Dual boot (XP) best practice?
Robert Ganyard
rganyard at bellsouth.net
Tue Feb 27 14:26:56 GMT 2007
Here is my process for getting a successful dual boot. It is time
consuming, but results are good every time on my Thinkpad. Please read
this entirely before starting and do the suggested downloads first or
from another computer.
1. First download the manufacturers "drive fitness test" from here:
(http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm#DFT). It is free,
and you have the choice of making a bootable floppy or bootable cd.
2. Use this disk to test your drive to verify that it is a good drive.
3. If it tests good, using this same test disk, do a complete erase
(factory format, this is what I do). Note, this step takes a long time,
as in hours.
4. You now have a blank hard drive as when new (if there are any bad
spots on the drive, they will permanently written out of use).
5. Next install Win XP. During the install XP will give you the
opportunity to select partition size. This is the time to save room for
Edubuntu. I save about half of a 40gig drive. If this is your process,
you are now ready for installing Edubuntu and may skip ahead to step 8.
6. If you are installing XP from the Thinkpads recovery CD you may have
a hidden partition area (HPA or prescreen area) as I do and want to save
that area. If so, finish the XP installation without concern for
partition size.
7. Then use qtparted downloaded to bootable cd from here:
(http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page). It is also free. Qtparted will
allow you to adjust your windows partition size after installation to
free up space for your fresh Edubuntu install (defrag windows first).
8. Now install Edubuntu to the free space. The Edubuntu installer will
allow you to select the free space for installation saving your windows
partition and will install Grub for you. This will give you the dual
boot choice on startup, and it works.
Bob
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> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. Dual boot (XP) best practice? (Michael Steigerwald)
> 2. RE: Dual boot (XP) best practice? (Simon Ruiz)
> 3. RE: Dual boot (XP) best practice? (Simon Ruiz)
> 4. Re: Dual boot (XP) best practice? (Bryan Quigley)
> 5. Re: Dual boot (XP) best practice? (Scott Ledyard)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Mon, 26 Feb 2007 11:15:54 -0600
> From: "Michael Steigerwald" <mikesteigerwald at gmail.com>
> Subject: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
> To: edubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
> Message-ID:
> <12a26f2c0702260915q213748a1m5d4f88460a2a8b7b at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> I'm trying to set up my ThinkPad to boot into edubuntu or XP. I created an
> NTFS partition after I installed edubuntu, but got a new error when I tried
> to install Windows.
>
> I booted from the XP Pro CD, and it claims that it can find any hard drives
> to install to. I wouldn't be too disappointed if I had to reformat the whole
> disk, but I'm surprised that the install CD can't even see the NTFS
> partition.
>
> I know that edubuntu uses the GRUB loader, but I can get into the vanilla
> (ThinkPad) BIOS just fine. Did I corrupt something I need to use, e.g,
> Norton, for?
>
> TIA for any ideas.
> -------------- next part --------------
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> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Mon, 26 Feb 2007 12:24:27 -0500
> From: "Simon Ruiz" <sruiz at mccsc.edu>
> Subject: RE: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
> To: <Steiger at UMich.edu>, <edubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
> Message-ID:
> <1192B5F84F230845B9A793EE5B5BA63F067E4ED3 at EXCHANGE.mccsc.edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Windows assumes it will be the only Operating System on the disk, and so if the partition you intend to install it to ISN'T the first partition on the first hard disk, this may be why it won't accept it as an valid install partition. I'm sure there is a way to coax it to work when installing it second, but there are quite a few extra little complications to deal with.
>
> I'd suggest starting over and installing Windows first. This is the only way I've ever done it, myself.
>
> Best of luck!
>
> Sim?n
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: edubuntu-users-bounces at lists.ubuntu.com on behalf of Michael Steigerwald
> Sent: Mon 2/26/2007 12:15 PM
> To: edubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
> Subject: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
>
>
> I'm trying to set up my ThinkPad to boot into edubuntu or XP. I created an NTFS partition after I installed edubuntu, but got a new error when I tried to install Windows.
>
> I booted from the XP Pro CD, and it claims that it can find any hard drives to install to. I wouldn't be too disappointed if I had to reformat the whole disk, but I'm surprised that the install CD can't even see the NTFS partition.
>
> I know that edubuntu uses the GRUB loader, but I can get into the vanilla (ThinkPad) BIOS just fine. Did I corrupt something I need to use, e.g, Norton, for?
>
> TIA for any ideas.
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Mon, 26 Feb 2007 13:07:43 -0500
> From: "Simon Ruiz" <sruiz at mccsc.edu>
> Subject: RE: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
> To: <Steiger at UMich.edu>, <edubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
> Message-ID:
> <1192B5F84F230845B9A793EE5B5BA63F067E4ED7 at EXCHANGE.mccsc.edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> You could probably boot to the Live CD, run "sudo gparted" from the commandline to bring up the partition editor and delete all the partitions. Or perhaps you could "dd if=/dev/null of=/dev/hda" to zero out the entire hard disk. *shrug* However, if Windows can't see a hard disk right now, I'm not sure what would make it do so, if you're certain the hard disk is plugged into the primary master position.
>
> Best of luck!
>
> Sim?n
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Michael Steigerwald [mailto:mikesteigerwald at gmail.com]
> Sent: Mon 2/26/2007 12:52 PM
> To: Simon Ruiz
> Subject: Re: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
>
>
> I'm pretty sure it must be. I can boot into edubuntu just fine.
>
> Is there some way from edubuntu or the CD that I can somehow reformat or wipe the CD to make the Windows CD happy again?
>
> TIA
>
>
> On 2/26/07, Simon Ruiz <sruiz at mccsc.edu> wrote:
>
> Are you sure the hard disk is plugged into the hda (hd0) position on the motherboard? That's all I can think of.
>
> There is nothing I am aware of that any Linux distribution could do to keep the Windows Installation CD from thinking there isn't a hard disk.
>
> Best of luck!
>
> Sim?n
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Michael Steigerwald [mailto:mikesteigerwald at gmail.com]
> Sent: Mon 2/26/2007 12:36 PM
> To: Simon Ruiz
> Subject: Re: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
>
>
> Actually, that's the conclusion I came to, but I can't even start over until I can figure out why the XP CD thinks there are no hard drives to install to. Is there something in edubuntu I can 'undo' or completely reformat the drive?
>
>
> On 2/26/07, Simon Ruiz <sruiz at mccsc.edu> wrote:
>
> Windows assumes it will be the only Operating System on the disk, and so if the partition you intend to install it to ISN'T the first partition on the first hard disk, this may be why it won't accept it as an valid install partition. I'm sure there is a way to coax it to work when installing it second, but there are quite a few extra little complications to deal with.
>
> I'd suggest starting over and installing Windows first. This is the only way I've ever done it, myself.
>
> Best of luck!
>
> Sim?n
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: edubuntu-users-bounces at lists.ubuntu.com on behalf of Michael Steigerwald
> Sent: Mon 2/26/2007 12:15 PM
> To: edubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
> Subject: Dual boot (XP) best practice?
>
>
> I'm trying to set up my ThinkPad to boot into edubuntu or XP. I created an NTFS partition after I installed edubuntu, but got a new error when I tried to install Windows.
>
> I booted from the XP Pro CD, and it claims that it can find any hard drives to install to. I wouldn't be too disappointed if I had to reformat the whole disk, but I'm surprised that the install CD can't even see the NTFS partition.
>
> I know that edubuntu uses the GRUB loader, but I can get into the vanilla (ThinkPad) BIOS just fine. Did I corrupt something I need to use, e.g, Norton, for?
>
> TIA for any ideas.
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> Michael Steigerwald
> 4041 12th Ave S.
> Minneapolis, MN 55407-3239
> Steiger at UMich.edu
> 651.261.2098
>
>
>
>
>
>
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