2nd distro

[bsh152s]

I'm thinking about installing gentoo as my second linux distribution. I currently have Windows XP and RH9 using grub as the bootloader.

I'm assuming that all I'll need to add is a section for gentoo in the grub.conf file ("rootnoverify (hdx,x)"). I don't need to rerun anything like you would if you had LILO as your boot loader, do I?

Second question--can I use RH9's swap partition for Gentoo also? If so, will the gentoo installation see it automatically and use it as swap?

[Icarus]

Yes, use the same /boot directory and swap to keep things cleaner
just make sure the kernel names don't overlap, but Red Hat uses micro version numbers so unless you name a Gentoo kernel linux-2.4.23-25.ntpl or something you're fine

This also makes using and configuring Grub much easier since Grub is already installed
You need to tell Gentoo to use these in the /etc/fstab (Gentoo's not Red Hat's ;))

[mdwatts]

Install the 2nd distros bootloader into it's own root partition and then add a entry to Gentoo's bootloader for the 2nd distro.

[bsh152s]

This also makes using and configuring Grub much easier since Grub is already installed. You need to tell Gentoo to use these in the /etc/fstab (Gentoo's not Red Hat's )

Thanks for the quick reply. Will I have to edit the /etc/fstab file in the middle of the installation (prior to first boot) or will the installation see the /boot and swap partitions and create a correct fstab file? Just trying to get everything settled before I start the installation.

Install the 2nd distros bootloader into it's own root partition and then add a entry to Gentoo's bootloader for the 2nd distro.

I've already installed RH9 and I'm assuming that grub was already installed to the master boot record. I don't want to uninstall grub.

[Icarus]

Gentoo has a very complex install method, but in it's complexity it makes other things very simple

Follow the Gentoo install instructions, but skip over the obvious parts (fdisk'ing your drive and installing grub to the MBR, Red Hat did that already)

Learn your partitions and disk setup so you don't do an 'oops' and overwrite the other partitions.

There is a part near the begining of the Gentoo install to make and active the swap, you only need to activate it to use it.

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by bsh152s

I've already installed RH9 and I'm assuming that grub was already installed to the master boot record. I don't want to uninstall grub.

Install the Gentoo bootloader into it's own root partition (Gentoo's) and add Gentoo to Redhat's Grub config.

[Icarus]

Why even install a bootloader for Gentoo? Once you have the menu.lst from Red Hat pointing toward the Gentoo partition, kernel and init files why even have this installed in Gentoo also? I didn't do this and I am booting happly into Gentoo using Fedora's bootloader, just make sure you configure the menu.lst (or grub.conf) to load it correctly...but if that's incorrect it doesn't matter where the bootload is :p

[bsh152s]

Originally posted by mahdi

Follow the Gentoo install instructions, but skip over the obvious parts (fdisk'ing your drive and installing grub to the MBR, Red Hat did that already)

Learn your partitions and disk setup so you don't do an 'oops' and overwrite the other partitions.

There is a part near the begining of the Gentoo install to make and active the swap, you only need to activate it to use it.

This seems to make sense. And, don't worry, I won't write over RH. And even if I do, I always backup.

I hope I like Gentoo. I hear everyone saying good things about it.

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by mahdi
Why even install a bootloader for Gentoo?

You need a bootloader for any operating system including Windows and Linux.

[bsh152s]

You need a bootloader for any operating system including Windows and Linux.

But don't you only need one bootloader per machine?

[Icarus]

Originally posted by bsh152s
But don't you only need one bootloader per machine? Yup, Mike must be on some really good medication today :)

I use the bootloader Fedora installed on /dev/hda2 to boot Win2000, Fedora and Gentoo. I use hda2 to store all the kernel and boot files for all installs. I should post a df and contents of menu.lst for you so you can see how easy it is.

You could always have one bootloader start another bootloader and have some real fun bouncing around bootloaders :)

And Mike...have any of that stuff to spare? :D

[bsh152s]

For awhile there, I thought I was going crazy.

Anyway, that would be great if you could post your df and menu.lst/grub.conf.

Thanks.

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by mahdi

And Mike...have any of that stuff to spare? :D

Only lots of morphine. :)

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by bsh152s

Anyway, that would be great if you could post your df and menu.lst/grub.conf.


SuSE 9.0 Rescue owns /boot and also has it's bootloader installed in /boot.

The rest of the distros have their bootloaders installed into their own root partitions.

(hd0,0) is the /boot partition


color white/blue black/light-gray
default 2
timeout 8
gfxmenu (hd0,0)/message

title SuSE 9.0 (Rescue)
kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz-2.4.21-144-smp4G root=/dev/hda3 acpismp=force apm=power_off idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,0)/initrd-2.4.21-144-smp4G

title SuSE 9.0 (Development)
kernel (hd0,4)/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.21-144-smp4G root=/dev/hda5 acpismp=force apm=power_off disableapic idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,4)/boot/initrd-2.4.21-144-smp4G
# apm=realmode_power_off apm=off acpi=off disableapic

title SuSE 9.0 (Production)
kernel (hd1,4)/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.21-192-smp4G root=/dev/ataraid/d0p5 acpismp=force apm=power_off disableapic idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd1,4)/boot/initrd-2.4.21-192-smp4G

title Gentoo
kernel (hd0,5)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda6 vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none apm=realmode_power_off apm=off acpi=off disableapic hdc=ide-scsi hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,5)/boot/initrd

title Debian
kernel (hd0,6)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda7 vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none apm=realmode_power_off apm=off acpi=off disableapic hdc=ide-scsi hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,6)/boot/initrd

title UnitedLinux (SCO 4.0 Server)
kernel (hd0,7)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda8 vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none apm=realmode_power_off apm=off acpi=off disableapic hdc=ide-scsi hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,7)/boot/initrd

title Mandrake 10 Beta
kernel (hd0,8)/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.2-0.rc3.1mdksmp root=/dev/hda9 acpismp=force apm=power_off vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none disableapic hdc=ide-scsi hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,8)/boot/initrd-2.6.2-0.rc3.1mdksmp.img

title SPARE_2
kernel (hd0,9)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda10 acpismp=force apm=power_off vga=0x317 splash=silent desktop idebus=66 ide0=autotune hdb=none disableapic hdc=ide-scsi hdd=ide-scsi hddlun=0 showopts
initrd (hd0,9)/boot/initrd

title Windows XP Professional
rootnoverify (hd0,1)
chainloader +1

title Floppy
root (fd0)
chainloader +1

title Failsafe
kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda3 showopts ide=nodma apm=off acpi=off vga=normal nosmp noapic maxcpus=0 3
initrd (hd0,0)/initrd

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by bsh152s
But don't you only need one bootloader per machine?

Each operating system requires a bootloader. Windows always installs it's bootloader into it's own system partition (usually C:).

[Icarus]

When I installed Gentoo I did not load or install GRUB, but I am using the bootloader from the Fedora install (when installing Gentoo I mounted hda2 as /mnt/gentoo/boot so it was installed there with the Fedora kernel and boot information)
GRUB is installed on the MBR and all the files are in hda2, the Fedora install is not used unless I'm booting to it. All the bootload is contained in hda2

ls /boot/
System.map initrd-2.6.3
System.map-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl kernel-2.4.22-gentoo-r5
System.map-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl kernel-2.6.1
System.map-2.6.1-1.65 kernel-2.6.3
config-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl kernel.h
config-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl tmp
config-2.6.1-1.65 vmlinux-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl
grub vmlinux-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl
initrd-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl.img vmlinuz
initrd-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl.img vmlinuz-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl
initrd-2.4.22-gentoo-r5 vmlinuz-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl
initrd-2.6.1 vmlinuz-2.6.1-1.65
initrd-2.6.1-1.65.img


default=4
timeout=10
splashimage=(hd0,1)/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title Fedora Core (2.4.22-1.2174.nptl)
root (hd0,1)
kernel /vmlinuz-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl ro root=LABEL=/ acpi=on rhgb
initrd /initrd-2.4.22-1.2174.nptl.img
title Fedora Core (2.4.22-1.2115.nptl)
root (hd0,1)
kernel /vmlinuz-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl ro root=LABEL=/ acpi=on rhgb
initrd /initrd-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl.img
title Fedora Core (2.6.1-1.65)
root (hd0,1)
kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.1-1.65 ro root=LABEL=/ acpi=on rhgb
initrd /initrd-2.6.1-1.65.img
title Windows2000
rootnoverify (hd0,0)
chainloader +1
title Gentoo 2.6.3
root (hd0,1)
kernel /kernel-2.6.3 root=/dev/ram0 init=/linuxrc real_root=/dev/hda3 vg
a=0x317 splash=verbose acpi=on
initrd /initrd-2.6.3