Windows 10: Windows 10 & XP dual boot. Best way?

When dual booting it is best to install the older OS first. In some cases it doesn't matter but it certainly does here.

When Windows 10 is installed first it will install it's own boot loader. When XP is later installed it will look for a bootloader it recognizes and find nothing. The Windows 10 bootloader is very different from and completely unknown to XP. The XP installer will do the only thing it can and replace the foreign bootloader with it's own. The Windows 10 files remain but unknown to the XP installer. The result is that XP boots fine but there is no option to boot Windows 10. This mess can be sorted out but it is best to avoid the situation.

When XP is installed first it will install it's own bootloader. When Windows 10 is later installed it sees the old XP bootloader which it fully understands. The XP bootloader is incompatible with Windows 10 but the Windows 10 bootloader is compatible with XP. Windows 10 then replaces the XP bootloader with it's own and makes the necessary entries for XP. The result, both operating systems are available for use.

 

Hello Martinlest
I have had what you are planning for some time
I have WinXP SP3 X86 first 2 partitions - one partition for XP os and first boot manager. and a second for XP Games and programs.
This was necessary as the following OS, Windows 7 SP1 X64, boot manager disables the ability to "see" the windows XP install partition where the XP boot manager is situated. So I had a second partition that was virtually the "Windows Explorer type special folder" commonly named "Program Files" . except in this case the VOLUME was named "WinXP Program Files" This allowed me to migrate settings and 32 bit programs at ease to other following operating systems regardless of the Win7 Boot Manager's environment requirement.
Then I installed Windows 7 on the larger third partition.
At this stage (about 2012) I also had a fourth partition that had 64bit programs, a compressed software archive of ALL my software I had bought for decades and a Games Folder for Win 7 or Non XP Compatible software,
When the upgrade to Windows 10 "Nagware" first appeared on Win 7, a while back I started researching the clean install possibilities of the MS "free" upgrade.
I found out that it was a legal and deliberately time consuming choice to get to where I wanted, but undeterred I went through tje upgrade processs, explored the new hybrid upgrade, and as I have always find in comparison to a "clean" install something or many things that I would not prefer... I decided to stick with the main plan and after a few weeks (to make sure the digital registration was not in a Microsoft revenge cloud somewhere not accessable if I restored windows 7), I reversed the upgrade and with a little reading and a small app download was able to convert the Get Windows 10 Now file with the eml extension (from memory. not sure) .. well it is 4 gig approx and easily recognisable as the disguised clean Install ISO that Microsoft did not REALLY make common knowledge.
It also has the unique machine code (whatever) that authenticates YOUR install and legal ownership-enduser rights .... in fact that file still resides in an archive, minus the Nagware on the system
I made the installation dvd, compressed and archived the image for keeps and bought a Western Digital removable USB Hard drive that enabled me to move all the contents of the fourth partition, and then install Windows 10 "Logically" (ie in order of the partitions)
The Windows 10 boot manager enables the win10 user to see all previous operating system drives and partitions, and create the modified boot screen with itself as the default and the winxp, win 7 alternatives;
It's been smooth sailing since...... but having winXP with the X86 32 bit platform and XP dos environment has been surprisingly more essential than optional in hindsight, because the Application Compatibility Manager is available in 32 bit and 64 bit versions and with a bit of reading up and experimentation, makes ancient software live another life and I have heaps of ancient software...lol

So Martin, my advice is go x86 xp first and you will be able to run ANY software for many years to come ... hey mate dont laugh!
DOS is still powerful and behind the GUI you think is the latest in cyber tech.
in fact it is so powerful that the big end of town is making it go away, except where they require it.

The "Phasing Out" is a sublime "dumbing down" to rarify the non Corporate Hacker, No theory - its obvious what "the club" that we can never be in, want to do

Last but not least, Win10 has gone another giant leap for wasting our time by having a more rigorous "permissions" regime and in some cases making it blatantly obvious that they "the creators" think we cant be trusted to open not SOME, but MANY folders in the operating system, THEY gave us for FREE, on the machines WE supposedly own and operate .... Geez ......The cheek of 'em!

So google "NTFS Access", available FREE from ZULU Software and we will UNITED take back our FOLDERS....... EVEN RECURSIVELY

BUT seriously!
A seriously simple tool to access ANY FOLDER .

AND regretably, Dos is nearly all gone on win 10, except for some bat and com scripts that will still bring out the comspec executor.

Anyway that was my multi boot tale from the cyber crypt.

And there is fact with a bit of fiction

Are you awake now?

Regards to all
Marksyl

 

Hello,

I'm using windows 10 on my PB laptop. And I'm planning to install winXP 32bit.
I have a samsung evo 850 ssd with some unused partition.
I installed windows 10 last year which still I want to keep using, and I am going to install winXP.
But here is the question;
After winXP installation will I have some boot problems? If I'll, how can I fix that?

I'll be waiting here for your help.

Thank you.

 

O9

Strongly recommend you install XP in a virtual machine for security reasons.

 

Thank you for your attention.
Well, actually I already installed and using xp via virtualbox. But I can't use my graphic card on that. Neither I can't use my cpu at full functionality. Do you have any recommandation except virtualbox? Which I can use full capacity of my CPU and GPU? (With full old school dx9c support?)