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Dual Boot...Windows and Ubuntu.

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Patrick Patience
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Dual Boot...Windows and Ubuntu.

Here's the deal. I'd like very much to switch to Linux (Ubuntu) for multiple reasons, but AS WELL, I'm also going to need my Windows system from time to time for certain applications, etc. I've read numerous How-To's on crating a dual-boot laptop, but I'm a little iffy as to whether on now to try one. The one I found that I seem to like best is this one

It seems complete, but I'm not sure if it will work. It says no data will be erased in the process, however, I'v read other that says once the drive is partitioned, data is erased...So my concern is, if I attempt this, am I at HUGE risk or losing my Windows operating system, or even screwing up my computer...

For that How-To, I think I have everything...I have:

Acer Laptop-60GB Hard Drive, 512 MB of RAM
Windows XP *Pre-Loaded* on the laptop
Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft) Note: I can obtain a previous system is nessesary.
And I can download the rest of the needed applications.

So my basic questions are...

Will this work?
Have you tried it?
What are my risks?
How much will this potentially slow down my operating systems?
Do I have any other options?
*Beside using the live C.D.
*Besides purchasing a new P.C.
*Besides wiping off Windows

DaveWest
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Dual Boot..

The 'Creating a Dual-Boot Windows XP and Ubuntu Laptop' will work. Other ones on the Fedora Core web site. Let Linux do the boot with a menu for switching to XP works the best.

As for your questions;
* It does work.
* Not on a laptop, desktop with FC, redhat, w2k, win95, XP... still running three os's on one box.
* Clean HD... Back-up.. Back-up. Don't use windows Fdisk to do it, use a Linux disk tool. If you prepare and read up, shouldn't be a problem.
* None, the only slowdown will be deciding which is faster..
* Adding a USB Hard Drive

If you don't have a windows install CD, then if possible, make a restore CD of your HD just in case it all goes wrong.

Using a Fat32 partition for shared files works.. that's the way I have it.

----------------------:)

Did you know that the entire operating system use to fit on a 5 1/4" floppy disk!

Patrick Patience
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Okay...

Thanks, so you sound like you've done this...but I'm still a little confused...is there ANY chance you could provide me with steps...Because, I have read for a while. Actually, instuctions would probally take a while, so what are some reccomended tools you suggest (Like a tool for the Disk Frangmentation...? And did you use a How-To to do it?

BestComp
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Dual Boot

All of my computers are dual or triple or even quadruple boot systems, running win XP 2K and Ubuntu, when I boot it just asks me which I want, or I boot off my flash-drive if I want just my very most personal aps, or doing a scan for virus on the ntsf partition,,

anyone having a problem with dual booting, just ask, robert_swatek@hotmail.com

BestComp

Bahamut
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Ha! I completely forgot

Ha! I completely forgot about fragmentation when I was cutting up my external HD. The first partition probably didn't have anything in a sector I wanted to reallocate (it had never even gotten close to the end) and ntfsresize probably would have caught it in a test run.

Ok. Here's how to slice up a hard drive and get two OSes set up for dual-boot.
First of all, you will need to use the live CD, but only to set it up before installation.
1. Defragment so that the end sectors of the partition are available. If the defrag tool included in Windows is too slow for you, try contig[1]. Verify that there is plenty of empty contiguous space available for reallocation.
2. Fire up the live CD and start QtParted (note: I have only used GParted, but QtParted looks like basically the same thing). You'll need to have at least 4 partitions: your Windows NTFS, Ubuntu's ext3, a swap, and a shared FAT32. Remember, though, that a drive can only have 4 primary partitions, and an extended partition is a primary, which means that you'll have to format one to get another partition. It's best to make an extended partition containing the FAT32 partition. Ok, on to the slicing. Right-click on your NTFS partition and select the resize option. This is when you decide how big you want your Windows partition to be. You shouldn't put programs in your shared space, so make it big enough to hold new programs. I can't give you a number because I don't know how much shareable data you have or how many programs for either OS you want to install. Next, make your new slab of disk into an extended partition (or if you're absolutely sure you won't want another partition later, go ahead and make it a primary FAT32). Resize the partition to whatever you want for your shared data, and note that this is the space you'll have available in case of an extra partition, so if that's what you might do, make it a bit bigger.
3. Your next slab will be your ext3 for Ubuntu. Resize it to leave enough for your swap (1GB if you use the standard 2x RAM rule). If you think this partition is too big or too small, resize your other partitions.
4. Your last slab is your swap. Format it to linux-swap.
5. Carefully review your layout, making sure you aren't setting it up to do something you don't want it to, resize things as necessary, and if you decided to go with the extended partition, format the logical partition to FAT32.
6. Apply the changes. (you should not have actually made any changes before now!)

Now reboot and install Ubuntu to the ext3 partition.

Will this work?
Yes, unless there's something wrong that I don't know about.
Have you tried it?
I've used GParted and know my way around it.
What are my risks?
If you interrupt resizing or formatting operations, you will probably damage the filesystem involved (filesystems can usually be repaired without data loss). I would still back up the system, even though the chances of data loss are quite slim.
How much will this potentially slow down my operating systems?
Assuming everything went as planned, there will be no performance degradation.
Do I have any other options?
A swap partition isn't absolutely necessary (although I see no reason not to have one). There are other partition editors out there.

Vintage!

arqbrulo
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Ubuntu

If you are using Ubuntu live CD, double click on install. It will ask you about partitions, and just select "create partitions manually" or something like that. From there on it's pretty much just like Bahamut said. It's just that it will installing it at the same time.
---------------
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Egresado de la Universidad autónoma de Ciudad Juárez

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kamilb
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-

-

Patrick Patience
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Ahahahahahahaha

That video's AWESOME!

Simeon
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Yeah!!!!

Thats sooooooo coooool. Shock
Does this guy have toooooo much money??? Wink
But my Suse install has 6 cds to load...;-)
So, Linux is 6 times more fun, isn't it?

"What about Love?" - "Overrated. Biochemically no different than eating large quantities of chocolate." - Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate

scoutconnor
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You can download Microsoft's Virtural PC...

go to their website and download it. it has it's own BIOS etc. you can boot into Windows and from within Windows you can boot Ubuntu. I use it all the time. It also ensures that you do not mess up your harddrive etc.

Patrick Patience
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Are you sure?

Cause I thought it would ONLY work for Windows systems...?

As well, can you load applications on to ubuntu while it is "virtual"?

Patrick Patience
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Except...

It doesn't seem to support Windows XP Home Edition...Which is what I have.:S

scoutconnor
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it says it does not support home...

but it does, what it really means that microsoft's support pages do not have troubleshooting for home edition, it works fine for me and I run XP Home. Microsoft Virtual PC does support other, non-microsoft systems, remember, it is bascily a whole new PC in it, BIOS and all. you can install apps to the Virtural Hard Drive (*.vhd) just make sure that it is big enough.

Patrick Patience
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Ok, sweet...

It was working, I made a new Virtual PC called Ubuntu. And when the dos-like window opened, I clicked CD->Use physical drive E: (My C.D. Drive)

However, after I checked the C.D. for defects again, I clicked install, and it was working nicely, until all these lines of colours popped up. And then I could *faintly* read, The was an error installing________________. And I couldn't read the rest.

Do you know what the problem is? I tried it again, and now I'm just getting more lines of colours. I had no other applications running while it was too.

Edit:

Oh god, those lines, that's my Ubuntu desktop.

It has the Ubuntu logo, then Applications, Places, and System.

Has the Install Icon on the desktop.

The screen button on the bottom right, and I can even use a distorted mouse. So basicially, I'm running. Ubuntu. In graphics worse that you could EVER imagine. I took a screenshow if you want to see, I just have no where to put it.

scoutconnor
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can you try booting from the CD?

try to boot into linux via the CD, try to install it from there

Patrick Patience
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Booting...

From the C.D. inside virtual P.C.?

Cause I have tried booting from the C.D. and using the ISO image within virtual P.C., and they both give me the same messed up version of Ubuntu.

nycjv321
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lol

virtual PC is ok but
virtual box is better!
http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

and there is also qemu its command line app so i just use it on my thumbdrive and its slower since it runs ring3 Sad
http://fabrice.bellard.free.fr/qemu/

that video ^ i would never do that lol but WOW ROFI!

Slackware 12 for system
MCP (For XP and Server 2003)
Network + Certified
aim is "nycjv321" (minus quotes)

Patrick Patience
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DONE

All good now, I got Ubuntu working on Microsoft Virtual P.C. 2007 after following a tutorial. Only problem is my laptop only has 512 MB of RAM, so that's just 265 for Ubuntu, so it can stall at times, but it runs A LOT better than I thought it would.

nekiruhs
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Help!!

Im trying to do this right now,
Im on the live cd for Ubuntu as I type this. When I click install all goes smoothly until it goes to resize the NTFS partition. I am working with a 250 GB HD. So, i thought it resize the NTFS to 150 GB, create an extended partition like you said and make the ext3, linux swap and shared fat32 under the extended one. it keeps giving me an error when it goes to resize the NTFS. Am I doing something wrong?

*FYI my boot drive (the one Windows is on now, and Ubuntu will be on) has 1 existing partition already, but i dont know how to remove it.

Please help, I love Ubuntu

----
Linux: Because rebooting is for adding hardware

Bahamut
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1. Did you defrag the NTFS

1. Did you defrag the NTFS partition?
2. What error exactly?

Vintage!

nekiruhs
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I fixed it

Basically, I ran chkdsk under windows and then Ubuntu installed just fine. One final question though (And i guarantee its going to make me sound stupid) How, do i boot into ubuntu? After installing, I restarted, and it booted straight into windows.

----
Linux: Because rebooting is for adding hardware

Patrick Patience
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Did you?

Read the tutorial I posted at the top, cause part of it tells you how to set that up.

nekiruhs
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Yes

I dont understand alot of it. He mentions a system recovery disc, what is that, my windows boot disc? And im running gparted in live cd, do I have to go back and fix it then. Could you please help, the only operating system Ive ever installed was windows, and it pretty much did everything for you.

PS. I dont really see how that is helpful in my case, because my windows boots automatically, no questions asked...

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Linux: Because rebooting is for adding hardware

Bahamut
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Install GRUB to the MBR to

Install GRUB to the MBR to erase Windows' bootloader so you can boot to other OSes. That should have been done during installation, though.

Vintage!

nekiruhs
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It installed

To hd0 by default, how do I set it to install to MBR?

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Linux: Because rebooting is for adding hardware

Bahamut
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It should've installed to

It should've installed to the MBR of hd0 then. What option did you choose when the Ubuntu installer came to GRUB installation?

Vintage!

nekiruhs
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It didn't...

I never got that option, it went from partitioning to a summary screen to Ubuntu installation to done.

----
Linux: Because rebooting is for adding hardware

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