First attempt: imagex.exe /apply. I pour the XP install.wim onto the USB. Plug it into the test rig—an old HP Compaq. The BIOS sees the USB. It begins to boot. Then: .
I find a ghost in the machine: a German forum post from 2009. A tool called USB Multiboot 10 . It uses a hacked NTLDR and a custom usb.inf that forces XP to treat the USB as a fixed disk. But there’s a catch: the motherboard has to support USB hard disk emulation, not just removable. windows to go windows xp
Until Vern calls. Which he will. Next Tuesday. First attempt: imagex
I nod. “Don’t ever unplug that drive. Don’t run Windows Update. And for the love of God, don’t let anyone sneeze near the USB port.” The BIOS sees the USB
My heart stops.