Copy_Vista

Copy of a Vista system on another partition as another operating system.

There are two difficulties :
_The first difficulty occurs if the original system (for instance C:) has already given a letter to the destination partition (for instance D:) This is generally the case . After a copy, the partition's letters have not changed in the registry of the copied system. So a system installed in C: is now in D: but its registry uses many files of C: and modify the original system or cannot boot if the original system is absent. We must swap the letters C: and D: in the registry of the copied system
_ The Vista boot manager BCD must be updated to boot the new system.

1 Copy of the original partition on the new partition
Several commercial tools can do the copy. If the size of the destination partition is larger or equal to the original partition it is possible to use a free dos program savepart : http://www.partition-saving.com/
Boot on the partition saving floppy. Type savepart
choose "copy an element"
choose the disk and the partition to be copied
choose to copy the occupied sectors
choose the destination partition

2 Boot on the original system
After copy, boot on the original system
In disk management rename the destination partition which may have now the same name as the original partition
Note the letters to swap (letters of the original and of the destination partitions)

Swap the letters in the registry of the copied system (after a boot on the original system)
Start/accessories/command line/ right clic run as administrator
execute regedit : the registry of the original system is displayed
select the key local machine
file/ open hive
search the hive "system" of the new system in its partition : it is the file "new system"\windows\system32\config\system . Open.
Input an arbitrary new key name under which the hive will be displayed
In the new key name which appears, search and display "mounted devices"
Right click for instance on C: rename to Z:, D: rename to C:, Z: rename to D:
To save the modifications, select the new key name, File/unload the hive.

3 Update the boot manager BCD to boot the new system
Boot on the Vista DVD. Choose country. Next. .
Don't choose "install now" but "system recovery options" .Normally it is proposed to repair at the end of the search, Repair.
Another possibility is to use "command prompt"
Type the command :
bootrec /rebuildbcd
The new system will be proposed

.
If there was a preceding Vista system on the partition where the new Vista has been copied then we must suppress this old entry in BCD. Type : bcdedit /enum all /v to display all the identifiers
Find the identifier {????????} of the old system
Type the command : bcdedit /delete {write here the identifier of the old system} to delete the old entry. Then update the BCD as explained above.

4 Boot on the new system
It is better to change the generic name displayed at boot for a more specific name:
In the new system, open, (run as administrator), a command window and type the command:
bcdedit /set {current} description "replace this by the new system name"

To copy XP

To copy Windows 7

feb 30 2011___g@gjullien.fr________