So why can't I mess around with a Windows 7 partition like I used to do with XP/98?

I recently bought a Sony laptop which came loaded with Windows 7. So after going through the "first-time-boot" process, I prepared for intensive surgery: First I got rid of the SystemReserved (booting) partition and transfered the booting ability to the regular system partition ( C: ). Rebooted and verified it worked (it did). Next I captured the Win 7 image into an external drive using Ghost. Next I repartitioned the hard disk (I want to use several OSes, that's why) and then restored the Win 7 image into one of the newly created primary partitions.

I've done this tenths of times with Windows XP and 98 in the past with no problem. But Windows 7 fail to load when its partition is moved, can someone explain why? Is there a way to prevent it? I don't want a suggestion to use "Windows repair", just the cause of it.

Many thanks.

 

Because any Windows 6 (Vista, 7, 8, Server 2008 (R2), Server 8, WHS 2011) uses BCD for the startup process. Your repartitioning gives the new partition a different identity than the original one had.
I'm not talking A:, B:, or C: here, more like {c34b751a-ff09-11d9-9e6e-0030482375e7}.

Windows Vista startup process - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If you want to learn how to work with it you should learn more about bcdedit.exe.

Recovering the Windows Bootloader from the DVD - EasyBCD - NeoSmart Technologies Wiki (scroll down)
BCDEdit Command-Line Options

If you don't like command lines you can try EasyBCD.

 

Many thanks Mats! that's exactly the kind of answer I expected

I'll be browsing thru your links, as this is something I really want to master.

Cheers!
Matt

 

You're welcome!

For any temporary Windows 7 or 8 installation I can recommend using VHD. The Virtual Hard Drive is a file that works like a partition/volume.
This means that you don't have to make a separate partition for say Windows 8 beta, and when you want to delete it you just delete it like any other file, and restore the BCD to remove the entry there.
You can set the VHD to be flexible. It will keep a minimum size, and expand when needed up to the maximum size set by you.

It basically doesn't have the two most common issues partitions have:
1 - How to add or remove partitions.
2 - Partition may get full.

Since it's a single file, it's also easy to copy or move.

Guide to Installing and Booting Windows 8 Developer Preview off a VHD (Virtual Hard Disk) - Scott Hanselman

Remember to backup your BCD. Part 2 and 4 are the needed extra steps for VHD.

 

But I need a parent OS to be running on top, right? No thanks, that's fine for testing, but I need the other OSes for actual use, so I want to unleash their full potential... therefore I want the real thing.

I've been doing further testing and I was able to "move" my Win 7 partition to an alternative location (forward on the drive) and boot fine after a startup disk repair. But I'm also disappointed to find out that if I modify the MBR code section, then Win 7 again refuses to start. First I thought it was due to the HDD code signature issue (offsets 1B8-1BB), but I re-wrote the original signature using HxDedit and that wasn't enough. Windows 7 apparently demands that the entire MBR code section isn't touched, or else it won't load. Any idea why Windows 7 needs to control the MBR which is supposed to be absolutely OS independent?

Fortunately I keep a backup of the MBR that Win7 likes, so I can relive it any time without too much hassle.

My final goal is to be able to use Ranish Partition Manager v2.44, which supports plenty (at least 10) bootable partitions (or OSes) coexisting in a single drive. I did it with Vista in the past, but Win 7 seems harder to convice...

 

No. The experience will be identical to using multiple partitions, you'll get the MS boot screen when you start the computer, as usual.

But AFAIK it only works with Windows.

 

Well, I'm not keen to one OS standing out and monopolizing the MBR in a multiboot system (i.e. MS boot loader). The good news is that I've made it!! After many trials and errors I got Windows 7 working with Ranish partition manager, which allows for up to 30 primary partitions. This might sound unnecessary to most, but in fact (for reasons too long to detail) I use 8 independant systems and that's the only program I know you can do that with. I found the key to solving this in this article. I will now make a new thread explaining because I'm sure someone will find it useful now or in the future. [ Thread here!]

Mats, thanks again for your advice. I was at mile ZERO yesterday and you definitely pointed me in the right direction.

 

I'm wondering, did you look into using grub or grub2? those can handle multiple OS booting quite easily.

 

I get the feeling that the limitation here is MBR itself, not the bootloader. GPT might have solved that, but not many laptops have UEFI.