NEWBIE IN HELL PLEASE HELP!!!!!!

[quixand_jesuz]

Ok.....this is my story, I'll make it as quick as possible. I bought a PII 233 laptop w/ 4.5gb HD. 64MB ram. I bought a Linksys PCMCIA 10/100 etherfast v.3 nic(which I need to return because these don't work in linux)
I want to DUAL boot Windows2000 and RH 7.1.
AND I want to use XOSL. I've tried the following configs to no avail. :(
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16MB partition @ beginning of Drive for XOSL
2.5GB WINDOZES 2000 partition
2GB RH Linux 7.1 partition
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Now, I install XOSL on it's dedicated 16MB partition.
Install Win2K
everythings fine. XOSL boots fine...and boots win2k fine.
On to linux...half way there right? WRONG
I try to install Linux, when I do, it *****s about the HD size the partition table specifies and the HD size that Linux has found do not match. ABORT INSTALL
ARGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!
*PULLING HAIR OUT!!!!*
I can install linux by itself, I can install them both with only 2 partitions on the drive, WIN2k and LINUX NO XOSL, but neither but only Linux boots.
I know I want to install LILO to the / of the linux partition. But I can't get that FAR!!!! Any Ideas? I have dual booted before but can't recall how I did it. Do I need to specify a SWAP partition, or will Linux be smart enough to use some of the / partition if no swap is previously specified??? I have been up for OVER 24hrs, tired as hell..and worst of all...at work for 8hrs.... I have completely formatted this HD OVER 15 TIMES already and have had it for only TWO FREAKIN DAYS!!!

PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!

[ansivirus]

I believe red hat 7.1 will not allow you to progress any further than the partition section if there is no specified swap partition.

-ansiVirus

[ 22 June 2001: Message edited by: ansivirus ]

[CMonster]

Special thanks to "linux_guru" for this one:

OK. Here's how you do it. No 3rd party boot managers required.

1. Install W2K first. Leave enough room for Linux. (2 Gb +) This can be on the same disk, or a separate disk.

2. Install Linux, using "expert" mode. This gives you greater control over your installation.

3. When you install your Linux boot loader, choose LILO, not grub. DO NOT select MBR. Choose first sector of your root ( / ) partition. This will be /dev/hda2 if on the same disk, or /dev/hdb1 if on your second disk, etc.

4. Make the boot floppy, during the Linux installation.

5. When the Linux install is complete, reboot using the floppy created during installation.

6. With Linux up, insert a fresh DOS formatted floppy and mount it with "mount -t msdos /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy".

7. Enter "dd if=/dev/hdb1 of=/mnt/floppy/bootsect.lin bs=512 count=1". This may vary, depending where your / partition is. Unmount the floppy & reboot.

8. W2K will come normally. Copy a:\bootsect.lin to c:\bootsect.lin

9. Edit c:\boot.ini to include: C:\bootsect.lin="Linux"

10. Done ! You should now have the option of booting W2K or Linux, using the W2K bootloader.

I have tested this with W2K Pro and Mandrake 7.2 and it works great.

Good luck.
http://www.sysopt.com/forum/Forum9/HTML/003412.html

[GonzoJohn]

Just curious, but will Win2K run in less than 64 MB RAM? It certainly can't run WELL in that small amount of memory.

[ 22 June 2001: Message edited by: GonzoJohn ]

[quixand_jesuz]

Thank you for the response....I really am hell bent on getting XOSL to work, besides looking cool, everyone I talk to says it's easy to use,yadyaydyadyada. Well, maybe if your just messing with windows. So I would REALLY like to get this figured out. Does XOSL leave itself behind if I FORMATTED the drive completely rather than uninstalled it?
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Win2k runs like a dream believe it or not on this laptop. PII 233mhz 64mb ram.
U wouldn't believe it, but it's not the bloatware that EVERYONE makes it out to be. Once you get rid of the fancy fade in menu changes etc, it is pretty smooth. I run a Win2k network at home, and my girlfriends PC runs a PII 266MHZ 64mbs or ram and 4GB hard drive, run perfect. She doesn't use it for gaming or anything like that....but...it works fine for her. :)

So if anyone can help me configure XOSL with WIN2K and RH Linux I would bow to you and call you GOD. Cheers

[prince_kenshi]

You have to unpartition the drive, not format. Linux fdisk should take care of everything. MS fdisk doesn't like certain kinds of partitions.

[quixand_jesuz]

Yes, I'm sorry, I did Ranquish PARTITION manager the drive, remove EVERYTHING but the MBR. Booted to dos, FDISK /mbr the Master boot record, so the drive is like a virtually new CLEAN drive outta the box.
My question is...Using XOSL, step by step, how do I set it up to dual boot WINDOWS 2000 and LINUX

[Molecule Man]

http://home.wanadoo.nl/geurt/faqhow/alphabet.txt