[SOLVED] How to have two OS's on two different HDDs on same PC?

[lgdl_y]

Hello. I have two copies of Windows 10 running on their respective HDDs. Up till now, I have been physically taking out the SATA cable when PC is turned off, and then plugging into the other HDD, and then turning on. I would like to be able to have both SATAs permanently plugged in, and on start-up to choose which Windows I want to boot into. Additionally, I would like each HDD to be inaccessible from the other - so files from one HDD cannot be accessed by the other.

Is this possible? Thanks

 

[USAFRet]

Why the 2 OS's? 2 identical bootable OS's are rarely a good idea.

Upon boot up, you can interrupt the boot process and choose which drive and OS to use.
For inaccessibility, you can Unmount the other drive. https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/158668-how-mount-unmount-drive-volume-windows.html

 

[nofanneeded]

The best way to do it is to get a 5.25 HDD bay with on/off switches for each HDD. and install the HDDs in it.

 

[nofanneeded]

Edit : Or use hard disk selector like this one

Richer-R HDD Power Control Switch, Hard Drive Selector SATA Drive Switcher For Desktop PC Computer: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

Free delivery and returns on eligible orders. Buy Richer-R HDD Power Control Switch, Hard Drive Selector SATA Drive Switcher For Desktop PC Computer at Amazon UK.

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[USAFRet]

Or a front facing swap bay. No need to open the case.

 

[nofanneeded]

can you please tell me the Case you are using for the PC ? and the size of the drives?

2.5 SSD or 3.5 inch HDD?

I can show you very good bays for this

 

[nofanneeded]

Here are some VERY GOOD OPTIONS ,

in DVD 5.25 bay , you can use this

1- Hot swap 4x2.5 inch with on/off for each drive

https://www.icydock.com/goods.php?id=244

This has on/off switch for each drive m and hot swapp eject button , and in this you can put 4 SSD and choose which of them is ON or OFF

in Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072618W1D/

tell me the drive size you need to use

Edit :

2- Hot Swap 1x2.5 and 1x3.5 in DVD bay , each with on/off switch

https://www.icydock.com/goods.php?id=283

Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07K8QRBVD/

 

[lgdl_y]

can you please tell me the Case you are using for the PC ? and the size of the drives?

2.5 SSD or 3.5 inch HDD?

I can show you very good bays for this

thank you for the help, and everyone else I appreciate it. The physical swapping is ideal. My case is a NZXT Phantom ATX full tower - sorry I don't know the exact model code. But it's a big case for sure. I will look at the links you provided. The only problem is, is that one of the HDD's is a smaller SSD (probably 2.5), and the other is a normal size HDD(probably 3.5). I will reply here when I get specifics, but you have pointed me in the right direction, cheers.

PS: to make it more complicated, do any of the bay swappers allow multiple swaps? As in, I want one OS to have access to 2 drives (2.5 and 3.5) because my normal OS runs C: on SSD and D: on HDD, and then my 3rd drive (3.5) is the other OS. So when I select that second version of windows, I dont want it to access the first two drives. Let me know if you need further clarification because I mightve explained it bad. Thanks for the help

 

[USAFRet]

The only problem is, is that one of the HDD's is a smaller SSD (probably 2.5), and the other is a normal size HDD(probably 3.5). I will reply here when I get specifics, but you have pointed me in the right direction, cheers

There are mounts for a 2.5" drive to be the same size and mount hole locations as a 3.5" HDD. A hotswap bay would see zero difference.

 

[lgdl_y]

Why the 2 OS's? 2 identical bootable OS's are rarely a good idea.

Upon boot up, you can interrupt the boot process and choose which drive and OS to use.
For inaccessibility, you can Unmount the other drive. https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/158668-how-mount-unmount-drive-volume-windows.html

One of the OS's is for work and I don't want it to have access to my personal files, but I want the OS to run on my machine.

Yes I am familiar with pressing F12 and choosing what to boot from, but the problem is obviously having two hard drives plugged in simultaneously, both with Windows 10, and they might both think they are C:. With the unmounting you referred to, would I have to do that manually every time I boot into one of the OS's? Thanks for the help

 

[USAFRet]

One of the OS's is for work and I don't want it to have access to my personal files, but I want the OS to run on my machine.

Yes I am familiar with pressing F12 and choosing what to boot from, but the problem is obviously having two hard drives plugged in simultaneously, both with Windows 10, and they might both think they are C:. With the unmounting you referred to, would I have to do that manually every time I boot into one of the OS's? Thanks for the help

The C is that drive and OS the system boots from. They won't both be C at the same time.
And I believe you'd have to do that mount every time. Not an ideal solution.


I would go with the swap bays indicated above.

 

[fzabkar]

You can use a GRUB boot loader to set up multi-booting. I will probably do this at some future time, but I will have multiple OS-es (Windows 10, Win XP, Linux) in separate partitions on the same drive.

 

[CountMike]

Hello. I have two copies of Windows 10 running on their respective HDDs. Up till now, I have been physically taking out the SATA cable when PC is turned off, and then plugging into the other HDD, and then turning on. I would like to be able to have both SATAs permanently plugged in, and on start-up to choose which Windows I want to boot into. Additionally, I would like each HDD to be inaccessible from the other - so files from one HDD cannot be accessed by the other.

Is this possible? Thanks

I'm doing just that without having to swap drives. One W10 (Standard version) is on a M.2 NVMe and other (insider version) on SATA SSD, Both are permanently connected although SATA drive is in removable tray.
Two ways to witch between them and choose OS

1. Using BIOS quick change option.
2. Use https://www.techspot.com/downloads/3112-easybcd.html on each one to make boot menu at start. Works perfectly although there are 6 disks all together of which one is with Linux.

I'm not doing it right now but tried and could hide the other disk in OS I boot from.
To avoid any mixups, I would recommend to disconnect other disk(s) while installing windows/OS on intended disk.

 

[lgdl_y]

The C is that drive and OS the system boots from. They won't both be C at the same time.
And I believe you'd have to do that mount every time. Not an ideal solution.


I would go with the swap bays indicated above.

thanks for the help. I just thought I'd let you know my solution for now. I am getting two swappable drive bays, and a 250gb SSD. So now I will have 2 SSDs (both with Windows OS) and 2 HDDs, for storage. Before turning on, I swap both the SSD and the HDD. This way seems the easiest to go for.

Just wondering, is there any physical reason to not regularly swap them? Will I degrade the sata connector on my SSD over time or something to that effect?

Also, my friend suggested that the BIOS might have a problem with me having two different drives labelled as C:. Obviously they will never be plugged in at the same time, but he suggested my second OS should be labelled as like F or something. Is he on to something here? Thanks

Thanks

 

[USAFRet]

thanks for the help. I just thought I'd let you know my solution for now. I am getting two swappable drive bays, and a 250gb SSD. So now I will have 2 SSDs (both with Windows OS) and 2 HDDs, for storage. Before turning on, I swap both the SSD and the HDD. This way seems the easiest to go for.

Just wondering, is there any physical reason to not regularly swap them? Will I degrade the sata connector on my SSD over time or something to that effect?

Thanks

Depends on how often you'd be swapping. Those connectors WILL wear out eventually.
And, every time you mess with it, it carries a (very small) risk of breaking.

If, for instance, that happens 1 out of 100 times, and you do this every day...that is 3 times a year.