Info sought for project

Hi all,

Hopefully some of you can help me OR at least point me in right direction.....

I have the usual Boot disks like "The Ultimate Boot Disk" etc which allow you to use various tools to carryout tests / fixes etc.

What I want to do is this.....

I have bought an external HD which uses either USB or Firewire. I want to boot a downed PC using this HD. On booting I want it to do what the Ultimate Boot Disk does, in Dos, but also allow me to boot into Windows XP, installed on the same external HD, if I want to.

Basically I want to do it this way so I can update the tools on the HD very easily (e.g. Virus software etc) without having to rebuild and burn a new cd etc, but also have the benefit of being able to use the HD to run XP and all the usual software you can install in XP.

The questions I have are:-

1. Is it possible?
2. Is there software I can download to help me do it ?
3. Is there a site which will Teach / show me how to do this ??
4. Any other tips / comments

Thanks in advance

Graham

My question

 

Seeing that no one else has posted a reply, I will give it a shot with my own limited knowledge. I could be entirely wrong in this, and do not mind being corrected if so! Any bootable device ( floppy, cd-rom, usb drive ) loads a very limited set of instructions into the computers ram. These are capable of running the executable files that are included on the device, and in the case of boot disks, are capable of accessing other drives on the computer. An operating system is an entirely different thing. It includes device drivers for all the periphials connected to the computer, and the configuration for drivers will differ from machine to machine, and would cause errors if every computer that you worked on wasn't the same - motherboard, chipset, etc. WinXP only works after it has been installed, configured, and activated, after 30 day trial period. Activating it for one configuration, and trying to run it on another would probably invalidate the activation, as major changes have been made ( XP has a self check ) and would ask you to reactivate via MicroSoft. DOS would be a better alternative, although it has to be installed to be fully functional. I believe that there is one Linux distro that will run from the CD itself, without being installed on the hard drive. Hope this helps a little.

 

Hi novice,

The first part of your mail is correct, however, that is exactly the point of disks such as "The Ultimate Boot Disk", it loads very few drivers and ONLY loads an OS when you choose and when you do it loads drivers etc as normal.

Re the second part regarding licensing / activation, again usually correct except in this case the company who I work for, and who I am trying to do this for use XP corporate editions which basically negates this "problem".

Cheers

Graham

 

I have a different spin.. you can find a bootable CD of XP that loads usb drivers.. called Win PE.. But you want to be able to update the virus defs, ect... so there is also a Win PE that you can install to a hard drive... now I have not done that but I do run the CD based version and update and re-burn it.. but the HD version sounds feasable....
Look for info on win pe...

 

Thanks foogoo, will have a play about with that and see if I can work it out.

Thanks

Graham

 

Well, if I understand correctly you need a boot floppy/CD that will load usb/firewire drivers, and then let you "boot" from the external drive.

I think it is possible, I'm not sure whether XP will let you do it, unless all the machines are identical to the one you've installed the OS with (i.e. have EXACTLY the same hardware in them, no changes at all). Nothing to do with activation, but to do with core device drivers.

 

If you get this sorted out, please let me know how you did it, and the details involved!