Computer Works Central

Useful Tools for Partitioning, Booting and Editing  

Not all of these tools are absolutely essential, especially for less involved configurations, but they do make the work easier. This table lists some common tools as well as similar alternatives.

None of these requires execution from within Windows. As a rule, it is always safest to work on partitions when you are not booted into them! It amazes me how this simple concept seems to escape many people, and I can only shake my head when they demand Windows programs to do partition work, It's just not going to happen.

Of course, you must also have the CDs to install each operating system.

While the PowerQuest products are typically installed on a Windows system, we need to use them outside of Windows. If you already have PartitionMagic or DriveImage installed, find the menu option for making rescue floppies if you also need a floppy boot disk. If you don't need another boot disk, you can also make floppies by directly copying files from the PartitionMagic or DriveImage CD. Copy the following files:

The CD location may not be the same on different versions of the programs. Note: the file ptedit.exe can also be found in the \utility\dos directory on either CD.

** Warning: older versions of ptedit.exe cannot edit the boot record of hidden NTFS partitions. There are several versions of ptedit.exe that identify themselves as "Version 1.0", so check the file date. Versions prior to the 10/22/1999 version (filesize 494,922 bytes) reportedly have this bug. If you are using an older version (and note PowerQuest has not updated their ftp site as of this writing), the solution to editing hidden NTFS boot records is simple: use ptedit.exe to change the partition type from "17" (hidden NTFS) to "07" (regular NTFS), then edit the boot record, then change the partition type back to "17".