2 instances of xp?

[muskieslime]

I just got an old R51 and at post it asks which os I want to boot. I found threads in different places about this but they all refered to 1 working 1 not on the choices. Both of these boot and run,,, sloooowly. I looked into c drive and it was almost full (40 gb) I deleted all files and pics uninstalled most apps and looked again and it shows 32 gb used.Is it possible someone put 2 instances on this thing? I'm going to format and install linux but this just peaked my interest. If I can make room I'd really like to do an xp/linux dual boot but I dont have an xp disc so if I cant figure this out I'll have to go straight linux

[MrMaguire]

It's entirely likely that somebody installed two copies of XP on it. I know if one installs a copy of XP over an existing copy without formatting the hard drive, it will result in having two entries in the boot menu, one of which won't work, usually.

Is the hard drive actually in two partitions, do they have separate programmes and data? Maybe they just have two entries in the boot menu that both point to the same partition.

Why you'd need two different installs of the same operating system is beyond me. Unless one was for testing software or something. Or maybe two people shared the laptop, and instead of using separate user accounts, they used separate operating systems!

[muskieslime]

I only see 1 partition. as full as the HDD is it almost have to have 2 copies. They both seem to share the same files and everything. I just couldnt believe after wiping all just off it it still uses 32gb with just the OS and a couple browsers and antivirus

[Neil]

It's never really a good idea to use someone else's Windows installation anyway. You never know what kind of malware is installed there, whether intentionally or not. With a system that is as messed up as yours appears to be, I would definitely do a secure erase of the HDD and start over from scratch.

[MisterB]

Two instances of Windows on the same partition would need two separate Windows folders. One would be named Windows and one something else.

I would do a chkdsk on the disk to see if there are file system errors. That can sometimes make for excessive disk usage. There might be some bloated folder or file somewhere on it that isn't obvious. I worked on a malware infected computer recently and the malware created a large folder with thousands of garbage files in the Internet Explorer temporary files folder. This made any virus scanner hang up for hours on it.

In any case, the existing system is problematic and replacing it with a clean system is the best course of action.

[muskieslime]

I agree it's very fubar'ed. like I said I'd like to do a dual boot but I no longer have a xp disc, I had a legit copy I paid good money for but genuine advantage somehow zapped it when it told me it wasnt legit. I was able to get help to fix the pc but never got the disc fixed. I guess for now it Zorin Linux all the way. Thanks guys

[Neil]

Before you blow out that original install out, you might be able to recover files needed to install Windows without the disks. See here: http://www.wikihow.com/Reinstall-Window ... out-the-CD

[MrMaguire]

The XP install disc shouldn't be affected by Windows Genuine Advantage. As long as it is an OEM disc (opposed to retail, or volume license) and the version matches, the key on the R51's COA should work.

[muskieslime]

thanks for the link Neil I knew there was a way to do it thru the i386 file but didn't remember just how. BUT! it looks like someone may have done away with the setup/install files. I found c:/i386 and c:/xpsetup/i386 and no winnt.32 was present in either one. I need to move on so I'll just wipe it! thanks for all the advice. Oh I had a retail copy of xp loaded on a desktop and when genuine advantage came in it asked me to insert disc and the disc never worked again, then told me it was pirated and I had to beg M$ to help me fix the PC. I never did find out what the deel was with killing a legit OS was about. They just said sometimes that happens. I moved to linux soon after