A Digital Age Deserves A Digital Leader

Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Forum rules
This forum is meant for support of PRO Software only. PROnetworks reserves the right to edit any topic title to better explain the contents of a post. We also may move your post to a more suitable forum if necessary.

It may take our support staff up to 24 hours to respond to your problem. We appreciate your patience.

Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby CLM3S » Sat Jun 19, 2010 10:41 pm

Hello,

I am really dissapointed with Dual Boot Pro and once again furious with Microsoft. I have a Vista machine and wanted to install XP so I could actually use all my programs, not just the ones compatable with Vista. Well, I followed the guide on the website, it told me to shrink the active boot partion of my Vista drive of which I have 250GB free. Well, Microsoft's wonderful operating system only reports 2GB!!! (See attatched JPG.) After searching the internet I found out that it seems good old Mircosoft puts files at the very end of my partition that are not movable. Making a partition shrink useless or even for some others, impossible. Ok, so it's not DBP's fault, BUT if it's advertised as working with Vista, it better include a big exception stating: "May not work on Vista due to inablitity to shrink partition!" I saw no such warning...

I found guides trying to get around this Vista parition issue, here's the solution I found: Change more that five serious settings in Vista which may screw things up even more, delete all kinds of system files which doesnt sound scarry at all, and even buy more software, AKA commercial defragging software to try to force the partition to shrink.

Check this out, just read the first two sentences of the first paragraph...
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/working-around-windows-vistas-shrink-volume-inadequacy-problems/

Anyone, please, help! What I am to do? Should I request a refund?

dbps.jpg
dbps.jpg (110.3 KiB) Viewed 3013 times
PRO New Member
Posts: 2
Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2010 10:22 pm

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby kanaloa » Sun Jun 20, 2010 3:21 am

Just an update. Your transaction was voided and you will not be charged. But hopefully one of our support folks can help you out with this problem.
"Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice, and discipline." - Jim Collins
President
User avatar
Posts: 11795
Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2002 1:18 am
Location: HI & SC
Real Name: John Derrick

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby NT50 » Sun Jun 20, 2010 5:31 pm

It is not DualBootPro's fault AND we do not have to make that statement due to the fact it is a MS error not ours.

The work around is simple. Download GParted Love, skrink the volume, reboot the computer. If it errors, insert the Windows Vista DVD, boot to it, do a systsem repair. May have to reboot to the DVD again and do another system repair. Once done then you are off and running again and then you could have continued with the guide.

Now if you follow this and get your partition resized and XP install, it woudl be the honest thing to do is BUY the software you will use to get your dual boot back.
Dogs Have Owners; Cats Have Staff
PROfessional Member
User avatar
Posts: 8220
Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 4:46 pm
Location: Jackson, TN USA
Real Name: Jeff Replogle

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby jbullard » Mon Jun 21, 2010 12:10 am

Have you tried defragging the volume prior to trying to run this? I could be wrong but if certain system files reside later on the disk then it could prevent you from shrinking it more than the 2GB. I looked at my partition and it would only allow me to shrink it by 85GB which would bring it from 195GB to 110GB. More than enough room for vista as I have only used about 10GB. Once I completed a defrag I was able to do much more than the 85GB.
VP - Software
User avatar
Posts: 3653
Joined: Sun Jun 06, 2004 10:17 pm
Location: Utah
Real Name: Jason Bullard

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby CLM3S » Mon Jun 21, 2010 6:12 am

Just an update. Your transaction was voided and you will not be charged. But hopefully one of our support folks can help you out with this problem.

Thank you for the quick response!!! I uninstalled the product and deleted it.

It is not DualBootPro's fault AND we do not have to make that statement due to the fact it is a MS error not ours.

Understandable, but from a customer's point of view, that doesn't make it any better. Before my refund, I had still spent $10 for nothing, even if it wasn't DPB's fault.

The work around is simple. Download GParted Love, skrink the volume, reboot the computer. If it errors, insert the Windows Vista DVD, boot to it, do a systsem repair. May have to reboot to the DVD again and do another system repair. Once done then you are off and running again and then you could have continued with the guide.

Just my opinion, that seem possibly dangerous. System re-pairs are not always simple, and if it doesnt work out right it can cause even more problems. At that point, I might as well re-image and start over from scratch. I just wanted to shrink the volume and install XP, not deal with any work arounds. The real issue here is nothing more than Vista, I think you know my and many other's opinions on that... :bashhead

Now if you follow this and get your partition resized and XP install, it woudl be the honest thing to do is BUY the software you will use to get your dual boot back.

I will re-buy it! The fact that I was able to get a refund was tremendous! You can't always do that with software and that means alot to me as a customer! I will not only re-buy the software, but if any of my tech friends need something like it, I will recommend this product. (And personally, save up for a Windows 7 upgrade.)

Have you tried defragging the volume prior to trying to run this? I could be wrong but if certain system files reside later on the disk then it could prevent you from shrinking it more than the 2GB. I looked at my partition and it would only allow me to shrink it by 85GB which would bring it from 195GB to 110GB. More than enough room for vista as I have only used about 10GB. Once I completed a defrag I was able to do much more than the 85GB.

From what I gather, the location of the system files causing the issue are semi-random. In my case, I de-fragged and it did nothing. The system files did not move...


Thanks for the help everyone!
PRO New Member
Posts: 2
Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2010 10:22 pm

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby NT50 » Mon Jun 21, 2010 7:27 pm

We aim to please :)

Also as for Win 7 and Vista.... Yes get Windows 7. Buy an OEM if you have to. You will have to do a clean instal no matter what with Windows 7; OEM will be less money spent......

Just beware when installing windows 7 it like to create a hidden 100meg partition. Se link below.
http://www.dualbootpro.org/index.php/si ... _partition
Dogs Have Owners; Cats Have Staff
PROfessional Member
User avatar
Posts: 8220
Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 4:46 pm
Location: Jackson, TN USA
Real Name: Jeff Replogle

Re: Vista's Boot Partition Limitation, Makes DBP useless...

Postby Grav!ty » Mon Jun 21, 2010 11:28 pm

Disable your page file, reboot and then shrink your partition. Go to right click Computer>Properties and follow the red dots page by page on the screenshot below. This is a Windows 7 screenshot but the directions should be good for Vista too.

Image

Remember to go back and reset your page file to auto afterwards.
Image

"The great majority of mankind are satisfied with appearances, as though they were realities, and are often more influenced by the things that seem than by those that are." - Niccolo Machiavelli
PROfessional Member
User avatar
Posts: 15790
Joined: Tue Sep 14, 2004 5:22 am
Real Name: Graham

Return to PRO Software

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests

cron
cron