Starting the system from the VHD
Now that Windows 8 has been installed on a VHD, it is possible to
start the system. In Windows 7, when performing the tasks to start a
VHD, the editing of boot menus was left up to the user. Windows needed
to be reminded that there were multiple installations from which to
choose—some located on physical drives in traditional installations and
others located inside VHD files. In Windows 8, this is handled as part
of the installation to the VHD file. When the system completes its
installation process, you are asked to choose an operating system, as
shown in Figure 1.
When this window appears, the default selection time is 30 seconds on
the initial startup of the multi-boot environment, with the default
startup option being the latest installation.
After the initial startup to complete the process of readying
devices in the new installation, the time that the boot menu is
displayed defaults to 30 seconds, and the default operating system
selection is the newest installation of Windows. The time limit to
display the menu will disappear after you change your selection. If
multiple VHD environments are available, the menu entries shown will
display information about each VHD file so you can distinguish
instances.
You can adjust the amount of time that the boot menu displays and
the default choice of operating system by completing the following
steps:
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From the Choose An Operating System screen, select Change Defaults Or Choose Other Options.
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To change the 30-second timer, select Change The Timer and select 5 minutes, 30 seconds, or 5 seconds.
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Select Choose A Default Operating System to specify which operating system should be started by default.
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Select Choose Other Options to perform the following tasks:
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Continue starting the default operating system.
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Use an operating system other than the default.
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Troubleshoot your computer.
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Turn off your computer.
If you select the option to troubleshoot your computer, the following options are available:
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Refresh Your PC Reset windows without losing files.
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Reset Your PC Remove all personal files and begin with a fresh copy of Windows.
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Advanced Options These include:
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System Restore: Restore your computer to an earlier time.
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System Image Recovery: Use a specific image to recover Windows.
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Automatic Repair: Fix issues that prevent Windows from starting up.
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Command Prompt: Access advanced recovery tools such as DiskPart.
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Startup Settings: Restart your computer to an options menu to enter Safe mode and access other traditional tools.
You can also change these settings in Windows 8 by using MSConfig.
To change the boot menu settings, complete the following steps:
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On the Start screen, type msconfig. When the application appears in the search results, tap or click it to start the program.
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Tap or click the Boot tab in the system configuration window.
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To adjust the default timer for the Operating System Selection menu,
change the value in the timeout box from 30 seconds to any other value.
Note that it is more flexible than the three options provided from the
Windows 8 boot screen.
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To change the default operating system, select an operating system
not currently labeled Default OS in the top portion of the Boot tab,
and then tap or click Set As Default.
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Tap or click OK to save these changes.
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Select Restart Now to restart the computer and apply the changes or
select Exit Without Restart to save the changes and apply them at the
next restart.
Removing VHD installations
If you later decide that you do not want to use the VHD installation
to start Windows, you can just start the root version of Windows on the
system and remove the VHD file from the hard disk. When doing this, you
will need to clean up the boot menu to prevent confusion during future
starts. The first time you restart your computer after removing a VHD,
the Recovery screen appears, stating that your computer needs to be
repaired. Start a different operating system by pressing F9; after the
new system starts, you can clean up the boot menu to remove the entry
for the VHD file that has been deleted.
To edit the boot menu, complete the following steps:
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On the Start screen, type msconfig to search for the application. Tap or click to open it.
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Select the Boot tab.
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Select the installation you want to remove.
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Tap or click Delete.
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Tap or click Apply, and then tap or click OK to save the settings and exit MSConfig.
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Restart your computer to commit the changes to the configuration.
When your computer restarts, the entry for the VHD files you deleted no longer appears in the boot menu.
