Preserved Topic: Running Linux and Windows 2000 pro

I have a machine running on windows 2000 pro.....I would also like to install Linux on the machine......
I cant seem to trace an article which describe how to go about this..

Anyone got an idea ??

You need to make two separate partitions on your hard drive, and then install Linux on the new one. Last of all, you will need to set up a menu at the start of your computer in order to choose between the two OS.

Hmm I'm not an ace with Linux, but I guess you can set up the menu with Linux. However take care because Win2000 pro sometimes decides to format the partition where another OS is located.. That happened to a friend of mine. His Win 2000 pro formatted the partition where Red Hat was installed when he launched it. That was quite scary...

I don't know which use you intend to do of Linux, but generally having it on another computer is better

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Without change, something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken. -- Frank Herbert

I'm running dual boot with winXP and RedHat 9.0 now I haven't had any problems so far. When you install Linux (this is at least true for recent RedHat, SuSE and Mandrake distros) you'll get an option of installing a boot loader and what options should be available on it. In most cases it will detect your windows installation and put it on the menu by default. If not just figure out which partition Windows is installed on (in most cases /dev/hda1) and add it to the boot menu.

If you install Linux first, and then install windows you might get some problems since Windows install a new bootloader without asking and it only add other windows installations to the boot-menu by default.

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"There are 10 kinds of people; those who know binary, those who don't and those who start counting at zero"

Just to echo what Veneficuz said... I'm running RH 9.0 and Win2k Pro with no problems at all. You should make sure that Windows is installed first, otherwise Windows will mess up the Linux install if you try to do it second.

-Butcher-

If you have enough room on the HD you can indeed Repartition and run linux from the new partitions.
Yes i said partitions since linux need at least 3 partitions in your case (when doing it neat)
1)- between 1 and 10 MB for the bootloader (on the first part from your hard disk or MBR)
2)- 1GB or more for Linux and the programs
3)- 2 times the amount of memory for the swap space (eg if your RAM is 128MB you need a swap space from about 256MB).

Ofcourse you can leave out the bootloader space but this is a sloppy way of doing things and might result in win2K overwriting the MBR and thus disabling the Linux partitions.

There are also some distributions who can start from a windows map (but who wants those...) and if you are not familiar with linux you could try the Knoppix distro this can start and run from a cd.
Here is some basic info on linux-partitions
And this howto dual-boot linux with win2000 might help too.

Personally i like to use linux on a separate HD with a bootloader for the windows on the other disk. And i alter the boot sequence in the bios to this: first the linux HD then the win(whatever version)HD and finaly the cd-rom. Doing it this way i can remove the linux disk and swapping with an data-storage disk or something else without losing my win2k stuff.
This way i can loose the whole win2k or linux disk and still being able to use the machine. Ofcourse i made sure win2k can start from it's own disk. If you want to know moore about using linux with windows google is your friend.



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"Art has to be forgotten. Beauty must be realized."
Piet Mondriaan

All SuSE distro's also has a Live-Eval version available that runs from a CD without installing anything to the HD. You can get the iso's from their download section.

The way I've arranged my HD's now is 12GB for Windows, 8GB for Linux and a 120GB sperarate HD that I store all my data on so I can access it from both OS'. It is also nice to have all the data on a separate HD in case the HD with the OS' crash I can still save the data. Explore2fs is a very handy tool to have when you use both Linux and Windows. It allows Windows to read files from ext2fs and ext3fs partitions, which are the default file formats for Linux.

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"There are 10 kinds of people; those who know binary, those who don't and those who start counting at zero"

[This message has been edited by Veneficuz (edited 04-22-2003).]

Great link for the Explore2fs Veneficuz Thanks!!

There's been more than once I had to restart my dual boot box to get at something on the Linux partitions.

-Butcher-

venificuz: You don't have a swap????

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"Art has to be forgotten. Beauty must be realized."
Piet Mondriaan

Forgot about the swap, since that one is configured by the setup program It is on the same HD as the Os' and about 600MB, can't remeber the exact size now. There is also the boot partition which is about 10MB and it is on the OS' HD as well...



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"There are 10 kinds of people; those who know binary, those who don't and those who start counting at zero"

Hey Thanks guys...lemme me get right to it..
Rinswind 2th and Veneficuz thanks for the links

so, what linux version you going with?



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Petskull...actually i have never used Linux...but for some reason the name Red Hat catches my attention

Probably because RedHat is one of the most commercially oriented Linux distros, as well as the 'most user-friendly' (alongside Mandrake). So RedHat is a very good distro to use in the beginning, at least I haven't had any problems with it so far

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"There are 10 kinds of people; those who know binary, those who don't and those who start counting at zero"

redhat's caught my fancy lately..

not to mention I went thru HELL getting my winmodem online so you bet your ass I'm not re-kerneling anytime soon...


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