2 hardrive, 2 operating system

[fs2002]

Is it possible to build a computer with 2 hard drives with independent os(XP) installed on each of them and have a switch to select which hard drive I want the cumputer to boot up.If this is possible can someone please help.

 

[folken]

One option: <A HREF="http://cgi.ebay.com/Romtec-Trios-Hard-Drive-Selector-RX-910T6_W0QQitemZ5239818876QQcategoryZ167QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_new">Romtec Trios</A>
Another option: a hotswap cage to simple slide in any hd with what ever os you want. or have 2 hotswap cages and switch them on/off depending on which you want to boot to.

<A HREF="http://www.folken.net/myrig.htm" target="_new">My precious...</A>

 

[dhlucke]

Your bios most likely has a key to push at startup to bring up a menu of which device you want to boot off of. In my case it's the escape key.

<font color=red><b>Long live Dhanity and the minions scouring the depths of Wingdingium!

 

[_WW_]

I have two instances of XP on seperate drives setup with the boot.ini file. During boot up I am given the option to select which OS to boot up and so many seconds to make the choice.

Two links that were helpful to me:
<A HREF="http://www.jsifaq.com/subI/tip4300/rh4397.htm" target="_new">http://www.jsifaq.com/subI/tip4300/rh4397.htm</A>
<A HREF="http://asia.cnet.com/zd/insight/software/0,39044822,39140825-39000221c-1,00.htm" target="_new">http://asia.cnet.com/zd/insight/software/0,39044822,39140825-39000221c-1,00.htm</A>

Google will probably return many more...

....WW (5.1)

 

[Crashman]

The solution depends on how you want to do it.

The easiest way is to install XP twice, and select a different drive for the two different installations. But that puts the boot loader on ONE drive, so if you wanted to use the system with the other drive disabled, you'd choose something else.

That something else would be to instal XP on one drive, disable/disconnect that drive, then instal XP on the other drive. That way both drives get a boot loader and you can choose the boot device as mentioned previously.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[tiger102]

I have done what crashman has done it works pretty while. But how does that hotswip work. do you have a cage outside the computer in which you enter the harddrives, or do you have to open up the computer and put the other drive in?

 

[4Ryan6]

All you need to do is what Crashman told you!

That something else would be to instal XP on one drive, disable/disconnect that drive, then instal XP on the other drive. That way both drives get a boot loader and you can choose the boot device as mentioned previously.

I'm doing exactly that with WinXP Pro and Win2K Pro and it will work the same way with XP and XP.





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