Trouble with XP sp3, Bootcamp and Parallels

[trishka]

I purchased a 24" iMac from MacMall that was to come pre-installed with XP pro and Parallels. Turns out that MacMall installed XP sp3 via Parallels only so I do not have the option to actually boot up into Windows. I am now being told that I need to have XP sp2 in order to install via Bootcamp. Can someone tell me if installing XP sp2 through bootcamp will interfere with the xp sp3 I have only through Parallels? In other words...will these two xp versions "talk"?

My end goal is to be able to boot up into Windows in addition to Parallels. I was thinking that I might be able to install the Bootcamp 2.1 upgrade through Parallels and then try installing XP sp3 via bootcamp once I have the bootcamp upgrade? Any thoughts and/or advice/help? I don't want to mess anything up further.

Trish

 

[Bye Bye Baby]

I think I can help.

The bootcamp partition is separate in all senses from what parallels does. However you do have a few options.

1. Install a version of XP under bootcamp. Update it to SP 3.
2. Under bootcamp 2.1 and parallels you can then add a new virtual machine from the new bootcamp version of xp. You can then dump the xp SP 2 virtual machine.

I have XP SP3 running under parallels and I have vista ultimate under bootcamp. The two do not speak to one another, even though I could also run vista under parallels as well as under bootcamp.

Theoretically I could have XP and Vista under parallels and still have vista operate under bootcamp.

Hope this helps.