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jmatus
08-11-2005, 01:44 PM
hi all,
i'm new to the world of linux so this is a learning experience for me. i'm following along in a book for the RHCE and some of the things are a bit confusing to me......
here is what i would like to do:
i'd like to boot my box from a floppy/bootdisk and then use fdisk to format the partitions and create a raids set. when i try to boot from a floppy i get "kernal panic: no init found"
why dont' i just use the bootable cd and use disk druid? because i'm trying to learn the various ways to perform installations so i need this experience under my cap.
am i using the wrong type of bootdisk? is my sequencing and methodology wrong?
TIA!!!
techwise
08-11-2005, 02:23 PM
First off you have to get past the non booting floppy.
I suggest you boot from cd and use fdisk, you dont have to use disk druid just because you boot from the cd.
Additionally, fdisk will not format your partition per se. It is really only a partitioner. Once you make the partitions you neet to make a filesystem with mkfs. Read the man on mkfs and pick which fs you want.
Cheers
Mike
jmatus
08-11-2005, 02:49 PM
thanks mike!
i think i mispoke. i want to make partitions, not format....my mistake.
can you boot from the cd and use fdisk "without" using the installation program? i know that you have the option to use fdisk during the installation but is there a DOS type of boot up enviroment where i can access fdisk, or am i just waaaaay off on my expectations?
TIA
get the System Rescue CD (http://www.sysresccd.org/) or any live CD Distro for that matter.
you can boot to a bash shell with the System Rescue CD and then use fdisk from there.
techwise
08-11-2005, 03:39 PM
Yep, like Hayl said, just boot a Live cd, open a terminal window and run fdisk. You will have to specify the device, like "fdisk /dev/hda", this would be the primary HD on your system.
Mike
jmatus
08-11-2005, 03:52 PM
ok, "order of operations" qustion then....
if i'm booting from the install cd, this being the "live" cd (i'm assuming), don't i have to go thru the complete install b4 i can run fdisk, or is there a way to just boot up and not go into install mode and access fdisk from there?
techwise
08-11-2005, 04:18 PM
No, a "Live CD" is a linux distribution that runs entirely off the CD, thus not requiring any hard drive install. Your install cd for RedHat is just your standard install cd. However, try booting the install cd, then when you get to the partitioning section of the install press Ctl+Alt+F2, this should give you a new terminal on a different tty. Try to run fdisk from there. If it wont run, you mah have to locate the fdisk program on the cd and run it from the absolute path.
When done, hit the Ctl+Alt+F7 keys to get back to the install gui.
Mike
jmatus
08-11-2005, 04:51 PM
OIC...it is starting to make sense now. where can i find a "live cd".....is there a particular vendor or name that i can search for?
OIC...it is starting to make sense now. where can i find a "live cd".....is there a particular vendor or name that i can search for?
I gave you a link to the system rescue CD in my first post in this thread. It will boot, start linux, and then you can fdisk from there.