Problems on dual booting Redhat and XP

[ramee001]

Hi all,

I am currently running XP and i want to dual boot it along with RedHat. I know that i must first partition my hard drive and have space for linux. However i have heard that i must not install linux further than the 1024 cylinder or the BIOS will not recognize it. The first 1024 cylinder is about the first 8.5 GB or so and is not enough space for linux and the stuff ill install later.

When i install linux will it be able to recognize and write on the data on the xp NTFS partition? Can i install linux ANYWHERE on my hard drive and still be able to boot it? Do i need a boot manager or is there some default windows one that will activate itself when i have two OS?

I have already 3 primary partitions (DELLUTILITY, C:drive and some DOS partion) of which none can be deleted. What do i do in order to install linux and have space to install stuff on it? Please help me.

Thanks,

[Dizzle7677]

Generally you need three different partitions
/boot <-all the boot stuff goes here(Grub/lilo/etc) (100 Megs Ext3/4)
/ <- the system partition (XFS!!!)
/swap <- swapspace

Redhat.com is a good place to start.

[fhj52]

Originally Posted by ramee001

Hi all,

Hi, .

Originally Posted by ramee001

I am currently running XP and i want to dual boot it along with RedHat. I know that i must first partition my hard drive and have space for linux. However i have heard that i must not install linux further than the 1024 cylinder or the BIOS will not recognize it. The first 1024 cylinder is about the first 8.5 GB or so and is not enough space for linux and the stuff ill install later.

You heard wrong. Install *nix anywhere but be aware that programs at|near end of disk are going to run slower.
No you do not need to partition the rest of the disk. MS Win* cannot format them properly anyway. Linux uses " ext3 " as the default filesystem so unless you have a Hard Disk Manager(e.g., Paragon) that can format for ext3, let the installer do it.
You DO need to know your setup(partitions, etc.) and hardware(specific model names, etc.).

When i install linux will it be able to recognize and write on the data on the xp NTFS partition?

yes. You need ntfs-3g installed but ithink it is pretty much std on all the distros now.

Can i install linux ANYWHERE on my hard drive and still be able to boot it?

yes, see above. But don't do things like putting the Linux " / "(the root partition) at the very end of the disk. The / (root partition) should be as close to front(outside) of disk as possible|feasible.

Do i need a boot manager or is there some default windows one that will activate itself when i have two OS?

GRUB (Grand Unified BootLoader) is the std boot loader(boot manager) so it is installed by default. Some distros still use LiLo(Linux Loader) but i don;t think RedHat is one of them. I run more than 6 different OS versions and GRUB handles them all just fine.
MS Windows ntldr(windoz bootloader) will not recognize Linux. In truth, the NT bootloader will need to be manually setup to access Linux. Normally GRUB is automagically setup to access the MS Win* OS ...will have a name like "windows" or "windows-1"; i.e., the bootloader cannot distinguish which "MS Win" partition is the OS so they all get named "windows" and YOU have to know where the OS resides.
You need to do some reading about how HDD are designated in Linux with GRUB.

I have already 3 primary partitions (DELLUTILITY, C:drive and some DOS partion) of which none can be deleted. What do i do in order to install linux and have space to install stuff on it?

You will have the option during the installation to choose where & how to install. It sounds like the "Auto" install is going to be the best for you. The installer will NOT write to used partitions unless you tell it to do so.
The 'Auto' version basically checks the HDD and installs Linux to the free or unallocated space that remains. It will create a minimum of 2 partitions (/ and swap) but as mentioned having /boot partition (it's small: ~ 100MB is enough) and /home (it is large ...GB or more) is a good idea. The typical Linux (power) user is going to have /, /boot, swap, /tmp, /usr, /home, /var and possibly /opt. Many will add /opt because certain programs will expect /opt to exist. ...
You need to read-up on what those partitions are and why they are.
However, for your first install ever, "Automatic" or "Default" install will get you going. Just do not click anything that says '' use the whole disk '' or '' erase partition '' when you know that partition contains data you want to keep..

Originally Posted by ramee001

Please help me.

Thanks,

I hope it does. Good luck!

[xplicitone]

I know this is quite a old post but it help me quite a bit getting mine setup.






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