With Windows Vista and the upcoming Windows Server 2008, Microsoft has overhauled the boot architecture compared to previous versions of both the client and server operating systems. In this context, one great absence from the Vista and Windows Server 2008 is the boot.ini file. In Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, boot.ini was an integer part of the boot environment and Bootcfg was the key to its management.

Vista and Windows Server 2008 feature neither Bootcfg nor boot.ini. All boot configuration editing in Microsoft's latest client and server operating systems will have to be done via the BCDEDIT.exe command line tool. At the foundation of the boot loader architecture in Windows Vista is the boot configuration data (BCD) store.

"In Windows Vista and later versions, the boot configuration data (BCD) store contains the boot configuration parameters and controls the computer's boot environment. BCDEdit is a Windows Vista command-line tool that can be used to add, delete, edit, and modify data in a BCD store. This paper is a reference for BCDEdit commands, data types, and well-known identifiers," Microsoft revealed.

You have already got an insight into the BCD and the functionality associated with BCDEdit via the Advanced Boot Architecture Management in Windows Vista (for dual-boot and multi-boot configurations), right here on Softpedia. But Microsoft is also delivering an excellent resource on the subject at hand.

Want to completely master the Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 boot configuration? Then you will need "BCDEdit Reference". Released last week by the Redmond Company, the documentation offers a full dictionary with the references for the "Windows Vista BCDEdit commands, identifiers, formats, and data types," complete with detailed explanations and examples. This is a resource that you do not want to miss.

"BCD abstracts the underlying firmware and provides a common programming interface that can be used to manipulate the boot environment for all systems running Windows Vista or later versions of Windows. Every such system has a system BCD store that contains the data that controls the boot environment. Systems can have additional BCD stores, but only one store at a time can be designated as the system store," Microsoft added.