Booting Windows 7 from a VHD on a flash drive?

j3tech

I have a Virtual Hard Drive (VHD) file on which I have installed windows 7 through the use of a virutal machine.
I have that VHD file on my 16GB Flash Drive.
I want to configure the BCD file to boot the computer directly to that VHD.
I know that VHD files can easily be set to be a boot device with the VHD on C:\ drive.
But how do I do this on a flash drive?

[My goal is to create a portable windows 7 that i can plug into any computer and boot up windows 7]
Yes, I know i'm crazy...don't hate. It can be done. I've used it before.
Where I am right now: I have been able to get to the point of having the Starting Windows boot screen from the VHD but right after the orbs come together to form the windows logo...it just reboots (no bluescreen)
Okay. I was just able to get EasyBCD to do its thing correctly...It aims directly at the VHD file, Shows me the menu of boot items. [There is one that I made (Windows 7 Portable)] Then it does the Starting Windows Screen, and THEN it just crashes...I am suspecting a driver issue, remember: I want to be able to put this on any computer...

Answer
Probably can be done. Flash drives have to be made bootable. You can set your BIOS to boot them before other media (CD, Hard Drive, etc.) but that doesn't mean they will just boot. Google around - there are plenty of freeware tools that will partition and install the proper files needed to boot a USB device. Just Google "make flash drive bootable". Your question suggests you know how to create bootable VHDs - so just put all the necessary files on the drive once it has a truly bootable partition.

Need help with my portable hard drive!?

Reckinshop

I have a Wester Digital 1TB portable hard drive. I have always used it with my Mac with no problem, I can plug it in and go through all my files in finder. My problem is when I plug it into a windows PC tried with (Windows 7 and XP) it doesn't show up. I know the ports are fine in the PC because my flash drives, mouse, keyboard, act. work through them. Is there a way to make my hard drive work over PC?

I never partitioned it either so it is the same as it came out of the box except iv added movies, music, papers, act. to it.

Answer
Since you used this in your mac it partitioned it to a file system that only the mac can see HFS. You can try reformatting the hard drive using NTFS so that both systems can see the contents of the drive.

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