Ok here we go. I have W2k installed on a 80GB WD Hard Drive (no other drive installed in my system). I want to partition the hard drive to add Win98 (my kodak film drive will not work on W2k). I tryed Partition magic and made another Primary partion at the end of my current partition.Before I applied the changes PQmagic had a note saying "1024 cylinder barrier this partition will not be bootable". Well, I did not apply the changes and returned to DOS. Most of the advise on the web says I should install Win98 first, to late. If I can get some advice as how to at least create a bootable partion I think once I install Win98 I can go back and repair the W2k boot file. Am I way out there on this one? As much time as I've have spent on this one I should just upgrade to XP Pro!!!! Any help would be a blessing........... Thank you, mike

No need of upgrade to XPPro... Basic theory first. A '98 Primary has to start before the 8Gig barrier of the drive; i.e. the total amount of drive space (used/unused) ahead of the start of the '98 Primary partition must not exceed 8Gig...; and for NT4 it's 4Gig. Clearly you were way beyond that... There are various ways to set up a dual-boot in your situation. You can add a second physical drive; or use PM etc. to 'tweak' the drive partitioning as is... You have PM. Providing W2K is fat32: First; make fresh ERD for W2K; then back - up data - off the drive. Wise to be safe at all times... Then, using PM, shrink the current (single 80Gig primary) partition (only partition?) to something less... perhaps around 5Gig-10Gig? 'Release' the space towards the end of the drive. Create an Extended partition with liberated space; subdivide into at least two logical-drives; but more would be advisable. Make the first one around 2-5Gig (more than enough for '98/apps/utils). By having a several logical-drives the defrag routine will be faster (smaller areas to defrag); and data organisation is easier? Format the logical-drives (as fat32) via W2K Disk Admin (or a '98 boot-disk); install '98 to first logical-drive (via CD or floppy boot). This will disable access to W2K temporarily. To recover W2K and complete the dual-boot... run W2 setup\repair routine to restore the boot-loader/mbr etc. Both OS will now appear in the W2K boot-menu. Details on Repair routine at: http://is-it-true.org/nt/nt2000/atips/atips71.shtml '98 will have installed its boot/start-up files to the W2K (c: ) Primary. The W2K repair routine will create the required bootsect.dos to allow '98 to boot via the W2K boot-loader. As long as you do not erase/lose the contents of the c: root... '98 will boot via W2K boot-loader etc. Erase c: primary and you lose access to '98 - until you do a little recovery work... '98 will be in logical-drive, but its boot/start-up files are resident in the W2K (fat32) Primary. If you create two or more logical-drives you 'could' put the '98 logical-drive at the end of the drive if you wish; although my preference would be for it be the first logical-drive. **************** If W2K = ntfs in c: ... (and this will also work if W2K = fat32): Again first the ERD/Back-up as above... Then make a hard-dopy of the boot.ini as is; you 'may' wish to refer to it later... Next, using PM, reduce size of curent ntfs (Primary) partition (the only partition?); release around 2-5Gig - again adequate for '98/apps/utils? Release the space at the start of the drive physically. Via PM create a new Primary partition; make it active - leave it that way - permanently. Format as fat32 via PM (or a '98 bootdisk format util). Install '98 to this new Primary. You now have '98 only system (on this New Primary) Now start a W2K install to this new Primary as: c:\temp\winnt-t Abort/cancel it at first reboot and remove all disks. You will now have W2K boot-menu listing both '98 and the aborted W2K (on this new Primary). The aborted W2K will be set as default OS to boot. Boot to '98! Locate/open the boot.ini on the c: root of this new Primary. Change the line for W2K in this boot.ini - which points to the aborted/cancelled W2K on this Primary - to point to the W2K on the original Primary. Essentially (before editing) the W2K line in the new boot.ini (on new Primary) will resemble: multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect You need to change the partition(1) entry to read: partition(2); this will then point to W2K on original Primary - now actually partition2 on the drive (originally it was partition1). Edited line will now resemble: multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect Also note that if the "default OS to boot" entry in the boot.ini. is still W2K - the partition entry will probably need to be altered from partition(1) to partition(2). Important issues here is that the partition reference for W2K in this 'new' boot.ini (on this new Primary partition) must point to partition(2) (which is the W2K partition on the original Primary). Save changes and exit. Reboot and you should again have the W2K boot-menu with both OS listed. Boot to W2K - this time on the original (now second) Primary. Renew ERD for W2K ; keep safe/current. Once happy with access to original W2K, locate/delete the c:\temp\winnt-t version on the '98 Primary; also any folders/files that start with the $ symbol. These latter are created/used by the NT family during installation; normally deleted afterwards - you have to do it manually this time. Empty recyle-bin; defrage '98 Primary to tidy up the scene. Job done All path statements for W2K (on original Primary) will remain correct, and W2K will still boot/refer to c: . '98 will also boot as c: . Remember that any shared data must be fat32... So if your W2K = ntfs then either you 'store' data in the '98 Primary (not ideal); or create an Extended partition (as outlined earlier) and format as fat32 - for shared data. If this latter route (a fat32 logical-drive for data) then PM can do both events at the same time. At any time you wish... you could reset the original Priamry ('98 boot-disk/Fdisk util) as the active Primary and thus still boot OK to W2K there - as you can now. But there would be no boot to '98 - although W2K on the original Primary could still access the contents. http://www.computing.net/windows2000/wwwboard/forum/21665.html response #5 details the how/why of dual-boots (single/dual-drives etc.). Might be worth a browse too, as it was part of a discussion a while back that produced some useful options/workarounds? Explains the theory in a little more detail. Need more input - post back?

I have the current "If W2K = ntfs in c:" so I used the second half of your instructions above. Partition and win98 install was no problem. I started a W2k install and aborted/cancelled at first boot. Rebooted, at OS menu went to win98, edit boot.ini to [boot Loader] timeout=10 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT [operating system] C:\multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" C:\ = Microsoft Windows save, exit, reboot, selected Win2k at the menu and get a error that ntoski.erl? (something like that I didnt write it down)was missing or corrupt. I rebooted went into pqmagic, set partion 2 as active rebooted, able to access win2k no problem(win 98 now hidden). I think im missing a command somewhere, any help? by the way, thanks for such a detailed post,

Initially I couldn’t see why the system wouldn’t work. (Thoughts of boot-code boundaries came to mind…; and also the /fastdetect switch – which is missing in your ’98 version of the ARC path for W2K). I have (somewhere….) an old drive with NT/’98 each in its own Primary (each 1Gig/fat16). This was for a trial/experiment into something or other. NT was first Primary on the drive; ’98 held the NT-boot-loader etc. and it all worked OK. As comment above, I notice that you have omitted the /fastdetect switch from the W2K ARC entry in the ’98 version of the boot.ini. I’ve not been altogether/fully aware of quite what impact that switch (option) has on the whole boot-process, other than it disables the detection of a serial device (i.e. mouse). That it played a ‘slightly’ deeper part was news to me – until I found the info immediately below… (courtesy of: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/tmcd2/BootIni.htm viz: “ When you dual boot WinNT 4.0 and Win2K, the Win2K version of NTDetect.com is used during the boot process. In Win2K, detection of parallel and serial devices is performed by plug-and-play device drivers, but WinNT 4.0 expects NTDetect.com to perform the detection. Thus, specifying /FASTDETECT causes NTDetect.com to skip parallel and serial device enumeration for a boot into Win2K, whereas omitting the switch has NTDetect.com perform enumeration for a boot into WinNT 4.0. For Win2K boots the switch is present and for boots into WinNT 4.0 the switch is omitted. ” So… if I read/understand the above info. correctly, it seems that without that switch included in the ARC path, the boot-sequence will effectively go a hunting for NT4… not W2K. Possibly this why you are getting the ntoskrnl.exe missing message; it’s looking for the NT4 version, not finding it, and thus the message? I suggest you edit the ARC path in ’98 version of the boot.ini to include the /fastdetect switch for the W2K entry. You could use the model/version in the W2K Primary partition’s boot.ini as a guide… Ensure that the line in the ’98 version is identical to the W2K Primary’s, apart from the required change for the partition(1) entry to read partition(2). In fact the entire W2K Primary’s version of the boot.ini should be duplicated in the ‘98’s version; and the entry for ’98 itself should be as it is at present, and again the partition(1) read partition(2) (in the ’98 version only). Try that routine first… and post back? (If W2K still won’t boot via ’98 Primary, include size of ’98 Primary too.) I’ve also dug out another way to set this up; but if it’s not needed why clutter the discussion at this time? Also - if all fails... one can probably use an add-in boot-manger util at this stage. There are 'freebies' out there, (and PM has its own Boot-Magic?). But hopefully 'we' can persevere and resolve this one without recourse to an add-in util?

Still having ntoskrnl.exe problem. At OS select screen win98 boots ok, When selecting W2k I get the error “missing or corrupt <windows 2000 root>\system 32\ntoskrnl.exe” with this configuration below: Here is my W2K Present Boot.ini. [boot loader] timeout=32 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT [operating systems] multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect Now my win98 boot.ini [boot loader] timeout=32 default=C:\multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT [operating systems] C:\multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect C:\="Microsoft Windows" If I change boot loader command I get a third option for operating systems in my first boot screen. So I think this changed command line is not correct (I did select it anyway but received the error) If I change the OS command for Win98 I get the ntoskrnl.exe error and am not able to access Win98 (I had to reinstall the entire Win98 OS system, I wasn’t sure if I could edit the boot.ini from DOS). Tried removing the C:\ from command lines for W2K, no help. Just to recap: in Pqmagic I set Win98 partition as active primary. I set the W2K partition as hidden primary. Seams like it should work, any help?

'98 partition's boot.ini should be as below (although the timeout can be whatever you set it to): [boot loader] timeout=30 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT [operating systems] multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect C:\="Microsoft Windows" Note the the only line that has C: at its start is the line for '98 (i.e. C:\="Microsoft Windows") Booting via the '98 Primary (set as active) W2K is controlling the boot-sequence - not '98 - providing the mbr is W2K version, and all the W2K boot/start-up files are there (in '98 Primary). If the mbr is not the W2K version then you will boot only to dos/'9x ('98 in your case). I'm not clear at this moment if you still have a "dual-boot" option running in the '98 primary; i.e. the W2K boot-loader is still fuctioning and offering up the boot.ini in the '98 primary - even though it won't allow a boot to W2K? If you re-installed '98 to its primary then, by rights... you will (should) have 'lost' (i.e. overwritten) the W2K mbr on that '98 primary, which would have left this partition booting only to '98. Providing you did 'not' reformat the '98 primary in the process of re-installing '98 - but merely overwrote the '98 installation there, the actual W2K boot-files (ntldr and ntdetect, a version of the boot.ini, and also the bootsect.dos for '98) may (would/should) still be there). Did you run W2K repair to restore the mbr to 'W2K version' (following the re-instllation of '98) and also re-establish the standard dual-boot conditions (incl. restoring the W2K boot-files if they were no longer in '98 primary)? If not then run W2K repair - the manual mode - as per the link below. Opt to inspect/repair the start-up environment and the bootsector. I would decline the system files - initially; I don't think there is any need to go that part. If you have repaired the '98 Primary (in terms of W2K...) perhaps run it again - as in the link below. http://is-it-true.org/nt/nt2000/atips/atips71.shtml Also am I correct in understanding that you have "not installed" PM's Boot-Magic in the '98 Primary? Also how large is the '98 Primary partition? Quite why "we're" having so much trouble in getting this to work is beyond me. It's (should be) bread 'n butter stuff to get up and running...???

I changed the boot.ini file in Win98 to represent your example, no luck. I do have the “dual boot” option but Win98 only works, selecting W2k gives up the error. Just to clear a little up: after I reinstalled win98, I did the W2k install again and aborted at first boot, at the now created "dualboot" screen selected Win98 and edited the boot.ini. then rebooted. At “dual boot” screen selected W2k (again) same error pops up. I’m not sure what you mean about using the repair console. I just went back into pqmagic, set W2k partition as primary/active, rebooted and was able to go directly to W2k, no “dual boot” screen appeared, W2k system started. I do not have PM Boot Magic My Win98 Primary Partition size in 5.0 GB