win98/linux dual boot : windows boot says "Logical drives exist past z "

[Ashwin]

Hi friends,

I have done win98 and linux dual boot installation on a fresh 20GB as follows

Space partition type mount point
15 MB linux native /boot
16GB FAT32
3.8 linux native /
133 MB linux swap swap partition

I installed win98 into the 16GB fat partition first.
I then installed linux into the disk with mount points as shown in the table above

On subsequent restart, I receive lilo prompt.

On booting into linux, linux boots up fine
On booting into windows, I receive a message ,
"Logical drives exist past Z and will be ignored" nothing happens further .windows boot fails.

where am I going wrong ?

Please help ..

Thanks
Ashwin
:confused:

[eXtremist]

What are your partitions? Primary? Extended? Logical?

Logical would seem logical (heh) since that's what the error is saying. Try making /boot a primary partition, then create your Win98 partition as another primary partition, and then you can make all the other partitions extended.

[Ashwin]

Hi ,

I have four primary partitions. No extended or logical at all !!

I'll run you through the installation process as I went through it.

1. bootup using linux cd
2. fdisk to create 15MB linux native primary partition.
3. 15 MB partition written to disk
4. reboot
5. bootup using win98 boot cd
6. fdisk to create 16 GB primary FAT32 partition
(I can see the 15MB non-dos partition which I created before in the partition table)
7. set c:(16GB partition) as active partition
8. reboot
9. bootup using win98 boot cd , format c: (fat32 format)
10. complete installation of win98 in 16GB partition.
11. installation of everything wanted in windows (modems etc)
12. reboot
13. bootup using linux cd
14. partition table seen as

mount point partition type space
<not set> linux native 15 MB
<not set> windows* 16 GB

15. set 15 MB as /boot
16. created 1 MB primary as / and set Grow to disk .It occupied entire space
17. created 127 MB swap partition

(I see that the full disk is now used and all partitions happily sitting with each other)

partition table is as follows

</boot> Linux Native 15 MB
<not set> windows* 16 GB
</> Linux Native 3.**
</swap> Linux Swap 133 MB

18. Linux installation starts
19. lilo set to write to MBR
20. installation done
21. reboot
22. lilo: linux ...
23. linux boots up fine .. I'm happy and feel 50% victory
24. reboot
25. lilo: dos
26 starting windows ..
Logical drives exist past Z and will be ignored
27. windows bootup hangs and no activity any further

Thats it !!! .. windows does its normal thing .. hang ! anyway seriously I dont know whats going on at all !!

Please help
I hope I have made my installation process absolutely clear
Thanks
Ashwin


* I dont exactly remember what was written there
** I dont remember the exact size

[JALU]

What does Fdisk say when you run it in winders? When I install my dual boot systems I use the Fdisk that comes with them, or in the case of Win2k, I use the partitioning software in the install program. I just create a partition that is the size I want for winders and then I leave the rest of the disk alone, install windows, and then I put my linux on. I use mandrake, and I have to say that diskdrake is a pretty sweet tool for setting up the drive, and I have never had any trouble with it.

just my 2 cents...

[Lorithar]

*hmms*

I would fdisk the drive from dos to validate it, but also from linux you can fdisk the drive and validate the partition table. I suspect one of those partitions does not end on a logical boundary .... *sighs* I'm not sure I can explain in a way that will make enough sense... but even with drive translation and whatnot, you basically have to have a partition end at a point where cylinder/head/sector line up nicely. --- I rather suspect that this is what is kicking winders in the butt.

[Ashwin]

I didnt quite get what you are saying !

[TheMuso]

You should have made your FAT32 partition the first partition and put all of Linux after that. That way, Windows does not see any other partitions before it. Windows 98 likes to be the first partition, although I don't think it bothers Win 2K that much.

[eXtremist]

I had Windows ME on a second partition and it didn't work.. I remember now that I had to make it the first partition.

This really sucks for you, because if you put a 16 GB partition first and then linux, there's a chance you will get the dreaded lilo error..

[Ashwin]

I'd be able to make the win98 as first partition but then what about the /boot which needs to be within the first 1024 cylinders of the disk ? how will that be possible ?
can you please list out a partition table which I should make for the dual boot ?

[JALU]

This is how mine is...

5.0gb fat32 for win2k
8.0gb /
248mb swap

I use GRUB not Lilo though so I don't know if that makes any difference in how you have to partion things.

K.

[DMR]

I've read that the 1024 cylinder limitation was fixed as of LILO version 21-3. If your Linux distro uses 21-3 or higher, you might be in luck.

[Ashwin]

Hi

a. I was using Red hat 6.2 which is shipped with LILO 21-1. So that would be a problem right ! so how about the partition table in that case ? please list that out

b. Now I will try with Red hat 7 which ships with 21-4. So would the partition below work ?
16gb FAT32
15mb /boot
3.8 /
133 swap

Thanks
Ashwin

[bdg1983]

If I were setting up a dual boot with W98 and Linux on a 20GB drive, I would setup as

4GB - Primary FAT32 (Win98 - os etc.)
16GB Extended
3.8GB - Logical - Linux '/'
133MB - Logical - Swap
12GB - Logical FAT32 (data files etc.)

[Ashwin]

what of the /boot ? where does that go ?

[bdg1983]

You only really need the /boot partition if you are installing Linux using an older version of Lilo that does not support booting past the 1024 cylinder (around 8GB).

Some have their own preferences for how to partition for Linux, but actually only '/' and the swap partition are necessary. Hence the reason of my previous partitioning suggestion.

Everyone has their own opinion of the best way to partition, but for someone new to Linux just using '/' and swap is probably the easiest to start with. Separating the partitions is most likely better suited for the more experienced.

There are NHF's here on partitioning etc.

[prince_kenshi]

But isn't his Lilo too old to support booting past the 1024th cylinder? I think you need to boot to a Dos floppy and see what happens then. If it works, see what fdisk shows and run scandisk on the drive.

[Lorithar]

*umms*

There are two points here...

1) he is booting off a disk that is large, he wants to boot from a reasonable partition scheme.

2) There is the possibility of UPGRADING the installed lilo after the fact.

3) We want to keep it simple.


Best Partition scheme (keeping it reasonably simplet)

step 1)
boot from dos floppy,
fdisk disk
create ONE partition, 1gig, fat32.
exit fdisk, reboot
boot from linux floppy.
fdisk disk
create ONE partition, 1gig linux ext2fs
create EXTENDED partition - remainder of disk
within EXTENDED create virtual disk of 14gig fat32
within EXTENDED create virtual disk of 1.5gig linux ext2fs (for home or usr)
withing EXTENDED create virtual disk of 1.5 gig linux ext2fs (for home or usr)
within EXTENDED create virtual disk of balance for swap

Now .. .those numbers don't quite line up BUT you will find that the swap is around 500 mb or so ... you can play with the las two linux partitions so that you end up with a reasonable amount of swap space (can you tell I have a 20 gig drive....) ...
The first fat32 disk is for basic windows install, the first linux ext2fs is for the / dir.
I suggest (since I like to play with installing apps willynilly) that /usr be a separate partition (it can be done... ) and /home a separate partition.

This arrangement will avoid boot problems with older lilo, allows windows its preferred 0 partition, and will leave some room for apps on both systems.


FYI ... I now have my (unified) linux/windows system dual bootable ... I had to do that to try out vmware ...looks good sofar...

Although the error message as listed lead me astray at first glance, the issue here is winders wanting to be partition 0. In part windows is displaying the same problem as older LILO's do. A) windows wants to be in partition 0 but, also, as a result does not handle upper limit drive translation reads during the boot process. Since lilo knows where to start windows, it starts windows, however windows cannot read it's own bootstrapper, because it is too far up the drive. ( thus drives exist beyond Z ...) the message is slightly misleading, but what it does is try to build a table of drives that look normal, and find the bootstrapper on them. Since the bootstapper is this far up the drive it builds a table all the way from c to z ......and no bootstrapper in there ... (that took some READING....)

[ 15 March 2001: Message edited by: Lorithar ]

[Ashwin]

okay ! thanks a lot .. now I'll be going for the windows/linux dual boot once again with all the renewed information . bid me good luck ..

heheheh It sounds like I'm going to war .. but then I do feel that way after having been struck twice by 'Logical drives cant see past z ' I wish I could say winders go zzz ..but our boss wants to stick to winders .. :(

will get back after sunday when I would be doing the installation.

thanks,
Ashwin
:)