Dual-boot Windows 7 and Windows 8 By Greg Shultz August 23, 2012, 11:09 AM PDT Takeaway: Greg Shultz shows you how to prepare and configure your Windows 7 system to dual-boot Windows 8. Since the Windows 8 Developer Preview hit the streets back in September 2011, I’ve written a bunch of articles on the new operating system covering such topics as the improved Windows Explorer, Windows 8 shortcut keys, Storages Spaces, and File History, just to name a few. However, I was recently reminded that there is one topic that I haven’t covered for Windows 8 and that is how to set up a dual boot machine. Up until recently, I had a machine dedicated to testing Windows 8 and just never got around to setting up a dual-boot configuration. I say recently, because just the other day that test PC died. I did some troubleshooting to try and figure out just what went wrong, but my findings were inconclusive - it could be the power supply, it could be the CPU, it could be the motherboard, or it could be the video card. Rather than stressing about it, I just decided to get another test system - I’ll figure it out later. Fortunately, my local computer store was having a clearance sale and I picked up and HP P2-1124 with Windows 7 Home Premium for around $300. I normally build my own systems, but this time I bought one off the shelf. So now, I had the perfect opportunity to explore dual-booting Windows 7 and Windows 8 Release Preview. In this edition of the Windows Desktop Report, I’ll use my new system to show you how to prepare and configure your Windows 7 system to dual-boot Windows 8. While I’ll be using the Windows 8 Release Preview for this article, I’ve heard that the procedure should be very similar with the actual release version. Even so, I’ll revisit this topic in the near future once Windows 8 is available to the general public. Automatically sign up for TechRepublic's Windows and Office newsletter! This blog post is also available in the Slideshow format in a TechRepublic Photo Gallery. Prerequisite For this article, I’m going to assume that you have already visited the Windows 8 Release Preview site and followed Microsoft’s instructions for downloading and converting the ISO file to a DVD in Windows 7. If you haven’t, you should do so before you get started with this article. The process is pretty straightforward and Microsoft has documented the steps you need to follow. Creating a System Image The first thing that you’ll want to do is create a System Image from within Windows 7’s Backup and Restore. When you do, you’ll end up with a complete image of your hard disk. That way, if anything out of the ordinary were to occur as you follow the steps for creating a dual-boot system, you will be able to return to your current configuration. Furthermore, I recommend that you also create a separate backup of your data. Maybe just make copies of all your data files on CD/DVD or on an external hard disk. While it may sound like overkill, having an extra backup will give you peace of mind. To create a system image, you’ll need to have a CD-RW/DVD-RW drive, an external hard disk, or access to a network drive. To access Backup and Restore, click the Start button, type Backup in the Search box, and press [Enter] when Backup and Restore appears in the result pane. Once you have Backup and Restore up, select the Create a System Image option and choose your backup location. As you can see in Figure A, I used a DVD-RW drive on my system. Figure A On my test system, I’ll use DVDs to create my system image. As you can see in Figure B, on my test system all the partitions on the drive are selected by default. To initiate the operation, just click Start backup. On my test system with a 500GB hard disk, it took over an hour and required eight DVDs. Figure B Creating a System Image on DVDs takes a little while. When the System Image is complete, you’ll be prompted to create a System Repair disc, as shown in Figure C. This is the disc that you will use to boot your system and restore your system image in the event that you need it. Figure C When the System Image is complete, you’ll be prompted to create a System Repair disc. Setting up a partition With your System Image discs safely tucked away, you’ll use the Disk Management tool to make room on your hard disk for Windows 8. To launch Disk Management, click the Start button, type Disk Management in the Search box, and press [Enter] when Create and format hard disk partitions appears in the result pane. When Disk Management launches, locate the operating system partition of the drive, right click, and select the Shrink Volume command. As you can see in Figure D, on my example system, there is a 100MB system partition and a 17GB HP Recovery partition in addition to the 450GB OS, or operating system, partition. Figure D Right click on the operating system partition of the drive and select the Shrink Volume command. For my Windows 8 partition, I set aside 50GB by entering 51200 as the amount of space to shrink the existing volume, as shown in Figure E. Once you’ve specified the size, click the Shrink button. It will take a several minutes to shrink the partition. When the operation is complete, you’ll see the new space at the end of the partition and notice that it is marked as Unallocated. In order to install Windows 8 without any problems, you should covert this unallocated space into a volume with a drive letter. To do so you’ll launch the New Simple Volume Wizard. Figure E To set up a 50GB partition, I entered 51200 as the amount of space to shrink the existing volume. To continue, right click the new partition and select the New Simple Volume command, as shown in Figure F. When you do, the New Simple Volume Wizard will launch. Figure F To launch the wizard, right click the new partition and select the New Simple Volume command. The New Simple Volume Wizard consists of five screens - the first and the fifth are shown in Figure G. As you progress through the wizard, you’ll be prompted to specify the size, assign a drive letter, choose a file system, enter a name for the volume, and choose how to format the drive. For everything but the volume name, you should just go with the defaults. As you can see, I specifically named the volume Windows 8 to prevent any ambiguity in later steps. Since the partition was created from your existing partition, you can just go with the Quick format option. Figure G The New Simple Volume Wizard consists of five screens. When you’re finished, you’ll see the new partition in Disk Manager. Figure H shows the new 50GB partition with the volume name, assigned to drive F, and marked as a Logical Drive. Figure H The 50 GB partition is now ready for the Windows 8 installation. Installing Windows 8 Now that you have your partition established and assigned a drive letter, installing Windows 8 in a dual-boot configuration should be a pretty straightforward operation. Let’s take a closer look. To begin, insert the Windows 8 Release Preview DVD and reboot your system. After a few minutes, you’ll see the Windows Setup screen shown in Figure I and you will specify your language settings before clicking Next. Figure I The first step in the installation is to specify your language settings. Once the initial steps are taken care of, you’ll see the Windows Setup screen shown in Figure J and will click the Install Now button. Figure J To get started, just click the Install Now button. You’ll then see a Windows Setup screen shown in Figure K and will need to make sure that you select the Custom option. Figure K Make sure that you select the Custom Install Windows only option. At this point, Windows Setup will prompt you to choose the location to which you want to install Windows 8. As you can see in Figure L, on my test system it is showing all available partitions and I have selected the new volume labeled Windows 8 and assigned drive letter F. Figure L On my test system, I have selected the new volume labeled Windows 8 and assigned drive letter F. After selecting the new partition on which to install Windows 8 and clicking Next, the installation will begin, as shown in Figure M. This part of the operation will take a while so go get yourself a cup of coffee. Figure M As soon as you click Next, Windows Setup will begin copying files to the new partition. Dual-booting Windows 7/Windows 8 When the installation is complete, Windows Setup will reboot your system one final time and you will then see the new Windows 8 style dual boot screen shown in Figure N. As you can see, Windows 8 will automatically launch in 30 seconds if you don’t choose Windows 7. Figure N The new Windows 8 style boot screen display for 30 seconds before launching Windows 8. If you want to alter the amount of time before Windows 8 will run, you can click the Change defaults or choose other options at the bottom of the screen. There are actually a multitude of options that you can change and I’ll cover all of them in a future article.

by mayur khokhar

Takeaway: Greg Shultz shows you how to prepare and configure your Windows 7 system to dual-boot Windows 8.

Since the Windows 8 Developer Preview hit the streets back in September 2011, I’ve written a bunch of articles on the new operating system covering such topics as the improved Windows Explorer, Windows 8 shortcut keys, Storages Spaces, and File History, just to name a few. However, I was recently reminded that there is one topic that I haven’t covered for Windows 8 and that is how to set up a dual boot machine.
Up until recently, I had a machine dedicated to testing Windows 8 and just never got around to setting up a dual-boot configuration. I say recently, because just the other day that test PC died. I did some troubleshooting to try and figure out just what went wrong, but my findings were inconclusive - it could be the power supply, it could be the CPU, it could be the motherboard, or it could be the video card. Rather than stressing about it, I just decided to get another test system - I’ll figure it out later.
Fortunately, my local computer store was having a clearance sale and I picked up and HP P2-1124 with Windows 7 Home Premium for around $300. I normally build my own systems, but this time I bought one off the shelf. So now, I had the perfect opportunity to explore dual-booting Windows 7 and Windows 8 Release Preview.
In this edition of the Windows Desktop Report, I’ll use my new system to show you how to prepare and configure your Windows 7 system to dual-boot Windows 8. While I’ll be using the Windows 8 Release Preview for this article, I’ve heard that the procedure should be very similar with the actual release version. Even so, I’ll revisit this topic in the near future once Windows 8 is available to the general public.

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This blog post is also available in the Slideshow format in a TechRepublic Photo Gallery.

Prerequisite

For this article, I’m going to assume that you have already visited the Windows 8 Release Preview site and followed Microsoft’s instructions for downloading and converting the ISO file to a DVD in Windows 7. If you haven’t, you should do so before you get started with this article. The process is pretty straightforward and Microsoft has documented the steps you need to follow.

Creating a System Image

The first thing that you’ll want to do is create a System Image from within Windows 7’s Backup and Restore. When you do, you’ll end up with a complete image of your hard disk. That way, if anything out of the ordinary were to occur as you follow the steps for creating a dual-boot system, you will be able to return to your current configuration. Furthermore, I recommend that you also create a separate backup of your data. Maybe just make copies of all your data files on CD/DVD or on an external hard disk. While it may sound like overkill, having an extra backup will give you peace of mind.
To create a system image, you’ll need to have a CD-RW/DVD-RW drive, an external hard disk, or access to a network drive. To access Backup and Restore, click the Start button, type Backup in the Search box, and press [Enter] when Backup and Restore appears in the result pane.
Once you have Backup and Restore up, select the Create a System Image option and choose your backup location. As you can see in Figure A, I used a DVD-RW drive on my system.

Figure A

On my test system, I’ll use DVDs to create my system image.

As you can see in Figure B, on my test system all the partitions on the drive are selected by default. To initiate the operation, just click Start backup. On my test system with a 500GB hard disk, it took over an hour and required eight DVDs.

Figure B

Creating a System Image on DVDs takes a little while.

When the System Image is complete, you’ll be prompted to create a System Repair disc, as shown in Figure C. This is the disc that you will use to boot your system and restore your system image in the event that you need it.

Figure C

When the System Image is complete, you’ll be prompted to create a System Repair disc.

Setting up a partition

With your System Image discs safely tucked away, you’ll use the Disk Management tool to make room on your hard disk for Windows 8. To launch Disk Management, click the Start button, type Disk Management in the Search box, and press [Enter] when Create and format hard disk partitions appears in the result pane. When Disk Management launches, locate the operating system partition of the drive, right click, and select the Shrink Volume command. As you can see in Figure D, on my example system, there is a 100MB system partition and a 17GB HP Recovery partition in addition to the 450GB OS, or operating system, partition.

Figure D

Right click on the operating system partition of the drive and select the Shrink Volume command.

For my Windows 8 partition, I set aside 50GB by entering 51200 as the amount of space to shrink the existing volume, as shown in Figure E. Once you’ve specified the size, click the Shrink button. It will take a several minutes to shrink the partition. When the operation is complete, you’ll see the new space at the end of the partition and notice that it is marked as Unallocated. In order to install Windows 8 without any problems, you should covert this unallocated space into a volume with a drive letter. To do so you’ll launch the New Simple Volume Wizard.

Figure E

To set up a 50GB partition, I entered 51200 as the amount of space to shrink the existing volume.

To continue, right click the new partition and select the New Simple Volume command, as shown in Figure F. When you do, the New Simple Volume Wizard will launch.

Figure F

To launch the wizard, right click the new partition and select the New Simple Volume command.

The New Simple Volume Wizard consists of five screens - the first and the fifth are shown in Figure G. As you progress through the wizard, you’ll be prompted to specify the size, assign a drive letter, choose a file system, enter a name for the volume, and choose how to format the drive. For everything but the volume name, you should just go with the defaults. As you can see, I specifically named the volume Windows 8 to prevent any ambiguity in later steps. Since the partition was created from your existing partition, you can just go with the Quick format option.

Figure G

The New Simple Volume Wizard consists of five screens.

When you’re finished, you’ll see the new partition in Disk Manager. Figure H shows the new 50GB partition with the volume name, assigned to drive F, and marked as a Logical Drive.

Figure H

The 50 GB partition is now ready for the Windows 8 installation.

Installing Windows 8

Now that you have your partition established and assigned a drive letter, installing Windows 8 in a dual-boot configuration should be a pretty straightforward operation. Let’s take a closer look.
To begin, insert the Windows 8 Release Preview DVD and reboot your system. After a few minutes, you’ll see the Windows Setup screen shown in Figure I and you will specify your language settings before clicking Next.

Figure I

The first step in the installation is to specify your language settings.

Once the initial steps are taken care of, you’ll see the Windows Setup screen shown in Figure J and will click the Install Now button.

Figure J

To get started, just click the Install Now button.

You’ll then see a Windows Setup screen shown in Figure K and will need to make sure that you select the Custom option.

Figure K

Make sure that you select the Custom Install Windows only option.

At this point, Windows Setup will prompt you to choose the location to which you want to install Windows 8. As you can see in Figure L, on my test system it is showing all available partitions and I have selected the new volume labeled Windows 8 and assigned drive letter F.

Figure L

On my test system, I have selected the new volume labeled Windows 8 and assigned drive letter F.

After selecting the new partition on which to install Windows 8 and clicking Next, the installation will begin, as shown in Figure M. This part of the operation will take a while so go get yourself a cup of coffee.

Figure M

As soon as you click Next, Windows Setup will begin copying files to the new partition.

Dual-booting Windows 7/Windows 8

When the installation is complete, Windows Setup will reboot your system one final time and you will then see the new Windows 8 style dual boot screen shown in Figure N. As you can see, Windows 8 will automatically launch in 30 seconds if you don’t choose Windows 7.

Figure N

The new Windows 8 style boot screen display for 30 seconds before launching Windows 8.

If you want to alter the amount of time before Windows 8 will run, you can click the Change defaults or choose other options at the bottom of the screen. There are actually a multitude of options that you can change and I’ll cover all of them in a future article.

Windows 8 Activation Cracked with KMS Host

by mayur khokhar

The final RTM version of Windows 8 has been cracked. Windows 8 activation can be done through KMS activation hack which has previously been used to activate Windows Vista and Windows 7 has been proven to work on Windows 8 too, although only on installations of volume licensing channel.

KMS activation crack had not been popularly used in the past to activate Windows Vista and Windows 7 as it’s outshone by OEM activation hack which performs instant one-time Windows activation offline without the need to setup any additional host. The OA3.0 in where all OEM computers running Windows 8 now required online activation has made OEM activation much harder to hack, at least until actual machines preinstalled with Windows 8 shipped.

As mentioned, Windows 8 KMS activation crack is nothing new. In fact, it’s an old trick by applying the KMS server with KB2691586 and an valid Windows 8 KMS host key. Currently, there is no valid Windows 8 KMS host key been leaked yet, preventing creation of own KMS host. In addition, as KMS is only used by Microsoft clients who purchase volume licensing agreement, so only Windows 8 Enterprise and Windows 8 Professional can be activated via KMS, provided they’re installed with a VLK (volume licensing product key).
Windows 8 activated with KMS server can be used genuinely for 180 days, allowing all personalization and full features, although it’s still an unknown if the system can pass the genuine Windows validation. After 180 days, the Windows 8 system will need to check against a KMS host to maintain the activated status.
Without activation, Windows 8 runs in “notification mode” where notification watermark appears every 3 hours to remind user to activate the system, and with restricted functionality especially those that related to personalization.
Related Posts:

• Download Key Management Service (KMS Host) for Windows Server 2003
• Download Office 2010 KMS Host License Pack
• Windows 7 Ultimate Cracked and Activated Permanently with OEM SLP Master Product Key (with SLIC 2.1)
• Host Process for Windows Services Has Stopped Working Error – Workaround Fix
• Windows Vista Volume Activation 2.0 Guide, Faq & Technical Guidance Free Download

Windows 8 Activation Cracked with KMS Host

by mayur khokhar

The final RTM version of Windows 8 has been cracked. Windows 8 activation can be done through KMS activation hack which has previously been used to activate Windows Vista and Windows 7 has been proven to work on Windows 8 too, although only on installations of volume licensing channel.

KMS activation crack had not been popularly used in the past to activate Windows Vista and Windows 7 as it’s outshone by OEM activation hack which performs instant one-time Windows activation offline without the need to setup any additional host. The OA3.0 in where all OEM computers running Windows 8 now required online activation has made OEM activation much harder to hack, at least until actual machines preinstalled with Windows 8 shipped.

As mentioned, Windows 8 KMS activation crack is nothing new. In fact, it’s an old trick by applying the KMS server with KB2691586 and an valid Windows 8 KMS host key. Currently, there is no valid Windows 8 KMS host key been leaked yet, preventing creation of own KMS host. In addition, as KMS is only used by Microsoft clients who purchase volume licensing agreement, so only Windows 8 Enterprise and Windows 8 Professional can be activated via KMS, provided they’re installed with a VLK (volume licensing product key).
Windows 8 activated with KMS server can be used genuinely for 180 days, allowing all personalization and full features, although it’s still an unknown if the system can pass the genuine Windows validation. After 180 days, the Windows 8 system will need to check against a KMS host to maintain the activated status.
Without activation, Windows 8 runs in “notification mode” where notification watermark appears every 3 hours to remind user to activate the system, and with restricted functionality especially those that related to personalization.
Related Posts:

• Download Key Management Service (KMS Host) for Windows Server 2003
• Download Office 2010 KMS Host License Pack
• Windows 7 Ultimate Cracked and Activated Permanently with OEM SLP Master Product Key (with SLIC 2.1)
• Host Process for Windows Services Has Stopped Working Error – Workaround Fix
• Windows Vista Volume Activation 2.0 Guide, Faq & Technical Guidance Free Download

Clearing Up Some Windows 8 Activation Confusion

by mayur khokhar

With the release of Windows 8 to MSDN and TechNet subscribers worldwide, we're starting to see more and more people setting up their first machines using the final OS code -- and starting to see more questions about some specifics. Unfortunately, Microsoft hasn't been providing much in the way of answers at this point. For example, my colleague, Jason Helmick, contacted me after testing some of the Windows Activation features in Windows 8. I'm providing his narrative below, enhanced with some of my own discoveries and comments in [square brackets]. I'd love to hear your comments and findings, too -- please drop them into the comments area below. With that said, take it away Jason...
Q: I'm confused about the Windows 8 Enterprise/ Pro Activation.
A: The three download versions of Windows 8 can be somewhat confusing at first, until you realize the purpose for each one. Lack of documentation in this initial stage of release has had more than one person download all three just to see which one they can license.
In my case (TechNet key in hand) I ended up downloading all three to see which one would take the key. The answer is the standard download (not Pro or Enterprise) but after working with the Enterprise and Pro versions I ran into the new activation process and had some questions. Without having any documentation to explain the new activation process I did an initial test. I'm left with more questions than answers.
The Pro and Enterprise downloads are designed to receive their activation through a traditional KMS server or the new Active Directory Based activation (ADBA). The Enterprise version of Windows 8 still supports Multiple Activation Keys (MAK) if that's your preference.
[I'll note here that I was able to help Jason find the right download and confirm his observations. The TechNet "Windows 8 Professional VL" ISO image requires a volume license key and Active Directory, or KMS-based activation; the "Enterprise" ISO also requires on-network activation or a Multiple Activation Key, or MAK. The "plain" Windows 8 ISO will accept a Professional key and activate as Windows 8 Professional.]
So, without a KMS server or MAK available, I decided to test Windows 8 Enterprise to see if there had been changes to the activation process, and to test the time it took the OS to expire when not activated. I'm not a hacker, and I'm not trying to pirate software; I'm just trying to understand from an administrative deployment perspective what is going to happen if activation fails.  Documentation for this seems elusive at best (or doesn't exist). Here are the questions that I had when starting my experiment:

Windows 8's new licenses: simpler, saner, better

Windows 8's new licenses: simpler, saner, better

System Builder license expanded to cover those who build their own PCs.

by mayur khokhar

Windows licensing has traditionally been a complex affair. Special licenses for enterprises, OEMs, and upgraders all exist, and each license has its own different set of restrictions and requirements.
Some of that complication, however, may be at an end. Ed Bott at ZDNet has taken a look at the new licenses for Windows 8, and they seem to be much simpler and more straightforward than the licenses of old. Even better, the licenses now permit behavior that was historically common but technically prohibited.
Each license now includes a plain-English introductory section, in a question-and-answer format, to explain to users what is and isn't permitted per the license's terms.
Windows 7 has six different kinds of licenses. One of these, the Anytime Upgrade, is used for switching Windows 7 versions, and two of them, the OEM licenses used by large OEMs and the Enterprise licenses used by volume license customers, aren't directly available to end users. This leaves OEM licenses for system builders, retail upgrade licenses, and full retail licenses.
System Builder licenses are substantially cheaper than the full retail licenses. A common practice among PC self-builders is to buy a System Builder license when purchasing PC components, and then use this license themselves. Technically, however, that wasn't permitted per the terms of the license; the System Builder versions are meant to be installed onto PCs that are then sold to third parties.
Windows 8 has five license types available. The major OEM licenses and Enterprise/volume licenses remain essentially the same as ever. Anytime Upgrade will also still exist, to enable switching from Windows 8 to Windows 8 Pro.
The change comes to the retail licenses. Where once there were three kinds, now there are only two: an upgrade license and a System Builder license.
Full retail licenses are gone, and the standard retail license will be a simple upgrade license. This isn't altogether surprising. The vast majority of people buying Windows at retail fall into one of two categories: they either have a PC they wish to upgrade, or they're building a new PC. If they're in the former category, they're almost always already running Windows and hence already in possession of a Windows license. As such, they qualify for an upgrade.
It's the System Builder license that has changed. The System Builder license is still the license that small OEMs will use on the machines that they build and sell. However, it has a new usage right: the Personal Use license. With the Personal Use right, end users can buy a System Builder license and use it on a machine they self-build, or as an operating system installed on its own partition in a dual-boot configuration, or in a virtual machine.
In this way, the System Builder license now becomes a good fit for three usage scenarios that formerly required full-price retail licenses: the self-builder, the dual booter, and the virtualizer. Although pricing isn't yet public, the new System Builder license should, like its Windows 7 predecessor, be substantially cheaper than the old full retail licenses were.
Other differences between licenses over the right to transfer between machines and the question of who provides tech support will remain. Bott will be posting a follow-up examining these issues later tonight.