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Windows XP dual boot Windows 7 with user files on a separate partition

Discussion in 'Windows XP' started by Christer, 2010/12/20.

  1. 2010/12/20
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    A friend would like to dual boot Windows XP [installed first on C:] and Windows 7 [installed second on D:] with user files on E:. Will there be any complications "cross using" user files on the two operating systems? By that I mean if a document created on Windows XP can be opened and edited/saved on Windows 7 without issues and vice versa?
     
  2. 2010/12/20
    PeteC

    PeteC SuperGeek Staff

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    I don't see an issue here providing that the software on both installs is the same or compatible, i.e. if using Word bear in mind that Word 2003 (.doc) will not open Word 2007 and later (.docx) docs without the compatibility pack.

    FWIW I have 3 Windows 7 installs and 1 XP install plus 2 XP Modes - all on different computers, networked together with my user files on separate drive on the main desktop and no problems accessing, editing or creating from any computer given that the right software is available, e.g either Office 2007 or 2010 is loaded to each computer - same goes for Photoshop.

    The situation you propose I have used many times before without issue up to quad booting of Windows versions.
     

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  4. 2010/12/20
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Pete,
    thanks for your insights!

    The current installation of Windows XP SP3 has Office XP SP3 with the Compatibility Pack.

    The new installation of Windows 7 will have Office 2007 SP2.

    Until now, all documents have been saved in the "original" format (e.g. *.doc as opposed to *.docx).

    I assume that when moving the default "user folders" in Windows 7 to the common "data partition ", the current folders used in Windows XP can be co-used, right?
     
  5. 2010/12/20
    PeteC

    PeteC SuperGeek Staff

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    If by 'user folders' you mean folders generated by the User and located on a separate drive/partition they will be accessible by both OS's. Windows 7 Libraries can be placed on another drive/partition, but I have no idea whether or not the would be accessible by XP.

    The User Folders under the User Name in Explorer cannot, AFAIK, be moved - I'll check if XP mode can see and interact with those folders although, if the answer is Yes, that does not necessarily mean that a standalone install of XP in dual boot will behave the same.

    I haven't dual booted XP with 7 since the days of 7 beta and certainly did not go into that depth of detail :)
     
  6. 2010/12/20
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I was referring to the "default folders" in Windows XP (those in my "moving guide ") and the corresponding folders (libraries?) in Windows 7.

    Well, you know me and my quest for unnecessary knowledge ... :rolleyes: ... !
     
  7. 2010/12/20
    PeteC

    PeteC SuperGeek Staff

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    Understood :) - I was evading the question!

    User Folders under User (PeteC in screenshot) can be moved to the Libraries - essentially shortcuts are generated.

    Libraries can be located elsewhere and that location set as default - screenshot.

    I would be very surprised if one set of folders could be used as default for both OS's.

    I ignore those folders and make my own on the D:\ drive (did the same in XP). In this case both OS's would be able to use them.
     

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  8. 2010/12/20
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Thanks for the sceenshots! This is my first attempt at dual booting and I think that I have enough to digest for now. I believe that I have a fair bit of "trial and error" to do!
     
  9. 2010/12/20
    PeteC

    PeteC SuperGeek Staff

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    I would agree in relation to the User Folders :)
     
  10. 2011/01/20
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Well, "trial and error" executed and if anyone is interested:

    Windows XP SP3 and Office XP SP3 + Office 2007 Compatibility Pack SP2 were installed on C:. All partitions created and formated during this installation, D: (primary) and E: (extended/logical).

    All User Shell Folders were, according to my "moving guide ", moved to E: and in addition to that, My Music and My Pictures were move out from My Documents to the root of E:.

    Next, Windows 7 and Office 2007 SP2 were installed on D:.

    The corresponding User Shell Folders (or what they are called in Windows 7) were relocated to the existing folders on E:. During the relocation, a message told that "Desktop.ini already exists" with three options, don't copy, copy and replace, copy as Desktop(2).ini. I choose the latter.

    The result is that in Windows 7, the icons are not the default icons but I can live with that. The folders can be cross-used between Windows XP/Office XP and Windows 7/Office 2007.

    A Word document (*.doc) created in XP was opened, edited and saved (*.doc) in 2007. When reopened in XP and closing without having edited anything what so ever, I was prompted to save. After saving and reopening, no more prompts to save when closing. I don't think this is a serious "bug ". I noticed the same thing when opening a document which had been created in Office 2000, in Office XP.

    When opening Windows Media Player for the first time (in XP), the folder My Videos is created in My Documents. This folder too was moved from My Documents to the root of E:. In XP, My Music and My Pictures have shortcuts on the right hand side of the start menu but not My Videos. I'm trying to find a solution but it seems difficult. Maybe this is for another thread but anyone who has a hint?
     
  11. 2011/01/20
    Zander

    Zander Geek Member Alumni

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    I did some searching on this and everything I read says you can't add anything by the my music and my pictures links. You can however add it under the run box in the start menu. Or, if you don't like it there, you can replace the "Set Program Access and Defaults" link on the right side oftthe start menu with My Videos. There's a registry edit on this page that will put below the run box.

    http://www.osnn.net/windows-desktop...start-menu-adding-folders-right-had-side.html

    Or, you can replace the set programs one by using that edit on the key mentioned toward the end of the post. I experimented with it on a XP VM and managed to get it to work. However, I found if you want to go the replacement route, you have to also delete a couple entries in the key you are editing. In HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag, you have to delete the Param2 entry. Also, in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}, you need to delete the LocalizedString string entry. It doesn't say anything about that on the page I linked to but it needs to be done for it to work. Trial and error got me there. :) Anyway, it's the best I could come up with.
     
    Last edited: 2011/01/20
  12. 2011/01/20
    Zander

    Zander Geek Member Alumni

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    Here's the reg file that I have after replacing the set programs link. You'll have to ignore the icon entry as i just changed it to a different one that has no relation to video. It's in hex in the reg file but in the registry editor, it shows as moreicons.dll,-114. I just changed it to -113 to see if the icon would change in the start menu. So, you'll have to point it to an icon of your choice if you decide to try this.
    Code:
    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @= "My Videos "
     "InfoTip "= "Watch Video "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
    @=hex(2):6d,00,6f,00,72,00,69,00,63,00,6f,00,6e,00,73,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
      00,2c,00,2d,00,31,00,31,00,33,00,00,00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
    @=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
      00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
      64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
     "ThreadingModel "= "Apartment "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
     "CLSID "= "{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272} "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
     "CLSID "= "{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000} "
     "command "= "My Videos "
     "method "= "ShellExecute "
     "Param1 "= "C:\\Documents and Settings\\XPMUser\\My Documents\\My Videos "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
     "Attributes "=dword:00000000
    
    
    Oh, and, if you use this to try it, you'll still have to go in and delete the two entries I mentioned as they aren't being removed in this code. I just exported what I had left after I was done. So............. :) The link should change without a reboot but a reboot is required for the icon to show.
     
    Last edited: 2011/01/20
  13. 2011/01/21
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Zander,
    thanks for your time and efforts!

    I'll try your solution as soon as I can and report back.

    In the meantime, I have created a folder "Library" on the desktop with links to My Documents, My Music, My Pictures and My Videos.
     
  14. 2011/01/25
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I tried the "Zander Solution" but it didn't work. The icon gets changed and the "hover text" too but the link doesn't work. The reason is probably that the folder that I'm trying to direct it to has been moved to a different partition. I'll stick with the "Library Folder" on the desktop, for now at least and will try again at a later date. Anyway, thanks for leading me in the right direction!
     
  15. 2011/01/25
    Zander

    Zander Geek Member Alumni

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    Well l sort of goofed. I should have mentioned that you need to edit the registry file so it points to the correct folder. Look at the param1 entry. If you didn't edit that path, you need to do so. It should reflect the path to the folder you have your video files in. If you didn't edit it, you would get the results you got.

    Also, you can edit the first entry if you want. The My video one is what you will see for a name on the button and the one that says watch video is the tooltip you see when you hover your cursor over it. Thought I should mention this in case you failed to edit the file. I guess I need to be more careful. No harm done here but I can see where something like this could cause big problems with a registry entry that really counts. Sorry I omitted this. I'll be more careful in the future. :eek:
     
  16. 2011/01/25
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Zander,
    no goofing on your part.

    I edited the registry keys on my system and had your reg file as a guide. I tried getting it to point at my folder but didn't succeed. Being short on time prompted a quick "surrender" but I'll be back ... :rolleyes: ... !
     
  17. 2011/01/25
    Zander

    Zander Geek Member Alumni

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    Well, perhaps you neglected to delete the two entries I mentioned? You'd have to do it in regedit. If you want to give it a try, this one will add the entries you need and delete the ones that need to be deleted. Of course, you'll still have to change the path to the folder you're using for videos. Also, I haven't change the icon in this one.
    Code:
    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @= "My Videos "
     "LocalizedString "=-
     "InfoTip "= "Watch Video "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
    @=hex(2):6d,00,6f,00,72,00,69,00,63,00,6f,00,6e,00,73,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
      00,2c,00,2d,00,31,00,31,00,33,00,00,00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
    @=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
      00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
      64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
     "ThreadingModel "= "Apartment "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
     "CLSID "= "{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272} "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
     "CLSID "= "{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000} "
     "command "= "My Videos "
     "method "= "ShellExecute "
     "Param1 "= "C:\\Documents and Settings\\XPMUser\\My Documents\\My Videos "
     "Param2 "=-
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
     "Attributes "=dword:00000000
    
    
     
  18. 2011/01/26
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I was not sure what you meant by "entries ". I deleted the values, not the keys.

    I will but don't know when.

    Thanks again!
     
  19. 2011/01/27
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Well, I couldn't hold my horses and I was rewarded with success!

    My original reg-key (exported prior to messing with it):

    Code:
    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @= "Set Program Access and Defaults "
     "LocalizedString "= "@xpsp1res.dll,-10077 "
     "InfoTip "= "@xpsp1res.dll,-10078 "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
    @=hex(2):6d,00,6f,00,72,00,69,00,63,00,6f,00,6e,00,73,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
      00,2c,00,2d,00,31,00,31,00,34,00,00,00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
    @=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
      00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
      64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
     "ThreadingModel "= "Apartment "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
     "CLSID "= "{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272} "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
     "CLSID "= "{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000} "
     "command "= "@xpsp1res.dll,-10077 "
     "method "= "ShellExecute "
     "Param1 "= "appwiz.cpl,,3 "
     "Param2 "= "control.exe "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
     "Attributes "=dword:00000000
    My modified reg-key (exported when finished):

    Code:
    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @= "Mina videoklipp "
     "InfoTip "= "Öppnar mappen Mina videoklipp "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
    @=hex(2):73,00,68,00,65,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,\
      00,2d,00,32,00,33,00,38,00,00,00
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
    @=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
      00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
      64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
     "ThreadingModel "= "Apartment "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
     "CLSID "= "{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272} "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
     "CLSID "= "{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000} "
     "command "= "Mina videoklipp "
     "method "= "ShellExecute "
     "Param1 "= "E:\\Mina videoklipp "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
    @=" "
    
    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f7-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
     "Attributes "=dword:00000000
    I modified your reg-key with my data and ran it. Setting the value to "-" (as in "LocalizedString "=-) removed that entry.

    Regarding the DefaultIcon, I changed it manually in the registry editor from the original "moricons.dll,-114 " to "shell32.dll,-238 " which I found in the Desktop.ini file within the "Mina videoklipp" folder.

    It's strange that different icons are generated in Windows Explorer and on the Start Menu respectively. Check out the attached "My Shell Folders.jpg ".

    Thanks again!
     

    Attached Files:

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