Windows XP, Grub, New Hard Drive, Problems.

Nebetsu · Apprentice Joined: 20 Feb 2006 Posts: 229 Location: Canada

So I used Norton Ghost to move Windows XP to a 60 gig drive. Now GRUB won't boot off of it. Does anyone know how I can fix this? There are no error messages or anything. It just hangs and doesn't even start to load XP.

Shopro · Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 5:43 am Post subject:

Boot using the livecd and go through the grub install, it should fix it.
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Wizard James · n00b Joined: 21 Sep 2006 Posts: 5

If grub is on 1 disk, and windows is on another disk, (phyisical disk)

you might have to add map, in grub..heres my windows grub part,

Nebetsu · Apprentice Joined: 20 Feb 2006 Posts: 229 Location: Canada

It didn't work. I suspect it has something to do with Windows XP becoming broken.

RaceTM · Apprentice Joined: 16 Feb 2004 Posts: 281

Nebetsu · Apprentice Joined: 20 Feb 2006 Posts: 229 Location: Canada

Fixboot and fixmbr just made things worse... >> Before it was blank. Now it says that there's no operating system.

Here's what I have:

hda1: Linux Root (/boot is in there)
hda2: Old windows
hda3: Swap

hdb1: New windows

hdc: DVD-Rom drive

hdd1: Linux Home

RaceTM · Apprentice Joined: 16 Feb 2004 Posts: 281

Nebetsu,

Unfortunately moving a windows install is not as easy as copying over the partition..especially if you are changing physical drives in the process. The bootloader which is on your hda now has no idea where windows is. If you boot off hda, it tries to look where windows used to be and finds nothing. If you try to boot off hdb, there is no bootloader present to load the operating system for you, because the bootloader ws installed on hda.

Without risking further damage to your boot sectors, my suggestion would be to simply grab a windows install CD, and start a windows install on the partition of hdb where you want windows to be. about a quarter of the way in to the setup process, your computer will reboot and you will see the windows xp loading screen, after which windows setup will continue (if your computer doesnt properly resume the install, make sure your bios is set to boot off hdb so you can verify that the bootloader was installed correctly). At this point, the bootloader has been installed and is pointing to the correct partition. You can quit the install (just restart the computer), then reboot with a ghost recovery CD and copy your windows install to the new partition, which now has a bootloader pointing to it. Once the ntloader is set up for your install, you will be able to modify grub to boot it. In your code for the windows section of the grub config file (menu.lst), you will most likely need to temporarily re-map your hard drives like Wizard James mentioned (see his code sniplet)..maybe someone else can provide the logic behind needing to do this, but I think it comes from the fact that windows usually wants to be the first boot device or it will refuse to load..and this tricks it in to thinking it is. If you get stuck you can post back here once you get your ntloader reinstalled and we can try to guide you through your problems from there.

My alternative suggestion would be to simply copy over the boot sector of your first hard drive to your second hard drive. But because your partition layout is not identical on both drives, I doubt that would work.

Of course if someone else has a better suggestion, hopefully they will share it

Edit: I'm confused by your last post. Is grub not loading up at all, or is it just having problems starting windows?