For those of y'all that aren't comfortable using ADB to transfer files (backup and restore your /system/sd Ext2 or Ext3 partitions) while using Windows (including x64 version), there is a very simple alternative to ADB.
Go here and read about it:
Ext2 Installable File System For Windows (includes Ext3 as well)
http://www.fs-driver.org/
Simply follow the instructions and install.
Reboot your computer
Once you reboot, you'll be able to access the Linux partitions just like they are a C:\ drive (they'll have a different partition letter, of course)
This works for XP, Vista and Windows 7 ... x64 too.
You'll then be able to transfer files back and forth very easily.
Great for backups!
NOTE: this will NOT allow you to partition your card. This just allows read/write access to your Ext2/Ext3 partitions.
Here's the download page as well:
http://www.fs-driver.org/download.html
I tried to install on Windows 7 an no go for me it says that it doesn't run on the platform
Naimand said:
I tried to install on Windows 7 an no go for me it says that it doesn't run on the platform
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Go to where you downloaded the file.
Right click on it.
Choose properties.
Choose Compatibility.
Check "Run this program in compatibility mode"
Choose a Vista version compatible with whatever you have (ie. x64)
Click OK.
Then run install.
Just installed on x64 Windows 7, you do need to do compatiability mode to install.
ran instal but after i restarted nothing is showing up when i click on computer, just normal drives
It's been a while since I installed it, but I remember it took some trial and error to get it in Vista x64. Play with the different options and try reinstalling it.
Another thing you might try is Assign A Drive Letter in Paragon Partition Manager.
I know it works, I just don't remember what combination of things it took to get it working.
oh god i just uninstalled my Paragon Partition Manager last night! and i dont have the files no more. i guess im just gonna uninstall this tool. thanks anyways. running xp.
ext2fsd seems to be ahead of ext2ifs in features; it also works on windows 7...
Ok I know this isn't the right forum for this but I know how good the developers in this forum are. What's happened basically is I installed Android on my pc on the same partition as windows xp. But it doesn't work properly and now when I boot it loads grub but windows Isn't listed as an os. So how do I boot into windows and remove android and grub. I've looked everywhere and I can't find how to do it. Plz if anyone can help I will be very grateful.
Thanks
Dion.
I'm not an Android expert but I can't imagine, that it's really possible to install Android on the same partition as XP ?!
Edit: OK, maybe it's possible, but it's not a good idea at all..
However...
-Boot with your XP CD
-Press R
-Enter "fixmbr"
That should help you..
It won't be easy removing grub. What you can do is have grub show Windows. Grub will load the Windows bootloader, which in turn will load Windows.
You can also set it to automatically boot the Windows bootloader, so you can delete the Android partition (don't delete grub!).
I don't think there are any Android specific guides available for this, but if you can get into a shell (which I doubt you can't), follow this: h t t p://supergrubdisk.org/wiki/Howto_Boot_Grub_from_windows
Also, I think running fixmbr or something similar from a Windows recovery console (using a DVD) would work (h t t p://support.microsoft.com/kb/927392).
Hope this helps.
Thanks I will try the supergrub link as its a netbook I haven't got a cd drive so ill let you know how I get on. Thanks for replying.
P. S.
Luvin swiftkeys.
Ok thanks I fixed it. I used the grub console to boot into windows then I used something called testdisk in windows to restore the windows boot partition. Thanks
Ok ,once you have decided to install Android operating system(AOS) on your pc u'll need to..... oh wait! u must be wondering why did i create this thread since an android emulator already exists. This is why
1) This is not an emulator but a full fledged OS that can be installed along windows/linux
2) it's optimized for x86(32 bit Intel and AMD) processors so is a lot less laggy than the emu
3) it supports wifi, camera and u can install apps which you can't do on the emulator
Caution-
This build is primarily for laptops/netbooks and may not fully work on your desktop( there's no harm in trying though)
Depending on your version and Hardware, not everything may work properly
I'm not responsible for anything you do! (though i seriously doubt that it can do any harm but always exercise caution)
Once you are satisfied, lets begin
Requirements-
A USB pendrive with at least 256 mb free scpace
Internet connection
Common Sense
Downloading the tools-
1)First go to this site- http://www.android-x86.org/download and download the required image(choose which version and the model of ur laptop)
2) Visit this link - http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/ and download Unetbootin for your OS(the one you are currently running)
Setting up the bootable image
1) Plug in your pendrive and run Unetbootin.
2) Select the "diskimage" radio button and load the ISO file
3) Set type to "USB Drive" and select ur pendrive from the drop down menu
4) Click OK and your pendrive is ready to be booted from
Booting up AOS
1) turn off your computer and plug in your pendrive
2) you need to change the boot sequence in the PC's BIOS. to do this keep pressing 'Delete" button or F12(depending on your motherboard, generally a line of text indicates the button to be pressed) on the boot/Splash screen and select external/usb as your first boot device
3) Once done, the AOS installation menu should come up, select the first option to try it without installing anything to your Hard disk.
4)If you want to install it to your Hard disk you might havta repartition ur HD to avoid windows being overwritten(i recommend not doing so but if you want to proceed, use the free software EASUS Partition Manager)
5) Bingo!! You should be running AOS on your PC now
Thank You
Thanks for starting this wonderful thread. I installed android on my netbook beside windows xp and it works great. it lets me choose which operating system i want to work with. i downloaded android-x86-4.2-20130228.iso from that website cuz i didn't know to use which one. i also created an ntfs partition for installing android. it perefectly recognizes my wireless and camera now. nothing is better than this. i'm happy with my netbook now.
thanks man....its working and its awesome!!!
Sent from my Xperia E dual using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Sd Card Dual boot?
As you can see, Im new here... Does this require a partition to install, or can you boot straight form usb? My other question is can you do this the same from an sd card? Thanks in advance... Sorry if its a dumb question.
Jellypig1278 said:
As you can see, Im new here... Does this require a partition to install, or can you boot straight form usb? My other question is can you do this the same from an sd card? Thanks in advance... Sorry if its a dumb question.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mmmmm.... i'm going to try it now. i have created extra partition using MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Edition 7.5.0.1 and know i"m going to use sd card in card reader to create bootable pendrive.
wait......................................................
Ramesh006 said:
Mmmmm.... i'm going to try it now. i have created extra partition using MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Edition 7.5.0.1 and know i"m going to use sd card in card reader to create bootable pendrive.
wait......................................................
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have created partition using MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Edition but after that my pc was lost boot. it set the c drive inactive. i used windows cd to start again. unetbootin-windows-608 didn't work for me. i used Win32DiskImager-0.9.5 which has option to choose operating system android. after that it worked but i have got one more problem. i have installed the android into newly created partition and installation was completed successfully but again i lost boot. again i used windows cd to solve boot issue to make c drive active. after that i have directly run the android without installing. it worked and run very smoothly but it was not showing my hard disk even giving root access to file manager. so finally i have decided to go virtual box. now downloading virtual box but i want to boot android from menu because i have windows,linux in boot menu now i want android also.
FYI i was using desktop and i have photon plus wireless modem. which is detecting on ppp widget but not connecting because of operating system. it was android 4.4.2 cynogenmod(rooted) and cynogenmod wont detect the internal sd and ppp widget can establish a connection without having it files in internal storage. so my advice is choose your android carefully and you can even establish internet connection from your mobile using ppp widget. there is an way to make your internal sd get detected by using terminal emulator.
my pc details 1.6ghz amd processor,1gb ram having windows xp and puppy linux
virutual box didn't helped me. it was showing error. again i tried to boot android x86 using Universal-USB-Installer-1.9.5.5 and format the partition into fat 32 and installed grub for windows. this time worked booted into android
to install whatsapp use older version of whatsapp open it and it will ask u for downloading new version then download new version replace the app and your whatsapp will work. we chat and line are not working.
for games search for games for android x86
angry birds star wars,stella are working. ppsspp gold emulator is working. mx player and vlc are not working
I just screwed up bad. I accidently chose the wrong drive to use WIN32 Disk Imager On. I just lost 10 years worth of pictures. Is there any way to undo it? and revert my thumb drive to it's original contents?
Try a Linux disto like backtrack on a USB
Within will be a path to "data recovery" tools on the main start bar.
Use some "googleing" and ask when you get stuck, but the gist of it is:
Using the command line navigate to the drive or directory in question
If a drive; then you may have to look up how to recover lost partitions
If a directory or a folder; then you'll want to look up how to recover deleted directories
If a drive that was formatted and then written to by something else ie save something back to it; then it might be toast
With the above suggestions if you're unfimilure with command line stuff; then try google searching "backtrack recover deleted files or partitions" without the quotes and watching a few 1 or 2 minuet videos, its what I do, and then trying it out on something safe before attempting on the "target" storage source.
Hope its not toast. And let me know if you need links or get stuck.
Sent from either my SPH-D700 or myTouch3Gs
Debian Kit Install guide for all android devices that I'm writing:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2240397
Or
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ssVeIhdBuuy8CtpBP1lWgUkG6fR6oHxP20ToYPPw6zI/edit?usp=drive_web
Back again but to share a real working solution that another user emailed me after going through this
From Backtrack Linux... dd was able to make a forensic image of the SD card, and testdisk was able to show and save unlinked files from the image file, so we were able to get all her photos and videos back!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They where able to recover almost 100% of all their lost data. And I got to watch, it works
http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk
Sent from either my SPH-D700 or myTouch3Gs
Debian Kit/QEMU Linux Install guide for all android devices that I'm writing:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2240397
Now have working Installers for ARM Java 7 JDK + Maptools + jMonkey
Okay, so some of us were in this boat. You have to reinstall Windows on your nice little Surface Pro tablet. But sadly you don't have a recovery partition or a flash drive! So what are you supposed to do?
Well, first you ask Microsoft support. That does not go well: they tell you to send them your Surface. But that's not really a good option - to lose your tablet for two weeks over a software problem? That's just not fair!
So, next, you try googling for help. But all you ever find are similar unanswered pleas for help, which usually end up being either unanswered or closed by moderators.
But fear not, as you CAN solve this, and you don't even need to do crazy things like making your own recovery image, or downloading one from weird Chinese sites.
----
HOW TO REINSTALL WINDOWS 8.1 ON YOUR SURFACE PRO WITHOUT A RECOVERY PARTITION/USB
Step 1.
Obtain a Windows 8.1 ISO. I can't tell you where to obtain one, but it is not a hard task.
The flavor Surface Pro uses is Windows 8.1 Pro x64. I used the EN-US version, as I have an American Surface, so I can't verify how other languages will work.
Step 2.
Burn that ISO to a USB drive. I suggest using Rufus for that: http://rufus.akeo.ie/
Step 3.
Boot your Surface from the USB drive.
To do that, hold the volume down button when turning on your Surface
Step 4.
Install Windows 8.1.
Step 4.5.
It will ask you for an install key, and might not accept your real Surface key. The reason for that is that the installer for Windows 8.1 does not accept Windows 8.0 keys (and your Surface might have one of those).
To proceed with installation, you will need this install key:
XHQ8N-C3MCJ-RQXB6-WCHYG-C9WKB
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This key is for installation only. IT DOES NOT ACTIVATE WINDOWS.
Step 5.
After installing the OS, you'll notice that it's not behaving quite right, for example, there are 4 rows of tiles on the start screen instead of three.
Go to Windows Update, and install everything.
Step 5.5.
If you installed with the install key, use this utility to get the original Windows key: http://forums.mydigitallife.info/threads/30363-Windows-8-Product-Key-Viewer
Choose the "MSDM" option, copy that key, and activate Windows with it.
Step 6.
Enjoy your happily recovered Surface.
----
So there. That was a little guide on how to recover a Surface Pro without a recovery drive. I was in this situation myself recently, and Microsoft offered me to send my Surface to them - which would've cost me $200, as I live in a different country from the one my Surface came from, and also would've meant living without my tablet for a month or even longer. So I just fixed it all myself.
A lot of people seem to be posting in that other recovery thread, so I'm just gonna make this visible again.
Only one question, do I need a keyboard or mouse for that?
Cause I've got only wireless mouse and original type cover, which does not work for some reason, and that's why I want reinstall windows.
I think it should pop up the on-screen keyboard if you use touch.
Anyone else did this process and got the Surface Pro 2 back to "out of the box" state?
touch screen
has anyone of you got the issue with the touch controller? and after the windows reinstall did it come back?
regards
Worked perfect
Worked perfect on a MS Surface Pro 1, with windows 8.1 Pro install USB, no keyboard or mouse needed.
Thank you! :good:
Thanks a heap for this guide, thought my Surface was done for.
For those unable to boot normally into Windows, holding VolKeyDown + Power while the unit is off will force the unit to boot from removable storage (doesn't have to be a USB Stick, you can plug in any kind of bootable media, including a USB DVD-ROM).
Have fun!
Can this works for Surface Pro 2
westjgames said:
Thanks a heap for this guide, thought my Surface was done for.
For those unable to boot normally into Windows, holding VolKeyDown + Power while the unit is off will force the unit to boot from removable storage (doesn't have to be a USB Stick, you can plug in any kind of bootable media, including a USB DVD-ROM).
Have fun!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
Can this method work for surface pro 2?
syahchrono said:
Hi,
Can this method work for surface pro 2?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm gonna try this now on my Surface Pro 2 because I got one with only scandinavian languages and I'm from Germany ^^ Will report back!
# UPDATE #
Worked perfectly fine
question
I just installed the latest Firmware / Drivers MS has pushed through Windows Update,
and i would like to refresh my Surface Pro 2 to get a clean install.
- First thing i did was create a bootable usb drive using Microsofts new 'Create Installation Media Tool'
. I selected 'Windows 8.1 Pro x64' in my native language which is Dutch.
The tool created a bootable USB stick, which i haven't tried yet.. before i continue i have some questions;
....
1. I copied my recovery image to a USB stick and deleted the recovery partition.
- If i reinstall Windows can i still use the recovery usb in case something goes wrong during the installation, or is it linked to your current installation?
2. Would Windows automatically recognize the serial number, which i believe is stored in the BIOS / UEFI, and activate Windows? I've written down the serial using the tool mentioned in the OP to be on the safe side.
3. Like i mentioned before, i installed the lastest driver / firmware package, will Windows automatically install the latest drivers after installation or first install more basic drivers to get WiFi up and running and then install the latest drivers?
4. When you install new driver / firmware software will Windows automatically update the then older drivers in the recovery image?
I've read the previous posts saying that everything went smoothly, but i just want to make sure i'm not forgetting anything..
i have a Surface Pro 2 btw!
koffiemelk said:
I just installed the latest Firmware / Drivers MS has pushed through Windows Update,
and i would like to refresh my Surface Pro 2 to get a clean install.
- First thing i did was create a bootable usb drive using Microsofts new 'Create Installation Media Tool'
. I selected 'Windows 8.1 Pro x64' in my native language which is Dutch.
The tool created a bootable USB stick, which i haven't tried yet.. before i continue i have some questions;
....
1. I copied my recovery image to a USB stick and deleted the recovery partition.
- If i reinstall Windows can i still use the recovery usb in case something goes wrong during the installation, or is it linked to your current installation?
2. Would Windows automatically recognize the serial number, which i believe is stored in the BIOS / UEFI, and activate Windows? I've written down the serial using the tool mentioned in the OP to be on the safe side.
3. Like i mentioned before, i installed the lastest driver / firmware package, will Windows automatically install the latest drivers after installation or first install more basic drivers to get WiFi up and running and then install the latest drivers?
4. When you install new driver / firmware software will Windows automatically update the then older drivers in the recovery image?
I've read the previous posts saying that everything went smoothly, but i just want to make sure i'm not forgetting anything..
i have a Surface Pro 2 btw!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1:I have no idea
2: Yes it will, I have a surface pro 1 and it was activated automatically, so i didnt had to do anything with my serial. (on a new windows 8.1 install)
3: Yes it will, but you can always install them manually (doesn't really matter unless there are issues with drivers).
4: Dont know (dont think so). (I havent ever uses a recovery installation ever, i always install everything manually back on .
Hi together,
I did the steps and everything went fine. But I had to disable secure boot at first.
Now, after the isntallation of Windows 8.1, I activated it again and reinstalled the default keys. Is this the way it is meant?
Or do I need to leave it disabled?
Thank you very much!
Best regards,
thrain2
So I have a question.
I removed my recovery partition to regain the space.
Does your method reformat the drive and repartition everything? Will it reinstall the recovery partition?
I remember all former windows os installations I've done allowed me to format the drive and clear the partitions and then either create new ones myself or use the blank disk. Win7 would (on a blank disk) create it's recovery partition.
So I went ahead and did it.
To anyone looking to do this, use the official media creation tool. It's free from Microsoft and extremely simple.
I didn't have to disable secure boot or anything, just hold down the volume and power button with the USB plugged in.
The installer let me delete all my existing partitions and it automatically created only the ones needed.
It never asked for a key and was activated correctly when I booted into widows.
I found the installer created 3 total partitions on it's own.
1st a 300mb empty partition which I believe is supposed to be for windows RE and required by bit locker.
2nd a 100mb partition containing an EFI folder.
Note: these two aren't supposed to be accessible, I did special mounting to check them out.
3rd the rest of my disk space was created for my system partition
I'm mostly happy with this.
The only issue I've had so far is I can't turn bit locker on, even though there is a 300mb partition, it's empty and bit locker complains about the widows recovery environment not being on the system dive.
iXNyNe said:
So I went ahead and did it.
To anyone looking to do this, use the official media creation tool. It's free from Microsoft and extremely simple.
I didn't have to disable secure boot or anything, just hold down the volume and power button with the USB plugged in.
The installer let me delete all my existing partitions and it automatically created only the ones needed.
It never asked for a key and was activated correctly when I booted into widows.
I found the installer created 3 total partitions on it's own.
1st a 300mb empty partition which I believe is supposed to be for windows RE and required by bit locker.
2nd a 100mb partition containing an EFI folder.
Note: these two aren't supposed to be accessible, I did special mounting to check them out.
3rd the rest of my disk space was created for my system partition
I'm mostly happy with this.
The only issue I've had so far is I can't turn bit locker on, even though there is a 300mb partition, it's empty and bit locker complains about the widows recovery environment not being on the system dive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for sharing this.good
Anyone tested this yet with a surface 3 or surface 3 pro?
Tried this with my Surface 3, which is stuck currently on Win10 10074, and the install key didn't work.
It works
I used the freeware ISO2Disc to burn a Windows 10 ISO file to my USB drive and I can then reinstall successfully. Remember to choose GPT partition style as Surface Pro can boot in UEFI mode only.
iXNyNe said:
The only issue I've had so far is I can't turn bit locker on, even though there is a 300mb partition, it's empty and bit locker complains about the widows recovery environment not being on the system dive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did basically the same, reinstall a clean Windows on my Surface pro 3, but can not turn on bit locker, too. Have you figured out, how to solve this issue?