Vista & XP dual boot Dell XPS M1530

Hi guys,

Just looking for some advice if possible please.

I got a Dell XPS M1530, great machine but it has XP as the OS.
I gave it a shot and installed SP1 but it still sucks.

I am looking to dual boot Vista with XP.

I have created a 5GB NTFS partition, but when I try to install XP via the CD it fails the hardware test and just boots to Vista.
I've done some looking around on the net and it sounds like I need to do something in the BIOS with my SATA drive for XP to recognise it.

Can anyone advise what needs to be done to install XP before I go mental from Vista?

 

You can either switch the HD operation mode from AHCI to ATA in the Bios, or hunt down the Sata driver for XP on dell's website, burn it to a CD, and load it during the installation.

 

Cheers for the quick response.
I actully downloaded the drivers, but the XP installation fails on the first test
"Checking hardware configuration"
It does not even give me a chance to load 3rd party drivers?

Switching the operation node to ATA might be the way forward?

 

Did you try searching the forums? How to install XP on any popular model has been covered before. Usually a lot of times.

http://www.notebookreview.com/searc...F;GIMP:0000FF;FORID:11&hl=en&btnAction=SEARCH

In particular, this thread looks promising:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=212981

Good luck.

 

Got it sorted now anyway, thanks.
I now have a dual boot menu on my XPS m1530 using EasyBCD.
1. XP
2. Vista
Though I honestly cannot see me loading up Vista again unless Vista SP2 is a massive improvement. I was very dissapointed with Vista, though my laptop has 3GB RAm and Dual Core 2.4GHz


Anyway, for anyone that is looking to Dual boot Vista with XP on the XPS m1530, I followed this, just make sure to do what the lads say above in relation to the SATA drives.
http://apcmag.com/how_to_dual_boot_vista_and_xp_with_vista_installed_first__the_stepbystep_guide.htm

Also, you can get all the XP drivers here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=254815

 

Folks,

I will be unboxing a new Dell XPS M1530 tomorrow. My initial plan was to simply follow the step-by-step tutorial on this site for changing it to XP, but now I'm thinking I may make it a dual boot. I have never fooled around with dual booting an OS before and I have a couple of questions.

As I understand it when booting up I will be presented with the option to choose between Vista and XP. Is there a way to have the computer not offer this choice, since 99.999% of the time we will be booting it into XP and only want the option to boot into Vista? I'm not sure how I would later get at the option to boot into Vista, but I don't want to slow booting up or rebooting with this choice being presented.

My second question is a variation on the one above. Is there any way to have this choice bypassed? Can you make XP the default where if you turn the machine on and walk away it will go ahead and boot into XP for when you return, or will it stay at the choice until you hit a key?

The answers to those questions could well determine if I even fool around with the dual boot setup, so I will truly appreciate any assistance offered with those questions.

Regards,

Phil

 

You can try to do this:
Start --} Control Panel --} System
Advanced tab --} Startup and Recovery frame --} Settings

All the options are there.

 

you can simply do this:
windows button+r
the run window pops up,type 'msconfig'(without the '),a new window opens with various tabs,click the boot tab and set XP as the default OS and voila youre done
if you wish to boot from vista then simply press F8 repeatedly after the BIOS loads