I don't know how to make it work with 2 windows installations.

Hope it helps.

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What you say is correct. XP should not be installed after a Vista installation just like Win 98 should not be over XP. I assumed that M$ would have stuck to the same bootloader files and therefore installed XP. I think installing Vista after XP would automatically migrate the bootloader and allow dual-booting. I remember doing so with an old Beta version of Vista.

My problem was more of a hardware oriented one. My BIOS and/or board doesn't seem to be capable of trapping the "Invalid Operating System" error. As a result, there was no way for me to get the drive working on my PC.

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Try to reflash it and reupdate it. Else, you need a new board, your BIOS could be unrepairable.

xboxrulz

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If there is a problem with the motherboard, your best option is to return in to the manufacturer to get a new one or get the existing one repaired. I suppose if their are often problems with the BIOS, you should get a motherboard that has at least DualBIOS so that there is a backup BIOS if one of them fails.

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That is only good if your motherboard is still under warranty. Else, I guess it's cheaper to just get a new motherboard. Most motherboard cost like $90 now-a-days anyways. If you get it repaired it may cost hundreds.

xboxrulz

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