[ltp] VMware: Modify virtual machine -- Copying From a Real Install

[Ron Heiby]

I've been trying to copy my existing A21p Win2K Pro installation into a
VMware virtual machine. Not all that long ago, I did a disk to disk copy
from a smaller drive to a bright shiny bigger drive, and it booted just
fine. Now that I am trying to live as much as possible inside a Linux
boot, I'd rather do an occasional firing up of a Windows VM without
having to dual boot. I also figure that once I have it working, I can
more readily move the VM onto more powerful hardware.

However, when I've tried to do this, I've been unable to boot. Ths
system starts to boot windows, but goes to the Blue Screen of Death
quite soon, before bringing up the login screen.

I have done some web searching, and found instructions on how to boot an
actual hard drive partition in a VM. The instructions involved setting
up a second hardware profile with the generic IDE controller ocnfigured
in. Even doing that (with the bit-copied virtual drive) gives a BSoD.

I did copy (Linux Knoppix boot in the VM and "dd" command) the physical
drive to the virtual drive, copying only a bit beyond where my last
Windows partition ended, but I wouldn't think that Windows boot should
care that non-Win partitions are truncated/missing.

Has anyone successfully moved a Win installation from actual hard drive
to virtual drive within a VMware VM? Can anyone point me at the
procedure involved?

Thanks! Ron.