cant install any os

[tylerbe992]

when i try to install a os the install button is greyed out..and its like that for each kind of os i have.. and when i try doing it through the cd and when i restart my comptuer and run the cd i get a thing saying that there's no hard drives...it weird..right now im currently running windows vista

 

[Atomic Rooster]

Well, you can't install the OS while in a Windows environment.

What OS are you trying to install, and why are you installing it over your current Vista installation?

A little more info on your system would be great too.

 

[tylerbe992]

i tried xp and server 2003 and neither r working.. and i installed a xp over vista before and it worked..i dont know why its greyed out either..

 

[eyeCpc]

You are trying to install over a newer version of Windows without first reformatting the primary. It would far easier to setup a dual boot of both rather then defeating the purpose.

 

[tylerbe992]

dual boot! thats what im trying to do..but i dont know how to do it..any tuts? for the vista

 

[eyeCpc]

First you will have to describe your present partitioning scheme and if this will be on one drive or spread to another. When installing Vista after XP is already on you select another partition or drive for the new version to be installed to. During the installation the Vista installed will add XP in as a boot option under "previous versions of Windows" when you first start up.

For adding XP into the Vista BCD a free tool called EasyBCD can do this for you once you unhide the protected boot files and copy them to the Vista partition. For that go to the menu bar>tools>folder options>view tab to move the check to show all hidden files and folders following by unchecking the "hide extensions for known file types" and "hide protected operating system files(recommended)" boxes seen there.

Once the boot.ini file along with the ntldr and ntdetect.com files are visible and copied over to the Vista C root directory you then may need to edit the boot.ini to make a simple change there pointing to the XP partition. That usually sees the read only box checked in the right click properties screen and needs to be changed first.

The BCD editor included in Vista is the old method of manual configuration while the free EasyBCD tool will make life a bit easier for you there. You get that at http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1

 

[tylerbe992]

thxs! ill check it out!