I now configure any WinXP laptops to have a separate partition for
my data, which I configure as a FAT32 partition so I can write to
it from NetBSD.  Then for upgrades I use NetBSD and tar/cpio to
copy the data over the network.  May take overnight, but it generally
saves me a lot of hassle.

This two-partition setup also greatly simplifies doing re-installs
of WinXP as I can just blow away the C: drive, recreate it, and
reinstall any apps (from the distributed .zips saved on the data
partition).

I use the Linux System Rescue CD <www.sysrescd.org> and use `parted'
(or is it qparted?) to shrink the WinXP partition to 8-10GB.  It's
a simple Qt app and has worked fine for me.

Brian.

On 2006.12.17 00:27:26 -0500, Steven M. Bellovin wrote:
> I'm going through the usual pain trying to upgrade my laptop.  Copying
> NetBSD worked flawlessly (of course), but I'm having a lot of trouble
> trying to get Windows copied over.  A simple image copy (from NetBSD) of
> the partition wouldn't finish booting, even though the BIOS geometry is
> the same.  Partition Magic appeared to work, but some essential service
> crapped out during initialization (SVC mumble, XYZZY is a Pure Virtual
> Function, or some such, so no windows would open); besides, Partition
> Magic gets very concerned that some partitions have a different
> geometry.  I believe that -- after zeroing the first 8K blocks of the
> disk, I get:
> 
> # fdisk wd1
> fdisk: primary partition table invalid, no magic in sector 0
> Disk: /dev/rwd1d
> NetBSD disklabel disk geometry:
> cylinders: 193821, heads: 16, sectors/track: 63 (1008 sectors/cylinder)
> total sectors: 195371568
> 
> BIOS disk geometry:
> cylinders: 1023, heads: 240, sectors/track: 63 (15120 sectors/cylinder)
> total sectors: 195371568
> 
> OTOH, wd0 also shows different geometries, without apparent trouble for
> the last two years:
> 
> # fdisk wd0
> Disk: /dev/rwd0d
> NetBSD disklabel disk geometry:
> cylinders: 116280, heads: 16, sectors/track: 63 (1008 sectors/cylinder)
> total sectors: 117210240
> 
> BIOS disk geometry:
> cylinders: 1023, heads: 240, sectors/track: 63 (15120 sectors/cylinder)
> total sectors: 117210240
> 
> I could simply try Select All/Copy/Paste, but I have no idea then how
> to make the partition bootable into XP.
> 
> I'm on the verge of simply reinstalling Windows on the new drive, using
> the recovery disks; while there's not much application software (and no
> application data...) on that partition, I don't really feel like
> spending the time downloading \aleph_0 critical security patches.
> 
> Any suggestions?
> 
> 
> 		--Steve Bellovin, http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb

-- 
  Brian de Alwis | Software Practices Lab | UBC | http://www.cs.ubc.ca/~bsd/
      "Amusement to an observing mind is study." - Benjamin Disraeli