griff04
10-27-2002, 03:15 PM
Help Please..
First of all I'm not afraid of change only "data loss". I have so much on my XP drive it would take me a month to recover.
Anyway:
Running XP and installing RH 8 on separate drive (hdb). Want to do the dual boot option. I've read through the install manual and yes, have searched the forum. Maybe I'm just ignorant but still don't quite understand the "boot loader" part. During the actual install process I chose "Lilo" as the bootloader..The part I don't get is where to put it at. It also asks which OS do you want it to boot, (you can choose "add" also) the only options there are dos and linux.. Do I need to add XP or will dos boot it...
Can someone please enlighten this feeble mind.
Help please..
RSG
Bird382
10-27-2002, 04:09 PM
Sure, I'll tro to help.
First you have XP installed on a hard drive. Then you run the RedHat Installer and select to install on the second hard drive (you said /dev/hdb).
When you get to the boot loader section of the install, select Lilo as your boot loader, and then somewhere in there (I'm sorry, I just don't remember the exact button name) there is a button or option that allows you to modify advanced options for the boot loader. <-- Just use some intuition and find this button, its name really escapes me.
Anyways, in the advanced option Lilo will default to be placed in the MBR, you DO NOT want this (its not that bad, just not what you want). Select it to put itself on /dev/hdb, there will be an option right under where it says MBR. Select that option and LILO will be placed in the boot sector of the second hard drive, not in the MBR.
What this will do is basically allow LILO to remain transparent to the computer's boot sequence, unless you do something (we will get to that in a minute), so basically your linux will be invisible and windows will load just like normal.
Two precautions, you may want to make a Windows boot disk, just in case you play with the MBR. Also be sure TO CREATE A LINUX BOOT DISK. You will have one heck of a time getting into Linux if you don't.
Then proceed with the install, with LILO on the hard drive, not the MBR.
Once linux gets installed, use your boot disk to get into it. Log in as root, (or do an SU), and open the console.
Go here: http://jetblackz.freeservers.com/ConfiguringMultiBooting.html
Those instructions will walk you through the rest of the process.
Basically what you will be doing is copying LILO onto a disk in linux, then booting into windows and placing the LILO file on your windows hard drive. Then you will modify the boot.ini file, which controls the NT Boot Loader, and add an entry for linux that links to your LILO file. Then when you reboot and windows starts to load, the NT Boot loader will have a second entry for Linux, choose that and LILO will load allowing you to boot into linux. Hope this helps, let me know if it doesn't. Have fun.
mdwatts
10-27-2002, 04:43 PM
If you install Linux on hdb, then you have 3 choices for booting.
Install the Linux bootloader in the mbr.
Boot from a Linux bootdisk
Install the Linux bootloader in the Linux boot/root partition on hdb (hdb1 ??) and configure the XP boot.ini to dualboot.
CrashTestDummy9
10-27-2002, 04:50 PM
Originally posted by griff04
Help Please..
First of all I'm not afraid of change only "data loss". I have so much on my XP drive it would take me a month to recover.
If thats the case You must have a copy of ALL files you dont want to lose on removable media .
NEVER trust a hard drive no matter what OS you use .
That being said , if you are a prudent computer user whats the problem?
Linux wont magically eat your disk .