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We have a problem where, upon every boot, the computer asks us to select an operating system. We want to delete one so our laptop will boot normally once more. Help?

Windows XP Boot Sequence

In order to understand the message that your computer is presenting it might be useful to understand the boot up sequence generally. When you turn your XP system on, the computer follows a pre-determined start up process as follows:

• POST - power on self test
• Initial start up
• Boot loader
• Hardware detection and configuration
• Kernel loading
• User logon

Boot Order Configuration

The boot order configuration, the issue that you are experiencing, occurs during the second phase, the initial start up, when the computer is looking for and initializing settings from the CMOS memory - the computer’s internal power and memory source. When your computer reaches this stage, it finds information that there are two operating systems available to start up, and so asks you which you would like to use.

Edit the BOOT.INI File

In order to remove this prompt and allow Windows to boot with only one XP installation you can edit the BOOT.INI file without too much trouble.

1.  
   1. Click Start, then Control Panel
   2. Choose System, then Advanced
   3. Under Startup and Recovery, choose Settings, then Edit
   4. The boot.ini text file will open - do not be alarmed, it looks a bit intimidating but isn’t actually
   5. You should see two similar entries for XP - delete the bottom line that looks similar to this: multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS=”Microsoft Windows XP Professional” /noexecute=optin /fastdetect
   6. Save the boot.ini file
   7. Close and exit Settings
   8. Now you should visit Windows Updates to make sure that the operating system has the latest releases. Also, update your virus definitions and software, in case there are changes that were inadvertently saved to the other system installation. The odds aren’t high, especially if this situation only recently presented, but you should err on the side of caution.

Removing Operating System Installations from Other Windows Version

I hope this was helpful. The steps for removing operating system installations are similar in other Windows versions that use the boot.ini file system. However, when removing entries from the boot order in Windows Vista things change. Here is a link to a related post about the process for Vista. Good luck!

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