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"Clean Install" of Windows XP on an iMac?

#1
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10/16/09 at 1:16pm
  • Joined: May 1999
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At risk of blasphemy, I must ask if it is possible to do a clean install of Windows XP on a 24" iMac.  I have an extra one, and I need to use it in a "Windows" environment, and I don't want to fiddle with Boot Camp.  So I want to put in a fresh hard drive (probably an SSD) and install Windows XP.

I guess the biggest problem will be any needed drivers.  Are there any driver packs that are available for the iMac?  Has anyone tried this before with any success?


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#2
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10/16/09 at 2:23pm
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 You could just have a small Mac OS X system partition (say, about 10GB) and partition the rest of the drive via Bootcamp for Windows. Since the Intel Macs don't use a BIOS but EFI, I don't think there is another way to install XP on your machine. XP knows nothing about EFI, so you couldn't start the install routine, which is exactly what Bootcamp is for.

You can set it up to automatically boot into Windows after the install, so this is the closest you get. All the drivers for Windows are actually on your Leopard or Snow Leopard install DVD.

-Christian

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." (Benjamin Franklin)

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#3
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10/16/09 at 4:00pm
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Great info.  I'll give it a try!

Thanks.
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#4
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10/17/09 at 5:31am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonathan Burk View Post

At risk of blasphemy, I must ask if it is possible to do a clean install of Windows XP on a 24" iMac.  I have an extra one, and I need to use it in a "Windows" environment, and I don't want to fiddle with Boot Camp.  So I want to put in a fresh hard drive (probably an SSD) and install Windows XP.

I guess the biggest problem will be any needed drivers.  Are there any driver packs that are available for the iMac?  Has anyone tried this before with any success?

No matter what, you need to use BootCamp. It's straightforward, though I recommend reviewing the Bootcamp instructions as there are few decisions to be made. And doing so is a "clean" install, as you'd be installed it fully onto a new partition. There's no upgrade process like going from WinXP to Vista.

The official Apple support says you can't install Bootcamp on an external drive nor boot Bootcamp from an external drive. (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1656 & http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3777). But perhaps Christian's idea will work; I've never tried it.
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