Paranoid dual boot with Mandrake

[IsaacKuo]

So I have a Windows system which has been tweaked over the years just right to get all the software and hardware working just right. I absolutely positively do not want to do anything which could mess anything up, including replacing the boot loader with LILO or any other multi-boot loader.

The solution? Floppy drive Linux loader! Here are the steps I took:

1. Downloaded Mandrake 8.2, burned the CDs.

2. Created Mandrake install floppy as per Mandrake's instructions.

3. Shut down system, disconnected Windows drive from primary IDE. This step removes any possibility of the following steps messing with my Windows setup.

4. Connected blank drive to secondary IDE (this will be hdc).

5. Inserted Mandrake install floppy. Turned on the computer; insert the first Mandrake CD. It complains about primary hard drive error (because the primary has been disconnected), and I press <F1> to resume. It boots off the floppy instead, which then loads the Mandrake install program off the CD.

6. Followed the Mandrake install directions (in expert mode). This formats hdc and puts Mandrake on it.

7. At a certain point, it asks whether to create an emergency boot floppy. I say YES! It creates this floppy, which I label MANDRAKE HDC BOOT. This floppy tries to boot Linux off of hdc (the master on the secondary IDE), ignoring any other drives.

8. Completed Mandrake install; booted up and logged in to make sure everything works with the MANDRAKE HDC BOOT floppy inserted. (The computer complains on boot up about primary hard driver error; I use <f1> to continue anyway.)

9. Shut down system, reconnected the Windows drive to the primary IDE.

10. Turned on system with no floppy to test Windows bootup; turned on system system with MANDRAKE HDC BOOT in the floppy drive to test Linux bootup.

Voila! A dual boot system without messing with the Windows setup! If I decide to junk the Linux portion altogether, all I need to do is remove that hard drive and the system is in its original state.

As such, if you've got a Windows system and an old hard drive just lying around, you no longer have any excuse to NOT make it dual boot.

[CrashTestDummy9]

Originally posted by IsaacKuo
So I have a Windows system which has been tweaked over the years just right to get all the software and hardware working just right. I absolutely positively do not want to do anything which could mess anything up, including replacing the boot loader with LILO or any other multi-boot loader.

The solution? Floppy drive Linux loader! Here are the steps I took:

1. Downloaded Mandrake 8.2, burned the CDs.

2. Created Mandrake install floppy as per Mandrake's instructions.

3. Shut down system, disconnected Windows drive from primary IDE. This step removes any possibility of the following steps messing with my Windows setup.

4. Connected blank drive to secondary IDE (this will be hdc).

5. Inserted Mandrake install floppy. Turned on the computer; insert the first Mandrake CD. It complains about primary hard drive error (because the primary has been disconnected), and I press <F1> to resume. It boots off the floppy instead, which then loads the Mandrake install program off the CD.

6. Followed the Mandrake install directions (in expert mode). This formats hdc and puts Mandrake on it.

7. At a certain point, it asks whether to create an emergency boot floppy. I say YES! It creates this floppy, which I label MANDRAKE HDC BOOT. This floppy tries to boot Linux off of hdc (the master on the secondary IDE), ignoring any other drives.

8. Completed Mandrake install; booted up and logged in to make sure everything works with the MANDRAKE HDC BOOT floppy inserted. (The computer complains on boot up about primary hard driver error; I use <f1> to continue anyway.)

9. Shut down system, reconnected the Windows drive to the primary IDE.

10. Turned on system with no floppy to test Windows bootup; turned on system system with MANDRAKE HDC BOOT in the floppy drive to test Linux bootup.

Voila! A dual boot system without messing with the Windows setup! If I decide to junk the Linux portion altogether, all I need to do is remove that hard drive and the system is in its original state.

As such, if you've got a Windows system and an old hard drive just lying around, you no longer have any excuse to NOT make it dual boot. Ive never messed up a Windows install by putting a bootloader on the MBR of hda . When I want it bak to its original state I fdisk /mbr or in the case of XP I type FIXMBR at the repair console . That being said , Ive never been mugged at gunpoint either and lots of people have . So if it works for you , thats great .:cool:

[IsaacKuo]

Well, for one thing my SCSI card takes its sweet time searching for devices, so it's a long time between powering on and when it starts trying to boot off of anything.

It's nice to choose the OS by either pressing the floppy in the drive or ejecting it when I power up, and then return to the machine booted up in my chosen OS.

With a bootloader, I'd have to wait a while after powering on to choose the OS.

[cbock]

So if I mess with a bootloader like GRUB or LILO in the mbr and had been running XP for months without a hitch. If the install of GRUB or LILO screws with the mbr, will FIXMBR restore the mbr to a point that XP loads without any problems as it did prior to the attempt? Or should I be looking for a way to back up and restore the mbr?

[CrashTestDummy9]

Originally posted by cbock
So if I mess with a bootloader like GRUB or LILO in the mbr and had been running XP for months without a hitch. If the install of GRUB or LILO screws with the mbr, will FIXMBR restore the mbr to a point that XP loads without any problems as it did prior to the attempt? Or should I be looking for a way to back up and restore the mbr? FIXMBR will get you back to a linux free MBR . Grub or LiLo will be gone and nothing but Windows will be seen unless you use a boot floppy to get into your Linux partitions .

[JohnT]

I've always used the "Lilo to mbr approach, but I couldn't get it to work with XP, so I used the NTLoader method (bootsect.lnx), which works quite well and doesn't change your mbr. You could use this or Loadlin without messing with your mbr.

[cbock]

OK. I'm feeling better about FIXMBR. Thanks.

I hadn't thought of using the NTloader. I've looked at loadlin but I would have to put that inside the mbr. I'll do some research on using the NTloader. I have not used it before. Thanks for the tip!

[JohnT]

Originally posted by cbock
OK. I'm feeling better about FIXMBR. Thanks.

I hadn't thought of using the NTloader. I've looked at loadlin but I would have to put that inside the mbr. I'll do some research on using the NTloader. I have not used it before. Thanks for the tip!

No, Loadlin goes in your C:\ directory.

[cbock]

http://www.linux.ncsu.edu/realmkit/usersguide-7.0/manualdual.html

As mentioned in the other post. This did it REAL easy, REAL quickly.

Thanks again JohnT!!