A couple technical things

There are a couple technical things everyone should have in their toolbox. The first is how to install Windows 7 from a USB drive. The second is how to boot into a VHD. Here’s the reference:

Install Windows 7 from a USB drive:

Installing Windows 7 from a USB disk has one disadvantage. Besides being easier than a CD/DVD, it is also faster. And, if you bill by the hour, you will find this technique “expensive”. ;)

Open the command prompt as Administrator & type:

1. “DISKPART”
2. “LIST DISK”
3. “SELECT DISK 1” (if DISK 1 is your USB drive)
4. “CLEAN” (backup USB contents!)
5. “ACTIVE”
6. “FORMAT FS=FAT32 QUICK”
7. “ASSIGN”
8. Copy Win 7 install DVD to USB.

Done. (here’s another site with the same info)

Boot into a VHD:

Booting to a VHD is a Windows 7 thing, though the OS inside the VHD can be anything VPC supports. You still have access to local resources and hardware, but unlike simple dual boot, you have the option of running the VHD inside a session on the host.

Open the command prompt as Administrator & type:

(in this I assume your VHD is located @ c:\VHD\01.VHD)

1. “bcdedit /copy {current} /d "My VHD 01"”
2. “bcdedit /set <guid> device vhd=[c:]\VHD\01.VHD”
3. “bcdedit /set <guid> osdevice vhd=[c:]\VHD\01.VHD”
4. “bcdedit /set <guid> detecthal on”

To remove:

1. “bcdedit /set <guid> detecthal on”

With this, you are the master of the universe.