Switching OSs

[Davidov541]

Alright, i downloaded Vista RC1 back in August, and have been using it ever since and have loved it. When I installed Vista, i know that it made a folder in order to put all of my XP files so i could reach them again, and I assumed that meant I could get onto XP whenever i wanted through MS DOS. I'm trying to load some music onto my cell, and the way it is set up, it requires XP since Vista deleted the loophole it used. Problem is, i cant figure out how to get into XP again. I remember there being something to do with pressing a certain button when the computer starts up, but i have no clue what button that is or when. Any help would be greatly appreciated! THANKS!!!!

 

[crjdriver]

You cannot use xp again. At least not without wiping out the disk and reinstalling.
From your post it sounds like you installed vista to the same partition you had xp installed in. If you wanted to use both os, you needed to install vista into another partition. You would then be presented with a boot menu when you start the system [so as to choose which os you want]

BTW vista setup gives you a warning message to the effect that when you install to a partition that already contains an os it will put those files in a folder for you HOWEVER you will not be able to use the previous os. You have access to the files for data / backup purposes however the previous os will not function.

 

[Bob Cerelli]

One thing you can do to prevent this in the future is make in image of the drive or partition before you start testing a new operating system.

Typically you can keep the OS and Programs on one partition. All you data etc. on another.

In this instance, you could have created an image of XP before loading Vista. To restore back typically only takes 5-10 minutes. And all your data would be there.