Installing the "Final" version is straightforward, but precise steps are required to avoid wiping your primary HDD.
We will use Ventoy for this guide—the 2021 game-changer. Unlike older tools (XBOOT, SARDU), Ventoy allows you to simply copy ISO files to the drive. No extraction, no scripting.
The increasing need for isolated operating system environments for development, security testing, legacy software support, and platform-specific applications has made multiboot configurations highly relevant. This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of a multiboot hard disk drive (HDD) system created as the 2021 final project. The system supports Windows 10, Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, and FreeBSD 13.0 on a single 1 TB HDD using the GRUB2 bootloader. Key challenges addressed include partition management, bootloader conflicts, UEFI vs. legacy BIOS compatibility, and data sharing across OSes. The result is a fully functional, stable multiboot environment with a unified boot menu. multiboot hdd 2021 final
The "2021 Final" package is extensible. To add a newer tool (e.g., GParted Live 2024 or Windows 11 24H2 PE):
Note: The "Final" bootloader uses menu.lst. Advanced users can edit this file to add custom entries, but the automatic search feature handles 95% of needs. The "2021 Final" package is extensible
Use GPT partitioning for UEFI systems; for legacy BIOS-only targets keep an MBR-compatible partition (add a small BIOS boot partition for GRUB if using GPT+BIOS).
The term "final" in 2021 is not about obsolescence; it’s about stability. By 2021, three key factors had settled: Note: The "Final" bootloader uses menu
The Multiboot HDD 2021 Final is defined by one rule: No more burning DVDs. No more formatting a dozen USB sticks. One drive. Every tool.
The core of the utility lies in its WinPE environments (typically Windows 10 or 8.1 PE).