Command Prompt - elevated privilages

Export BCD settings for backup

Start by exporting your current BCD settings for backup.
Boot into Windows 8.1
Log in with an administrator account
Open up an elevated command prompt
Type bcdedit /export c:\bcdbackup and press Enter
This will create a file named bcdbackup on your C disk. Note that there is no fi
le extension in the file name. No file extension is needed here. You can change
this location or the name of the file if you like, but having it stored on the r
oot of C will make it easy to find if needed.
This will return a list of all the operating systems that the computer can boot
from.
Enter bcdedit and press Enter
Enter bcdedit /v and press Enter
By using the V switch the list will give you the UUIDs.
You need to use the V switch to see the UUIDs for the different operating system
s.
Deleting the Windows XP entry
Do you see any entry for Windows XP on the right side of the description headlin
e? If so, then you need to delete it. And to delete it, you need to know its ide
ntifier.
The identifier is the UUID number you see on the right side of the identifier he
adline, including the braces. Braces are the curly brackets at the start and the
end of the number.
If you have not done so yet, type bcdedit /v and press Enter
Locate the identifier UUID for the entry that has "Windows XP" as descriptio
n.
To delete the entry type bcdedit /delete {UUID} and press Enter.
Depending on how many operating systems you have installed, this could take anyw
here from 4 minutes to 15 minutes. Just let it do its thing, you will see a conf
irmation message when it's done.
Warning! Make sure you type in the correct UUID! You need to type in the UUID fo
r Windows XP. If you type in the UUID for Windows 8.1 then you will not be able
to boot into Windows 8.1, at least not until you restore it using the backup fil
e you created earlier.
When you see
ke sure that
ke sure that
r presenting

the confirmation message, type bcdedit /v again and press Enter. Ma

there is no entry for Windows XP anymore. Reboot the computer to ma
you can boot into Windows 8.1, and that the boot loader is no longe
the boot menu. If this is the case then you are all done now.

How to rebuild an existing BCD store using bootrec

If you still see the boot menu, or if you are unable to boot into Windows 7, the
n you will have to do one of two things.
A: Restore the BCD using the backup file you created earlier (see instructio
ns below).
B: You can rebuild the BCD using a tool called Bootrec.
To do either one of these things you will need to enter the System Recovery Opti
ons.
Reboot the computer
Press and hold the F8 key right after the POST, until you see the Advanced B
oot Options menu. The POST is the power-on-self-test, this is the first screen t
hat appears when you start the computer.
Select the Repair Your Computer option and press Enter. This should take you
to the System Recovery Options, also known as WinRE (Windows Recovery Environme
nt).
When you get to the System Recovery Options click on the Command Prompt link to
open up a command prompt. To try to rebuild the existing BCD store as it is type
bootrec /rebuildbcd and press Enter. Now it will scan hard disk drives for Wind
ows installations.
If the bootrec finds any Windows installations it will ask you whether or not yo
u want to add it to the boot list. To say yes press Y, to say no press N, and to
say yes to all press A