Dual Boot Windows and Linux: Single and Multiple Hard Drives

The internet is full of technical articles, many of which are way too complicated for the average computer user who just wants to solve a simple problem. If you pay close attention, the internet is also a place where the "gurus" spend a lot of time yelling for help in discussion boards and forums. So dont feel bad, nobody has all the answers.

So you want to dual boot Windows and Linux on the same computerit is really quite easy. I only have enough room here to tell you the most common way to do this on a single hard drive or using multiple hard drives. Obviously then, there are many ways to get the job done, but there are some critical things you should know. Lets start with some critical information.

Windows and Linux: Same Hard Drive The windows operating system MUST occupy the master boot record (MBR). Linux, on the other hand does not have to. In this scenario, you must install windows first! After Windows has been successfully installed, then you can install Linux. This is critical! The Linux "boot loader" is called GRUB. When you install LinuxMAKE SURE YOU DO NOT INSTALL THE LINUX BOOT LOADER TO THE MBR.

Configure the Windows Boot Loader: A Two Step Process It is also possible to use GRUB to dual boot Windows and Linux on the same drive but this is a bit more complexthe Windows boot loader will get the job done. In the following commands, you will create a copy of the Linux boot sector and then save it in a file in the top level directory under Windows (C:).

Step 1: Linux From the shell in your Linux installation (boot from your installation disks): Execute the following shell command, replacing /dev/hda3 with the location of your Linux boot partition.

shell# dd if=/dev/hda3 of=/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1

Copy the new filebootsect.lnxto a floppy disk and reboot to Windows.

Step 2: Windows Copy bootsect.lnx to C: in Windows. Then execute the following command at the DOS prompt.

C:> attrib -H -R -S boot.ini

Edit boot.ini so that the first two lines are:

[boot loader] timeout=30

After the last line, add:

c:bootsect.lnx="Start Linux"

Thats it, you are done! Reboot your machine and you will see a menu allowing you to select either Windows or Linux. Congratulations.

Windows and Linux: Two Hard Drives This is also quite easy. In this case, you will boot to the Linux drive. We will add Windows to the Linux boot loader (i.e., GRUB). GRUB is my favorite boot loader.

Edit the /boot/grub/grub.conf file. One of the very first lines should contain:

timeout=30

After the last line add:

title Start Windows map (hd1) (hd0) map (hd0) (hd1) rootnoverify (hd1,0) makeactive chainloader +1

Reboot your machine to the Linux drive and you will see a menu allowing you to select between Linux or Windows. Nice work!

This article is obviously short and does not include any explanations of how these commands work. There are variations on what I have shown here depending on your hardware setup, but I believe that these are the most common and should get the job done nicely. I would be happy to direct you to additional resources if this does not work for you.

Copyright 2005 Majella.us

David Picella is a Family Nurse Practitioner and PhD Student at UW Milwaukee. You can find additional technichal resources for this article in the technology section at: http://www.majella.us

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Samsung G600 Mobile Phone Review

The Samsung g600 is a 5 mega pixel camera phone that comes in a slide model. The phone has a smooth finish and an easy slide mechanism. The phone has a large 2.2 inch high screen which allows the user to view 16 million colours on a high resolution TFT screen. The slide phone comes with smooth and easy to use external as well as internal keys. This phone has been created with the objective of out doing other camera phones. The phone focuses mainly on imaging, hence the 5 mega pixel camera. This cell phone is a quad band phone that provides worldwide roaming; it switches back and forth without the knowledge of the user. The phone comes with a memory of 55 Mbytes and provides the option of an extendable memory. The hand set is a solid piece which is compact; it weighs about 105 grams, the battery included.

The best feature of this phone is its camera; I repeat a 5 mega pixel camera. It is complete with image settings. The phone allows you the privilege of capturing the most beautiful scenes at any part of the day or night. The images on this phone are crystal clear. For those of you who don't care too much for still photos, you have the freedom to take a video footage too. Another interesting feature is it's built in FM radio and music player.

The cell phone also comes with an equally solid battery. The battery offers about 3.5 hours of talk time and about 300 hours of standby when fully charged. The Samsung g600 supports Bluetooth A2DP wireless connectivity. Hence one can transfer or receive files from any compatible Bluetooth devices. It also has a USB port which allows it to transfer or receive files from any compatible USB devices. The phone also offers a built in web browser which means one has access to the internet at all times and can surf the internet or download whatever you require.

Mark Hirst specializes in Nokia Mobile phone reviews, he runs numerous mobile phone Websites that let you compare mobile phone deals For more information on Sony Ericsson mobile phone reviews visit another of his blogs today.

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