Multi-booting oddity

[Brian K]

Nice work Bob,

After deleting the Boot Item, how do you create a new Boot Item?

[Bob Coleman]

Nice work Bob,

After deleting the Boot Item, how do you create a new Boot Item?

I used the "normal process":

• Delete the boot item and associated Microsoft.xxx

• Delete the partition

• Copy/Paste the other partition (Win Main) to the free space vacated by the Win Test partition checking "Add to Boot Menu"

I guess that answers what you just asked, but to continue I then:

• Used "Reorder GPT" to move the newly created partition into the position previously occupied by Win Test before deleting and copying

• Booted Win Main

• Used "Part Work for Windows" to format the new partition (may not have been necessary)

• Ran an IFW command containing /utg to copy Win Main partition to Win Test (new) partition

• Booted new Boot Menu which was successful

• Reran the previous four steps also successfully

Somewhere above, I probably set the other partition to be hidden one or both of the boot items. I don't quite remember all the details.

Related question: Is there anything that can be chosen in the IFW and/or IFL GUI interfaces that is functionally equivalent to /utg in the IFW command line?

[Brian K]

Bob,

Thanks for the detailed explanation.

I used the "normal process":

Delete the boot item and associated Microsoft.xxx

Delete the partition

Copy/Paste the other partition (Win Main) to the free space vacated by the Win Test partition checking "Add to Boot Menu"

That's exactly what I do. But then I'm finished. Win Test boots from the Boot Item.
I'm confused why you then do another partition copy. Immediately after you have a working solution.

[Bob Coleman]

Because this instance of the Partition Work stuff was just to set up the foundation.

I expect/hope in the future to be able to just run the IFW copy command without going near Partition Work again.

I did it twice in a row without going back to Partition Work.

I'm still hoping to find a solution that will allow me to substitute IFW and/or IFL restoring e a backup to "Win Test" as well as using IFW copy.

[Brian K]

OK. We like different methods.

Would you like to do everything in IFL? The initial setup and the future copies?

[Bob Coleman]

I don't really care.

I still need some experience to be sure, but I have what I now think is a convenient way to do future copies without involving Partition Work again.

If, for some reason, I decide I want to do a copy and boot the result tomorrow, I don't have to first boot BIU, delete a boot menu, delete a partition, copy a partition, and maybe correct hide statuses in the boot items. I just copy (I think).

It's not which method I prefer initially. It's which is more convenient on an ongoing basis.

What I'd still like to find is a way restore a backup of Win Main to Win Test and have it boot successfully. That's still a work in progress.

[Bob Coleman]

Well, to my surprise, it now seems that I can copy the Win Main partition to Win Test Partition or restore a backup of Win Main to Win Test in either case using IFW or IFL and have a bootable result. /utg is not even required in the IFW command.

I don't know why I was having so much trouble with Preparing Automatic Repair and so forth before. Presumably because I wasn't getting the boot item associated with Win Test created properly. Thanks a lot for all the help with that, Brian. Hopefully this is the end of this saga.

[Brian K]

Bob, thanks for the summary.