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<TITLE>RE: [NTLUG:Discuss] Long dual boot question</TITLE>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>As to whether or not you install Linux on your current hard drive it kind of depends. If you plan on running the GUI along with some "production apps," which I would be willing to bet you do, then I would recommend that you wait if your wife's data is going to take up 3.5gb. 2.5gb for an OS would limit you quite a bit. However when you install the second hard drive it will be very easy to add the extra space to your Linux OS if you choose to go ahead and install now. I would recommend waiting and having Windows on one drive and Linux on the other.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>If you install Window and Linux on the same drive you are going to first want to partition it into two segments...one the size that you want for the Windows installation and the other the size that you want for the Linux installation. Then install Windows first on its partition, the primary one. After that begin the Linux install. I always use Disk Druid to set up my swap space and root partition. I would choose Lilo as the boot loader if it were me simply because I have used it for dual booting before and I know it does a fine job. I don't remember when (it's been awhile since I have setup a dual boot) but at some point it will ask you for a label for the Windows partition and you can name it whatever. When the Linux installation completes and you reboot there will be a Lilo boot screen with the Linux option and the label that you chose for Windows. Whichever one you choose, that OS will load. If you partition the drive that you currently have then windows should be the one on hda1 and the other partition should show up (I think) as hda2. If you choose to wait then the first drive will be hda and the second one would be either hdb, hdc, or hdd. You should probably setup the second drive as the secondary master and, if I remember right, that would make it hdc. I hope this helps but there will probably be someone else that sends something that is more detailed, making it more helpful as well. I just want to make sure that I do my part in contributing as much as possible from what little I know. If it makes you feel any better the first time that I ever installed Linux it was on my laptop that already had Windows installed and it went great. Just make sure that when you install Linux you do not skip the Create boot disk option because if something goes wrong with the setup of the boot loader you may need it. :-)</FONT></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>T.J. Davis</FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>-----Original Message-----</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>From: Wayne Dahl [<A HREF="mailto:w.dahl4@verizon.net">mailto:w.dahl4@verizon.net</A>]</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>Sent: Tuesday, July 09, 2002 9:52 AM</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>To: discuss@ntlug.org</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>Subject: [NTLUG:Discuss] Long dual boot question</FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>Hi all,</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>I need some info about doing a dual boot with Linux and Windoze 98. Let me </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>tell you what has happened to this computer I'm asking about.</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>My wife doesn't see very well and needs the computer set to 640 x 480 </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>screen resolution, whereas I like it at 1024 x 768 on my 15" monitor (I see </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>like a hawk). I had screwed up and left the monitor set to the higher </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>resolution and my wife, unable to read the icons on the desktop very well, </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>went into the Accessibility options (it was a Windoze 98 OS, not sure which </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>version as it was loaded on it when we got this hand-me-down computer) and </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>set the option for higher visibility fonts with black on white high </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>contrast. That was a bad mistake because it appeared to corrupt some files </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>on the computer. Apparently, Windows doesn't like for you to use those </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>accessibility options in a higher screen resolution. I have been unable to </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>fix it and it won't even boot up into Safe mode. The dialog box pops up </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>saying you're in safe mode, I click ok on that an immediately an error box </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>saying Explorer has caused a general protection fault in an unknown module </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>(real helpful, huh?). When I click on that ok button, the safe mode dialog </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>box comes back up and it gets stuck in a loop you can't get out of as each </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>dialog box comes back up after clicking ok. The only thing to do is hit </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>control-alt-delete and reboot to a floppy.</FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>The filesystem would come up ok because I could see it from this computer </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>on my internal network, so I was able to copy all of the application </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>directories and applications to another computer, although being able to </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>get them to work again on a fresh install of Windows might be a challenge </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>unless I can just reinstall them from scratch. The desktop was completely </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>unusable and would not completely boot up. The bootlog didn't really show </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>any major problems either.</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>This computer came from my mother-in-law's boss and he may have the </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>restoration discs for it (the computer came from CompUSA and is one of </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>their home brand jobs). I have never been able to get the onboard sound </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>card to work on it as it appears that her boss had somehow removed the </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>drivers for it (have been unable to find any drivers for it)and it doesn't </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>have an add in sound card.</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Here is the skinny on the computer...</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Intel Celeron 466 Mhz</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>256 Megs 130 Mhz RAM</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>1 6 Gig hard drive, C:, no other drive currently, although I have plans to </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>add an 80 Gig HD to it.</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>CD-RW drive (can't remember the brand, but it worked out of the box with </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>the existing CD-ROM drivers)</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>PS-2 Mouse, PS-2 keyboard (although once I get it back up and running, my </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>wife uses a natural keyboard using a USB connection)</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Can't think of anything else pertinent, but here comes the dual boot </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>question. First, if I'm going to load Linux (Red Had 7.3) and Windows on </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>this machine, which do I load first? I've had to fdisk and format the </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>drive because it was just unrecoverable and plan to just reload it. Should </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>I format the drive with Linux and set the partitions with it first, install </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>RH 7.3 and then install Windows into the FAT32 partition? And never </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>having done that, if it's done that way, then how does the Windows </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>installation CD see that partition? Is there anything special I need to do </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>to get it to see it or does it see it automagically?</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Next, how would you set the partitions? Windows and the applications that </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>were loaded on it were taking up about 3.5 gigs of space. Is 2.5 gigs of </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>hard drive space enough to do a Linux install now with the ability to add a </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>LOT of space later once the new hard drive is installed? Or should I just </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>go ahead and install Windows now and wait until I can get a new hard drive </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>for the space? I eventually plan on using the current C: drive as the boot </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>drive for Linux and the only drive for Windows.</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Off the topic of the dual boot, a friend of mine went to the Saturday sale </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>in downtown Dallas and got some really good deals on a sound card, 256 Megs </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>mem for $30 and an 80 Gig WD drive for $70 (might have been somewhat </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>less). What do you guys think of getting parts at that sale?</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Sorry that this was so long, but I've been fighting this problem for a week </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>now and my wife is both beating herself up for messing up the computer (it </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>was really my fault for leaving it in the higher resolution and I've told </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>her over and over that was so) and driving me nuts to get it fixed.</FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>Thanks in advance for your responses.</FONT>
</P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Wayne</FONT>
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