Member Avatar for sound_out

HI,

I have to learn how to use windows server 2003 so I want to install it onto my PC to a dedicated hard drive. On the other hard drive I have Win XP Pro running. Can this be done because when I install the disk and start to go through the setup, the program thinks I’m doing an upgrade? Can anyone give me some advice with this please?

Thanks

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Dani AI

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Thread note for and others: the short-term choices are (1) isolate the Server 2003 install completely, (2) perform the install on a second physical box, or (3) run Server 2003 inside a virtual machine. and touched on the separate-drive/box idea; the paragraphs below add practical, non-redundant steps, common pitfalls, and safety tips that were not in the replies.

Virtual machine approach — safest and fastest for learning: create a VM (VirtualBox, VMware Player, etc.), attach the Server 2003 ISO, allocate modest RAM (>=512 MB) and a 20–40 GB virtual disk, and use NAT networking to keep the lab isolated. Take a snapshot immediately after a clean install so changes can be reverted. Use a bridged adapter only when testing client-server interactions on the local LAN. VM guest tools (VMware Tools / Guest Additions) will improve drivers, mouse/clipboard handling, and time sync.

Physical install pitfalls and a safer procedure: make a full image/backup of the XP disk first. Power down and physically disconnect the XP drive before installing Server 2003 to the second drive — this prevents accidental bootloader or MBR changes on the XP disk. After the Server install, reconnect the XP drive and use the motherboard’s one-time boot menu or BIOS boot-order to select which disk to boot. If the bootloader is damaged or entries are missing, the Recovery Console can repair things with:

fixmbr
fixboot
bootcfg /rebuild

Security and final cautions: Windows Server 2003 reached end of support on July 14, 2015, and no longer receives security updates. Any lab instance should be isolated from production networks and the internet. If the goal is to learn AD, DNS, DHCP and related services, virtualization plus snapshots offers the best balance of safety, convenience, and repeatability.

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Member Avatar for Catweazle

Have you added a drive specifically for this? If so has it been prepared and formatted?

The install routine should allow you to choose which drive or partition you want to install to, and also create a multi boot menu for you.

Boot your PC from the CD and choose to perform a new installation. Don't run setup from within Windows. The new installation routine will present you with the appropriate options and choices

Member Avatar for kc0arf

Hello,

I would install Windows 2003 Server on a different computer.

In order to learn the ins and outs of the operating system, by definition, it is a server, and a server means that it "serves" things to client computers. Also, to fully appreciate the experience over time, you will need to examine log files, and deal with situations as the OS operates, and you modify the environment. If you are continually switching between XP and 2003, you are not going to achieve your goal of learning how the system plays. Things happen to the system over time. Also, you would not learn how clients adjust to things like DNS and DHCP settings.

I'd try to find another box to install Windows 2003 on. It doesn't need to be complete -- once you have the OS installed, you can take the monitor off it (make it headless) and store the keyboard and mouse somewhere else. You can then use remote desktop to manage the server, if you are so interested.

Christian

Member Avatar for sound_out

Thanks for the advice.

I think I'll look at getting another PC set up and install it onto that.

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