Dual hard drive, both XP?

[honchung]

Hi,

I already have a hard drive connected to IDE1 primary and running XP Pro (drive C. Everything runs fine.

Then I have installed another hard drive connected to IDE2 primary (drive E. Also an external USB DVD burner (I tried to install the DVD burner internally using IDE but could not make XP see it).

Anyway, now I want to install another XP pro (yes, same edition OS) in the second hard drive and every time I start the computer, it will by default boot from the first hard drive C: but also has option to let me boot from the second hard drive E:.

How can I do that?

I tried setting the BIOS to first boot up from the external DVD burner and ran an XP installation CD. However, it only showed me the C: and asked if I wanted to repair or install fresh XP. It did not show me E: to install.

Again, what can I do?

 

[linney]

but also has option to let me boot from the second hard drive E:" What is currently occupying your E: drive?

What does the Disk Management tool say about E: drive? You could try using the XP in C: to Format E: drive via Disk Management.

See this article too.

"To initialize new disks". (From Help and Support)

Multibooting with Windows XP

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/learnmore/multiboot.mspx

Multibooting with Windows XP: Installing Windows 2000 and Windows XP

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/learnmore/2000xp.mspx

In Folder Options/ View, it would help if you showed both Hidden and System files, then you could check out your booting files too.

HOW TO: Edit the Boot.ini File in Windows XP (Q289022)

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q289/0/22.asp

A Discussion About the Bootcfg Command and Its Uses (Q291980)

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q291/9/80.asp