dual booting

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i'm not too sure if i have put this in the right forum but hear goes. i saw on the internet that the linux o/s is free well anyway i have windows on my c: drive (h/d) and would like to put linux on my d: drive (h/d) but i don't want to reformat my h/d's. there is folders on my d: drive (h/d) which i can put onto my c: drive (h/d). can anybody tell me if this can be done. i just would like to see what linux is like but i don't want any conflicts with both operating systems. can this be done.



nigel.

EDIT (J): Moved to Linux Discussion Forum.

 

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No problem mate. As a basic guide move whatever you have on the d: to the c: or backup. You might want to delete the d: partition so Linux detects this as free space. Then install away. Maybe someone else (Phoenix) can give you more details.

Which distro will you be using?

 

if you just want to mess around a bit, i would reccommed getting hold of the boot cd thingys. i have a few that i got from some of the linux mags.they're quite cool, you basically boot to the cd, and linux runs. you get the benefit of working with linux (albeit in a limited fashion) without having to repartition, etc. if you like the distro, you can then look at installing - which i think those cd's allow you to do as well!

Fergal

 

thanks guys,
god i'm sounding american, i'm just an englishman living in the usa. just one more question do i need a boot up disk to install linux and is there a free version of red hat which i think is linux. also what do you think of lindows is there a free version. i know microsoft where not too happy about lindows, maybe because of the name sounding like windows.

 

OK there is a distro called Knoppix, current version is 3.4. Another free one is Fedora (Red Hat based I think)but you have to install this. For more info check out the Linux forum and Lab Partners.

Fedora
Knoppix

 

ok guy's, i need help downloaded it, that was a pain. it said it was an iso but was winrar, so i open it and then put it onto disk. i know i did something wrong.went into the bios tried to change it so that cdrom boots first. but it just booted into windows. been at this all morning. any ideas. strange thing was that it did'nt transfer all the files onto disc. ok does anyone know a site that i can get it so that it is an iso image. have i done something wrong in the bios. god i feel dum.

 

OK, first of all which did you download? Knoppix is a one iso dl at around 706 MB and Fedora is 3 iso dl's, all between 615 and 680 MB.

One problem I can think of (I take it you have WinRAR) is that when you downloaded the iso you clicked on open the file instead of save. When you save the file you then use whichever cd burning program you have to burn a cd from an image file. For example, I used Nero. Download the iso file and save. Open Nero Burning ROM, go to Recorder->Burn Image, navigate to where the iso file is and follow the instructions from there. With Easy CD Creator you go to File->New Project from image (I think) and basically do the same thing; you also need to select which file type to look for as the default is *.cif (I think).

It's also a good idea to check the MD5sum for each image file to make sure it's okay. Use a program called MD5Summer (search on C-Net or similar) and download the md5 files for each distro that you have.

Hope this helps a little. Let us know if you need anything else.

 

Nigel, was it a .iso file or a .rar file? seems you have WinRAR to manage ISO files (like it does with zip files) and thought it was a winrar file when infact its still an ISO, removing the contents and burning them to disk will not make the disk bootable, you need to burn the 'image' of the disk, like stamping it directly to a blank CD, this will maintain the CDs boot sector and information

that might be why it failed to boot

 

ok thanks, i have uninstalled winrar, don't use it that much anyway. need to download the linux again. do you know where would be a good site to download it from and what file to download. would like to put it on one disc.
know when i go into the bios and go to the boot part should i change it so that cdrom boots first then hard drives. i can not see any other way of getting it to boot from the cdrom first.
once it is installed on my second hard drive i need to get it to boot into the second hard drive and not into the first hard drive as that has windows xp on it.
please help this is driving me mad a bit, the bios is phonix and the computer is a hp with a 1.8g intell processor. one site said you need a 2.4 processor, that can't be right. or could it.

 

A few helpful links:

PC911

Dual boot Windows and Linux

Dual boot Windows and LinuxII

And just what the heck is wrong with sounding like an American???


EDIT:

Downloading linux?

LinuxISO.org

Facts about downloading Linux

I prefer disks just to avoid the hassles of downloading but to each their own. Really cheap disks available on the Internet at places such as:

OSHeaven

 

Oh...and I found this. Look under Tip of the Month: Dual Boot wiith Lilo.

 

thanks tripewire45,

i'm downloading susie 9.1 version. also i downloaded the boot.iso file, do you think i need that. would you know if susie 9.1 has a boot loader in it. nothing wrong being american at all, i'm married to one and she's great.

 

I was just teasing you about the "American" thing. I get it all the time around here. No worries. Actually, the Linux/Unix forum is probably the better place to ask Linux type questions. While dual booting a computer is argueably a hardware issue, there is also a significant os factor, especially involving the boot loader, especially whether you use the Windows bootloader (boot.ini) or a Linux boot loader (grub or lilo). You might want to puruse some of the Linux "how to" sites for a faster response. Dual booting Windows and Linux is pretty common for those of us who regularly use Windows but want some Linux experience.

As far as SuSe (pronounced "susie") 9.1, it's supposed to be a good version of the distro although many newbies prefer Mandrake or Red Hat.

 

thanks for your help

 

Suse9.1 is probably not your best bet for a first time download
unless your gettign the 'live' cd

suses boot.iso is a tiny iso that starts the ftp installation (gets you to the point you can connect to the net then downloads all the other files, can take an entire night to do) not really advisable for your first test distro as a screw up involves another night of bandwidth hogging
go for something different is my recomendation

 

My suggestion would be to get Knoppix 3.4 and take it for a test drive, see how you like it. That way you don't have to worry about installing anything yet.

 

i installed susu version, it's ok but i think i will get rid of it and try another one i saw one from sot what do you think. or would red hat be better.

 

Why don't you try Nugget's suggestion first...that way you can try it on for size without having to commit. JMHO.

 

I agree with Trip and Nugg here - try the live CD option first.

I have Knoppix which I goose around with. I also have Suse 9(ish) and a Red Hat distro which I promise I will eventually get around to playing with. Only thing I have noticed with Knoppix so far is that it can be a bit picky about what hardware is in your PC. I mean, it runs fine on my kid's PC, but aint happy about mine, and wont display properly - I believe it is trial and error (until I'm told otherwise )

 

I found an article on Kloppix at Linux Magazine that I thought might be helpful.