Dual-Boot XP & Vista

I recently partitioned my hard drive in order to dual boot with XP, so I could play a video game not supported by Vista x64. I followed the instructions in order to create a partition and install XP, however, after installing XP I have been unable to boot back into Vista, and it does not show up on the boot screen. The C: partition for Vista exists, and it contains all of the files it did, I just cannot get into Vista. Is there any way for me to fix this, or am I SOL?

 

yes , just use your Vista DVD and get into Recovery Console , then type these commands

Code:

bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot

now you can boot into Vista and the reason why couldn't boot into Vista is : XP has overwritten the Vista Bootloader and also xp doesn't know how to boot Vista .

Now we need to enable dualbooting with XP, and EasyBCD is the best application to achieve this.

Download and install EasyBCD. ,Launch the app and go to Add/Remove Entries.

Under “Add an Entry” and under the Windows tab and select in the Version drop-down list “Windows NT/2k/XP/2k3”.

Change the Drive to where you installed XP and the name to “Windows XP”, then click “Add Entry” and “Save”.
Reboot @ See the magic

 

Ok, now about getting into that recovery console.... How do I do this? I've booted from the DVD, but each time it tries to install Vista again. Either way thank you for the detailed write-up.

 

Oh , here is the alternate solution

Boot from the Vista DVD and on the screen where you’re prompted to “Install now”, select “Repair your computer”.



The next screen searches for local Vista installations – there should only be one, so click Next.



This loads the System Recovery Options screen. Select the first option – Startup Repair. This looks for problems which would prevent
Vista from loading (like a missing bootloader) and automatically fixes them.



If you click on “Click here for diagnostic and repair details” and scroll to the bottom of the list, it shows that the problem detected
and repaired was a corrupt boot sector (according to Vista, anyway).



Click Close and then Finish, and the system will restart and boot into Vista.

 

if startup repair does not work, just click on the command prompt option and type in the commands as suggested my vinumsv.

 

The Vista installation never prompts me for a repair, it only gathers some information and then straight to the install. I know I must be missing something simple. It is a recovery DVD from the manufacturer I bought my laptop from, not a consumer copy, would that have any effect on the installation prompts? Thanks for the continued help.

 

No Prompt whatsoever mate

 

Next time, install XP first, then Vista.

 

Zjantzi , Try this guide

http://neosmart.net/wiki/display/EBCD/Recovering+the+Vista+Bootloader+with+EasyBCD

 

Thanks for all the help, finally got it working.