Native Boot Your VHD Image in Windows 7

This article assumes you
1. Run command prompt as Administrator.
2. Has a working vhd that you would like to native boot.
3. Knows what an identifier looks like – basically some scrambled alphabets.
4. Has backup your current bcd configuration, if it is any important to you.

bcdedit /copy {current} /d “Give it a name”
*This gives the boot entry a name. Use the output as identifier to next set of actions.

bcdedit /set {identifier} device vhd=[c:]\newVHD\windows7.vhd
bcdedit /set {identifier} osdevice vhd=[c:]\newVHD\windows7.vhd
bcdedit /set {identifier} detecthal on
*These point the vhd file location to a boot entry.

bcdedit /v
*Verify the boot entry is created as you desired. i.e. entry name, identifier, vhd file location.

Copy this vhd file to another location so that you always have a pristine image. Should you wish to roll back, just overwrite the old file.

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