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    Possible to boot a Satellite from an external (USB) HD?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by winamped, May 18, 2006.

  1. winamped

    winamped Newbie

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    I have a Satellite that I have started playing around with the idea of whether it's possible to boot (and run) from an externally connected hd through a USB interface. My laptop is an M55.
    I've only tried once so far with an older hd that I know has a basic XP operating system on it (I actually use it on a desktop for testing purposes). I've gone into the BIOS and set up the BOOT settings to go to this drive first. I was actually doing something else in the BIOS when I notice that the external drive was being recognized by the laptop (had the correct model number) so I thought to myself, "hmmm, wonder if this will work?"
    I've done some basic research on the net and it "seems" to be a general thought that you can't boot from an external USB hd with XP, but I have come across some posts from the occasional success. Thought I'd ask in here and see if anyone has had any luck with any of the Toshiba laptops and maybe advice on what was done to make it work. Now, I'm sure there's folks out there who have been able to do this with a lot of baggage attached (i.e.,...create special boot media/hack XP/shake a little voodoo doll above the drive...) but I'm looking at this from a more KISS perspective if it exists.
    FYI-Figured this was the proper forum for a post like this....sorry if it's not.
    Any inputs?
     
    winamped, May 18, 2006
    #1
  2. Ice-Tea

    Ice-Tea MXM Guru NBR Reviewer

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    Hi,

    Main problem, AFAIK, is that the Windows install environment does not allow to install to a USB device.

    I heard that BartPE solves this, but I've never tried it.

    Ice-Tea
     
    Ice-Tea, May 18, 2006
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  3. Thaenatos

    Thaenatos Zero Cool

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    as long as your bios supports usb boot.
     
    Thaenatos, May 18, 2006
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  4. winamped

    winamped Newbie

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    :confused: :confused: :confused:
    I think you just took us in a circle....this is basically what I was asking... ;) ...in a round-a-bout way. :)

    Anyways...looks like not from what I've found so far on the Toshiba site: Many Toshiba PCs can boot (start Windows, or another operating system) from devices other than the built-in hard disk (HDD) or built-in diskette drive (FDD). These devices include USB diskette drives, CD-ROM discs, a local area network (LAN), and PC Card (PCMCIA) hard disk drives
    No mention of USB hard disk drives...and PCMCIA hd is too expensive for the bang.
     
    winamped, May 18, 2006
    #4