Windows Vista no longer starts after you install an earlier version of the Windows operating system in a dual-boot configuration.“If you install an earlier version of the Windows operating system on a Windows Vista-based computer, Windows Vista no longer starts. In this case, only the earlier version of the Windows operating system starts.“

Why This Occur ?

These issues occur because earlier versions of the Windows operating system are incompatible with the new Windows Vista startup method.

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Application compatibility remains one of the most annoying issues for Windows Vista users. The ability to upgrade the software to a new Vista compatible version is not always an option. The company that developed the application may no longer be around or the cost to upgrade is too high. In my case, I have a lot of classic PC games that will not run at all under Windows Vista no matter how I configure the compatibility options. In order to play my old games I need to install Windows XP. However, I am not exactly ready to give up all of the advances in Windows Vista just so that I can play my old games once in a while. The answer is to dual boot Windows Vista and XP.

Dual booting Windows XP and Vista on the same computer will allow you to select from a boot menu what operating sytem you want to run. This menu is shown right after you power on your computer. Setting up both Windows XP and Vista on one computer can be a little ticky depending what operating system you have installed first. The next two sections will help you configure

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If you have installed, say, XP, on a Vista machine, in the Boot Menu, you may no longer be able to see Vista as an option. This occurs because when a different version of Windows is installed, it rewrites the MBR to call its own boot loader.

So if you install Vista on a PC where XP is already installed, the Vista boot menu incorporates the options from the older OS’s boot menu. But, on the other hand, if you install XP on Vista, it will overwrite the MBR with one that does not recognize the newer Vista’s Boot Loader.

So if you find that Vista is missing as an option in a multi-boot computer, you can resolve this issue, as follows : (more…)

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Recently I bought a new high-end computer and the Nvidia GeForce 7600GT Graphics Card which makes the best combination to run Vista. I installed Windows Vista on one of my drives leaving Windows XP unchanged and untouched on my default C drive. After playing around a little in Windows Vista it revealed on me that most of my hardware drivers and some softwares were not compatible with Vista so I decided to switch back.

Uninstall Vista on Dual Boot Machine

I formatted the drive containing Windows Vista but the problem is that whenever the computer restarted it showed the dual-boot option for Vista and for Windows XP even though I had deleted Windows Vista. After a little research I came over a solution that helps you fix the dual boot issue for a clean Vista uninstall. (more…)

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