Windows on an independent drive?

Hey all,
I'm building a new rig and I tend to take my HD's with me when I travel .. so I have a few 300's and 250's that go back and forth with me.
That in mind, it isn't really economical for me install an OS on one of them because it would then be bound to that system.. so here's my question.

In my new rig, is it realistic to think I could install Windows on an independent drive? If so, how small a drive can I manage, seeing as it will only have windows files and files related to the parts in my computer on it. Anyone tried something like this? How small is my limit on drive capacity, and where can I find an HD under 20Gb. Thanks guys

If so, how small a drive can I manage, seeing as it will only have windows files and files related to the parts in my computer on it.

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That is entirely dependent upon the version of windows and your desired layout (i.e. pagefile on the same drive vs. a removeable one, program files on same drive, etc.). NT4 would happily sit on a 500MB drive, though would need a couple gigs to realistically be able to operate. Win2k can fit into a 2-5GB drive, depending on services and pagefile. XP requires even more space, with that varying widely depending on restore point usage.

Provided you're on a vanilla XP IA-32 install, figure about 10 to 20GB. If you want programs on that, double or quadrouple depending on what you run. Photoshop CS2 takes up a good deal of space vs. MS Paint or the GIMP. MS Office will burn another gig or two. Visual studio burns about 5GB if you install the MSDN library.

Due to drive platter density, you generally will not find a new drive smaller than 20GB. That 20 is also going to be an 80GB model that has been destroked for OEM markets. Due to the prices, just buy an 80GB and enjoy the options it brings.