Dual Boot Over 2 Hard drives Advice Please.

fireblade77 · Dec 28, 2013

Hi there, I know how to partition a hard drive and do a dual boot with wind 7 and win 8.1 but I would like to know how to do a dual boot with each windows on a different hard drive if this is possible. I already have win 8.1 on my ssd hard drive and I would like to install win 7 back on my 1TB hard drive and just as before to have the option pop up on boot up to ask which one I would like. im not sure how to get round the part where my bios is set to boot from one hard drive 1st so is there a way to do this or is the only way to press f2 I think and then it takes me into the boot up priority and then I choose which hard drive to boot from ?
any help would be great thanks.

fireblade77 · Dec 28, 2013

nobody know ?

Jetster · Dec 28, 2013

Before you format and install to the 1 Tb make sure your W8 (installed to your SSD) will boot without the 1 Tb connected

fireblade77 · Dec 28, 2013

Jetster said:
Before you format and install to the 1 Tb make sure your W8 (installed to your SSD) will boot without the 1 Tb connected

it will cos the 1TB is already formatted with nothing on it just waiting to be filled

it doesn't matter how much I search I cant find anything that tells me how to dual boot from 2 different hard drives. all I get is how to partition a hard drive and dual boot which I already know how to.

Kursah · Dec 28, 2013

You may have to run windows boot repair but it shouldn't be a problem...it's going to see a different drive regardless of being a partition or separate physical drive. That's why you're finding so little, it shouldn't take much to do. And if there's an issue it will be a simple fix...i.e. boot repair from startup dvd. Setting first boot OS within windows under the advanced system settings (not really all that necessary...odds are it will be setup right anyways...this is more to give you an option menu to boot to different OSes).

So either mirror your Win 7 over to the other drive or do a fresh install. Choose the primary drive to boot to in BIOS.

Just go for it man...even if neither boots, 9.999999999999999/10 times a boot repair fixes those issues. If you're worried, then backup your important files. The process you're trying to do is really more simple than what you're concerned with, so go into it with an open and positive mind, and it'll work out just fine! If it don't, it's an easy fix away from being what you want it to be. 2 OSes on 2 drives=2 partitions to Windows...so you've already played this game. :toast:

fireblade77 · Dec 29, 2013

All is good, last time I installed win7 1st on 1Tb hard drive then win8.1 on ssd and it wouldn't dual boot it just defaulted to my ssd as it was set in my bios to ssd but this time I had win8.1 on ssd and installed win7 on 1TB hard drive and I now get the question do I want win 7 or win8.1 the same as if I did it on same hard drive with a partition so all is good thanks.

Ja.KooLit · Dec 29, 2013

fireblade77 said:
All is good, last time I installed win7 1st on 1Tb hard drive then win8.1 on ssd and it wouldn't dual boot it just defaulted to my ssd as it was set in my bios to ssd but this time I had win8.1 on ssd and installed win7 on 1TB hard drive and I now get the question do I want win 7 or win8.1 the same as if I did it on same hard drive with a partition so all is good thanks.

When you installed win 8 is your win 7 1tb HDD connected? if not, better connect it.

Have a suggestion, if you plan in dual booting permanently,

1. ensure both SSD and 1tb HDD connected. Install win 7 first on 1tb and then install win 8 on SSD. downside of this one is that if you boot partition is installed on SSD, you cant boot win 7 without the SSD but you can choose which OS you can boot.

If you dont plan in dual booting permanently,

1. remove either drive. removing the sata cable should do the trick. Install win 8 on SSD. After installation, remove SSD sata cable and then connect the 1tb HDD and install win 7 on it. Ensure when you do this that installation of any OS that no other drive is connected. I found it sometimes annoying that at some point, win OS uses other drive to install some files. (i dont know why and I am not computer geek so I dont know those files for.

after you install both OS on each different hard drive, you can connect them both and configure on your bios which hard drive to boot first. Downside of this is that you have to configure all the time in your bios which one to boot and you cannot simply choose which OS to boot during startup. But the good thing in doing is that if you decide to ditch either of the OS, you dont have to do boot repair. You can simply remove either drive and the win OS you choose to use can simply boot without repair.

I am doing this on my rig. win 8.1 on SSD and linux system on my other HDD. and I only use linux system when I need a more secure connection to access internet ^_^

itsakjt · Dec 29, 2013

Steps
1>Disconnect HDD and install Win 8.1 to SSD
2>Disconnect SSD and install Win 7 to HDD
3>Connect both drives, go to BIOS and select the SSD as primary boot device
4>You should be able to boot to Win 8.1
5>Download Easy BCD and add the Win 7 entry by selecting the proper partition of the HDD.

Should be a piece of cake.

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Dual Boot Over 2 Hard drives Advice Please.

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