One of the useful features of Windows XP is its capability for multibooting. This is the configuration that let the computer boot with the choice of of different operating systems, one at a time.
In the case of a dual boot computer, there are two operating systems residing on the same computer.
Before you install two operating systems, there are some criteria the computer must meet, and the is a certain order in which the installation should be done.
Let me assume that you need to install two operating systems on one hard disk, and one of them is windows XP, and the other is an older Windows OS.
Beside the criteria that your computer should meet, there are some planning you can do. Here are the criteria and planning you might want to consider:
1- The recommended Hard disk size should be at least 4 Gigs, 2500 MBS for Windows XP, and 1500 MBS for the other operating systems.
If you use 3 Gigs, depending on your programs, you might run low on hard disk space. I tried this myself, and kept getting a message that the system is running low on disk space.
2-The Hard disk should be a basic hard disk, so it can be used by older version of Windows like, win 95, 98.
The term basic hard disk is the commonly used disk. If the disk is not coverted to dynamic, then it is basic.
The dynamic disk is a feature in Windows XP and Win 2000 that can't be accessed by older version of windows. Also, the dynamic disk can only have one operating system. So, a dynamic disk can't be used for multibooting.
3-There are two more hardware recommenation after my experience. You should need at lease a pentuim III/ 500 MHZ processor, and a RAM memory of 250MBs at least.
4-The number of partition is up to you. It can be any number between 2 and 4, both included. This is because, the basic hard disk can only have 4 primary partitions.
Any operating system installed should be on a seperate primary partition. Since you need a dual boot machine, then you need two at least, and depending on how big your storage is, you may or may not have enough space for a third or fourth partition.
5-The Types of file systems may can't be the same. This is because Windows XP, Win 2000 uses NTFS, which are not recognized by older version of Windows. So, depending on what you need to install with Windows XP, you format the partition accordingly.
For example, Win 95 used FAT, Win 98 uses FAT32. Both can be read by Windows XP operating system.
6-The order of installing the operating systems should be, the older Operating system should be installed first, and new new versions last. So, if you are installing Windows XP with Win 95, 98, or 2000, you install one of those operating systems first. After you are done, you install Windows XP. So remmber, Win XP is installed last.
In Summary, going over the 6 elements I mentioned above, you can have a system ready to install a dual boot operating system. But, please remember, you can always add more depending on your experience.
Thanks, George Chamoun
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George Chamoun