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Hey, I have windows home installed right
so I just installed windows pro on a seperate harddrive, and when I rebooted the dual boot screen was there showing both right
so I booted into my newly installed XP and all was fine, then I tried booting into home and the "setup" process for windows xp started, I got worried since all my files are on home so I tried going into boot menu at startup and running the disc manually, and it booted into home normally like it always does.So I have no idea why it's giving me the setup screen on dual boot menu.. heres my boot.ini
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS.0
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS.0="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimer
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimer
Bad news there buddy.
Your pro install overwrote your home install.
Notice both are on rdisk0 and partition1? That measn they are in the same location. The other clue is windows.0 Thats how I know.
you chose the wrong disk during install. Your data should be intact but you will need to reload all of your apps.
You may wish to consider backing up your data and doing a new clean install of the OS you would prefer.
Hey practice makes perfect :-)
Example of Oxymoron:
Person who is pro life and anti sex education.
Education is key to prevention. Prevent conception you prevent abortion. Abstinence training clearly isn't working.
0 
Err, but it's weird..
I can boot into the original OS on the other HD fine through boot menu, and run all applications there and everything and even the boot.ini is different, also it shows it as C:/ when I'm on it, and the other harddrive as D:/
Then when I go to the other harddrive, it shows itself as C:/ and my previous install as D:/ and the boot.ini is different..
Really confused, there shouldn't be two boot.inis, and how come both show up as different drive letters when I'm on them.
all in all everything is working fine on both, except for this little problem, are you sure it overwrote it?
0
boot.ini on both drives?
Only way you can do that is if you set the 2nd drive as boot drive in the bios and then installed.
the "windows" and "windows.0" indicates there were two installs done and when asked during install if you wanted to overwrite the found install you answered no so it created a second install.
Tell you what, boot into Home and then go to disk management and tell us what the drives are listed as [drive letter/booot/system...]. Also post the other boot.ini on the other drive for review.
Example of Oxymoron:
Person who is pro life and anti sex education.
Education is key to prevention. Prevent conception you prevent abortion. Abstinence training clearly isn't working.
0
Heres when I boot manually into Windows Xp HOME
Bootini:
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimerHeres when I boot into Windows XP Professional
Bootini:
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS.0
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS.0="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimer
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimerIt's weird isn't it... lol they both have the exact same path, I'm thinking it might have something to do with seperate harddisks or something
OH, but the install went a little weird, let me tell you what I did:
I loaded the XP CD in,
C:/ was XP Home
D:/ was the new disc unpartitioned, so I ran the partitioning thing and formatted it NTSF, and it unloaded windows files on it and stuff then I rebooted.then I restarted and loaded the XP CD again. went to the drives but this time my old drive name was D:/ (I could tell by the size of drives) And the one I had just partitioned was C:/ and I loaded the windows files onto the newly partitioned drive (I didn't know they had already been loaded after partitioning)
Maybe it loaded 2 installations of XP on the same drive but thinking it was different OS's or something, and that's the boot.ini... I have no idea lol
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You clearly installed both OS's to the same disk. Which means you are now mixed.
For example you have a windows and windows.0
BUT you will only have ONE documents and settings folder. Only one program files folder, etc.If I were you I would boot into Home and backup your data. Do a complete reinstall [format the disk] of Home to the first drive. Do a complete reinstall of Pro making sure not to choose according to drive letter but drive size.
You should end up with a boot.ini that looks like this;
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(1)\WINDOWS ="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimer
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect /usepmtimerNotice that the rdisk on Pro is 1 not a 0 since it it the second disk.
Example of Oxymoron:
Person who is pro life and anti sex education.
Education is key to prevention. Prevent conception you prevent abortion. Abstinence training clearly isn't working.
0
But I have separate Documents&Settings folders, and program folders.. I have separate everything, nothing I do on one OS is affecting the other
and I remember when installing I made sure I didn't touch the original Home installation partition
Oh also, on the Windows Pro I installed I noticed there are two "Windows" Folders, and document and settings etc., but their named Windows.0, and stuff.
I think maybe cause I selected the same partition twice to load the OS files onto it somehow created the dual boot with those two, instead of my Home XP..
0
If you boot to each version in turn and inspect/view the drive(s)/partition(s) contents via Explorer (or MyComputer) what do you see in terms of windows folders? Do either drive/partition show more than one windows folder; and if so what/how are they named; Remembering of course that one cannot have two folder of excatly the same name in exactly the same place...; one may find that you have both a folder windows and another folder windows.0 in the same partition. etc...?
0
I get the feeling we are missing some information here.
For example you post two boot.ini's that both point to the same place. One you call "manual". I assumed you were booting this manually via a floppy disk. Is this correct?
You don't mention it but I will ask anyway. Are you changing which is the boot disk in the bios before you boot up to one of the xp installs?
You say you have two documents and settings folders. Are they on the same drive?
What is on the 2nd drive?
Would still like to see the disk management information under each boot.
Example of Oxymoron:
Person who is pro life and anti sex education.
Education is key to prevention. Prevent conception you prevent abortion. Abstinence training clearly isn't working.
0
Ermm, let me start from the beginning again.
I have 2 HardDrives, 1 contains Windows XP Home, the other contained nothing.
I have Windows XP Home installed on HardDrive-1
I put the Windows XP Pro CD into the CD Drive, and reboot.
I let the screen loadup and I'm at the "Which HardDrive would you like to install Windows XP Pro on" Page
It lists:
C:/Windows XP Home
D:/Unpartitioned SpaceI select the unpartitioned space of HardDrive-2 to be partitioned NTSF
The Process starts, and I go AFK for a bit
I come back, and see it's done and then it starts installing the OS files to it.
It finished and I rebooted, and booted from the CD again
Then I went back to the "Which HardDrive would you like to install windows on" Page,
This time it had:
D:/ Windows XP Home
C:/ Windows XP ProfessionalI selected Windows XP Professional to install the OS Files onto ( I didn't know that it had done it durring partitioning )
Then it finished and I rebooted and was greeted with the Dual Boot screen, I select the top one Which was Windows XP Pro and went through the XP Install process.
All went well and I was in the Windows XP Pro.
so then I rebooted to try the second option on the dual boot menu which was named "Windows XP Home"
I selected it and it booted up to the Windows XP Professional install wizard and prompted me to put the CD into my CD Drive
I restarted and hit "ESC" to go into my computers "Boot Menu" and manually selected my old hard drive with Windows XP Home (HardDrive-1) And booted from there.
It booted normally and let me into the OS.
That's everything that happened.
Now the two Boot.ini's I had posted,
The first one is HardDrive-1 When I boot into Windows XP Home manually through BootMenu in Bios.
The second one is when I normally boot into my newly installed Windows XP Pro
When I'm on Windows XP Home, I see my Windows XP Professional installation on disk D:/ Through My Computer, and the Windows XP Home is C:/When I'm on Windows XP Professional I see my Windows XP Home installation on disk D:/ Through My Computer, and the Windows XP Professional is C:/
Everything looks the same on Windows XP Home when I'm booted into it, everything works, and nothing I do affects my other installation, no Windows.0 or duplicate folders on this drive.When I'm on Windows XP Professional, I see a Windows, and Windows.0 folder in My Computer>C:/,
Then in the Documents and Settings I see similar folders just like that like "All Users" "All users.0"lol I should just reinstall them both, or try reinstalling Pro, that probably would fix it...
how do I find the disk management info ?
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"The first one is HardDrive-1 When I boot into Windows XP Home manually through BootMenu in Bios."
Ah I suspected as such.
This was your first mistake. You should not have changed the bios boot order when you first went to install Pro.
Second mistake was upon the first reboot to let the xp pro cd boot again. You should have aborted the cd boot at this point and install would have continued from the hard drive.
From what you write you have a single Home install on the first disk and two xp pro installs on the 2nd disk. Whew! Home is OK.
Here is what I would do:
Set the home disk to be the boot disk in the bios and then leave the bios alone.
Boot into Home
You can get to disk management via control panel /admin tools/computer management then disk management.
I would delete the partition on the 2nd drive. This will wipe out the xp pro install.
I would then boot xp pro cd via bios boot.
Install will autostart.
After the first xp reboot don't boot the cd [you can even take the cd out. Put it back later when install asks for it]
Complete the install.This will result in only one boot.ini which will have your multiboot choice of home or pro.
You will have Home on c: and Pro on d:. Disk management in both will look the same so you won't have whatever you booted on c: and the other on d:.
Example of Oxymoron:
Person who is pro life and anti sex education.
Education is key to prevention. Prevent conception you prevent abortion. Abstinence training clearly isn't working.
0
mmm... a wee bit more info/clarification...
You have two drives; and the second one was "empty" etc. when you started this journey?
What is the nature/type of partition the "new" (i.e. d: ) partition? Is it an extended\logical-drive, or is it a Primary?
The evidence thus far confirms that have two drives; and sugggests that you have a Primary on each...
The XP-Pro initial setup (to the second drive) would likely have created a Primary on that second (previously unconfigured) drive... To create a pure Extended partition\logical-drive (i.e. there is no Primary on the drive at all) has to be specifically managed; but as far as I know it cannot be done via XP setup? That is only possible either via a dos boot-disk (Fdisk etc.) or via XP (or W2K etc.) disk manager...?
So again... what is the nature of the partition on the second drive?
Disk Manager is at:
Control-panel\Administrative tools\computer-management\storage\disk-manager
Once there you can inspect all installed drive; their partitions and discover what type(s) they are...?
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