Dual boot problem

[kenchie]

Hi -

I have just redone my dual boot (XP/Vista) system and have encountered a problem. I installed XP 1st, then Vista (each on it's own hard disc). Since I installed Vista I can no longer boot into XP. It loads the initial XP logo screen, then blue screens with 'inaccessible boot device'. I think Vista has reassigned the drive letter of the XP disc, but it won't let me change it back in Disk Manager as it says it's a boot volume. How can I correct this?

Thanks for any advice.

[themaidenmaniac]

Are you trying to use 64-bit vista?

[kenchie]

No, 32-bit.

[master811]

I've had a similar problem before. The only way you can change the letter is with a program like Acronis Disk Director (or Partition Magic, though its old and doesn't like Vista in my experience), as it will reboot the system and then change the letter for you, however i'm not sure if this will fix the problem...

Have you in anyway changed any of the existing drive letters in Vista after it was installed, as on its own I don't think vista will have caused this, or have you marked any of them as active / or no longer active. Also are both partitions primary as this is also a requirement for them to boot.

Also make sure that both partitions have the following files (you might need to unhide system files etc), if not copy them from the vista one. (They might not be needed on both drives, but it won't harm to have a copy on each).
boot.ini
ntldr
ntdetect