Problem with drive letter assignment - can't upgrade to ne..

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers (More info?)

Boot your OS from the original install. Click Start, Run and enter REGEDIT. Go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\MountedDevices

Delete everything here, but the Default value. DO NOT delete the MountedDevices key, just the values in it. Now shutdown the system normally. Use your partition management software to clone the C, D and E partitions to F, G and H respectively, resizing them as desired (personally, I would leave unpartitioned space between each of the partitions, and resize them after the system was up and running on the new drive). Now, you can remove the original drive and make your new drive the primary master. Make sure you set what will be the new C: partition as "active" so that it will boot.

As for imaging software, Image for Windows, www.terabyteunlimited.com (and its companion Image for DOS) are great tools. BootIt Next Generation includes all the imaging features of Image for Windows/DOS, as well as a full fledged partition manager.

--
Doug Knox, MS-MVP Windows Media Center\Windows Powered Smart Display\Security
Win 95/98/Me/XP Tweaks and Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com
--------------------------------
Per user Group Policy Restrictions for XP Home and XP Pro
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"Jeff W" <ms-newsRemoveForSpam@kwcpa.com> wrote in message news:eHMD7uyiFHA.2444@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>I want to upgrade my hard drive.
>
> My old hard-drive is FAT-32, 120 GB, 3 partitions (WIN XP HOME SP2)
>
> C: Boot (4GB)
> D: O/S (40GB)
> E: storage (36GB)
>
> I have image backups of both the C and D partitions.
>
> I formatted the new 300GB drive, using the SW that came with it into 3
> partitions: 30/110/160GB, and booted windows. The drive came up as
> partitions F, G, and H.
>
> I tried to restore the image backups (expanding them to fill the
> partition, which is an option of my program (IFW)), but have a problem
> with the program that I'm working on at their newsgroup. So, as a
> backup measure, I copied C to F, and D to G, and then removed the old
> drive, rebooted, did a repair install, and thought I'd be ok.
>
> Except: The system "remembered" that it was the F/G/H partitions. So I
> was hosed since some stuff (from the repair install) thought I was F / G
> / H, and all the other files on the system thought the disk was still C
> /D /E.
>
> So I figured - ok, bad idea, I'll wait to get my image backups working.
>
> EXCEPT..... XP thinks of this drive as F / G /H. Even if I do new
> image backups of my old drive, their registry will have the new drive
> "identified" as F /G /H. So even if I copy the partitions (via image
> backup and restore) from the old drive to the new drive, and reboot,
> won't the drive re-identify itself as the F /G H drive, hosing me again?
>
> I know I'm not understanding something here, and it is worrysome. Can
> someone explain this conundrum? Do I need to re-format the new drive?
>
> thanks
> /j

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers (More info?)

BING is not at all hard to use, and if you cancel the install, you'll be taken to Maintenance Mode, where you can use the Partition Work menu to resize the partitions. I've used PM and Bing and Bing wins hands down.

--
Doug Knox, MS-MVP Windows Media Center\Windows Powered Smart Display\Security
Win 95/98/Me/XP Tweaks and Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com
--------------------------------
Per user Group Policy Restrictions for XP Home and XP Pro
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/x [...] onsole.htm
--------------------------------
Please reply only to the newsgroup so all may benefit.
Unsolicited e-mail is not answered.

"Jeff W" <ms-newsRemoveForSpam@kwcpa.com> wrote in message newsN7sFm0iFHA.3608@TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
> Thanks - I use IFW, and I think I found both a bug anf a deficiency
> today, I'm sure he'll fix them within the week.
>
> thanks for the other as well
> /j
>
> PS - I've looked at BING, but it seems really hard to use, and
> apparently i have to put their SW on the disk (like a disk manager)
> /j
>
> Doug Knox MS-MVP wrote:
>
>>Boot your OS from the original install. Click Start, Run and enter REGEDIT. Go to:
>>
>>HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\MountedDevices
>>
>>Delete everything here, but the Default value. DO NOT delete the MountedDevices key, just the values in it. Now shutdown the system normally. Use your partition management software to clone the C, D and E partitions to F, G and H respectively, resizing them as desired (personally, I would leave unpartitioned space between each of the partitions, and resize them after the system was up and running on the new drive). Now, you can remove the original drive and make your new drive the primary master. Make sure you set what will be the new C: partition as "active" so that it will boot.
>>
>>As for imaging software, Image for Windows, www.terabyteunlimited.com (and its companion Image for DOS) are great tools. BootIt Next Generation includes all the imaging features of Image for Windows/DOS, as well as a full fledged partition manager.
>>
>>
>>

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers (More info?)

If you install it, it requires an EMBR on the boot drive and on any other drives that you want to custom work on. The EMBR is just information that BootIt needs to function as a boot manager.

For what you need, simply resizing, you don't even need to install it. Click Cancel at the setup prompt and it will automatically take you to maintenance mode, where you can resize your partitions.

If you find the program useful, even if you don't need it as a boot manager, please consider registering it. David's put a lot of work into an extremely versatile and useful utility.

--
Doug Knox, MS-MVP Windows Media Center\Windows Powered Smart Display\Security
Win 95/98/Me/XP Tweaks and Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com
--------------------------------
Per user Group Policy Restrictions for XP Home and XP Pro
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/x [...] onsole.htm
--------------------------------
Please reply only to the newsgroup so all may benefit.
Unsolicited e-mail is not answered.

"Jeff W" <ms-newsNO@SPAMkwcpa.com> wrote in message news:e%230q8B6iFHA.3468@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> I'll have to play with it, every time I crack the manual I get lost
> about the time it talks about adding an Extended Boot sector or some such.
>
> thanks
> /j
>
>
> Doug Knox MS-MVP wrote:
>> BING is not at all hard to use, and if you cancel the install, you'll be taken to Maintenance Mode, where you can use the Partition Work menu to resize the partitions. I've used PM and Bing and Bing wins hands down.
>>

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers (More info?)

"Doug Knox MS-MVP" <dknox@mvps.org> wrote in message
newsqzgVq8iFHA.1464@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...

For what you need, simply resizing, you don't even need to install it. Click
Cancel at the setup prompt and it will automatically take you to maintenance
mode, where you can resize your partitions.

If you find the program useful, even if you don't need it as a boot manager,
please consider registering it. David's put a lot of work into an extremely
versatile and useful utility.


Couldn't agree more - I even paid for a second license 'cos I thought I'd
lost the ID for the first - after emailing support, the ID arrived within
24hrs.....


--
Noel Paton (MS-MVP 2002-2005, Windows)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
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