dual boot linux?

[Eric "Shubes"]

Victor Odhner wrote:

> mike enriquez wrote:
> 
>> I am a newbie on this subject. I am having problems setting up a dual
>> boot with xp and linux. I have done this before and no problems. But 
>> on 300 gig HD I am having
>> problems with Red Hat & Suse. I installed xp first then I install Linux
>> and my computer will not boot. I use the xp cd to repair the master boot
>> record but this wipes out the linux set up. Both time Linux did not take
>> me to the Grub setup as it generally does on good installs.
>> I had my dual boot on an 80gig HD so I purchased a new 300 gig HD to set
>> up the dual boot but I am stuck. I installed RH by itself and the 
>> install works fine. Does anyone out there have any ideas.
>>  
>>
> Your Linux install normally will ask you into what partition it should 
> install grub, whether to put it into the MBR or the root partition or 
> whatever.  Maybe you missed it, or maybe the install wasn't working 
> right.  If you didn't (get a chance to) tell it to put grub into the 
> MBR, then it won't boot into grub.  But it sounds like the Linux setup 
> broke your MBR.  Not good.
> 
> You probably have to do some grub hacking.  I've been forced into this a 
> few times, and have temporarily become a grub wizard twice, though both 
> times I forgot the details afterwards.  I've done well with resources 
> like the ones listed below.  They discuss how grub works, and how to 
> hack the pieces to get desired results.  One good intermediate stage is 
> building a grub floppy (if you have a floppy drive!).
> 
> You could let the Windows boot loader start Windows, and adjust boot.ini 
> to bounce you into grub if you want to run Linux.  I have not done that 
> myself -- I use grub to bring up XP or one of several Linux 
> installations.  The benefit would be that you have not rocked the 
> Windows boat, since it's so leaky . . .   That approach is addressed in 
> these articles too.
> 
> http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/4622 -- good nuts-and-bolts exercise 
> in setting up grub, to start with.  The reader comments include some 
> other angles.
> 
> Hack the Windows NT/2000/XP Boot Loader
>   http://hacks.oreilly.com/pub/h/2337
> This explains how to boot grub from Boot.ini.
> 
> http://enterprise.linux.com/article.pl?sid=05/02/16/1919205&tid=129
> More of the same.
> 
> Good luck,
> 
> Vic
> 

I came across a situation which I think is the same as your problem. 
Grub doesn't work when it's located on the HDD above where the native 
bios can access, in my case ~64M. There are several ways to remedy this 
problem (in order of preference):

o If there is a bios update available that provides access to larger 
(enough) drives, install (flash) it.

o When installing XP, leave some free space (~50-100M) at the beginning 
of the drive. Then use that space for a (separate) /boot partition when 
installing linux. Also be sure to install grub to the MBR, as Vic mentioned.

o Make your XP partition small enough that the bios can access grub

Using the XP boot loader might work as well, but I'd opt for one or both 
of the first two methods above.

HTH
-- 
-Eric 'shubes'
"There is no such thing as the People;
  it is a collectivist myth.
  There are only individual citizens
  with individual wills
  and individual purposes."
-William E. Simon (1927-2000),
     Secretary of the Treasury (1974-1977)
  "A Time For Truth" (1978), pg. 237

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