i have deleted all partitions on with linux on my computer using windows disk management but i stupidly deleted the grub loader thing (or the [partition with it on) and linux was the default boot up. so now when i switch it on it just says grub 0.93 and a grub> prompt....how can i load into windows from here and how can i get rid of this all the grub loader stuff?????

thanks

andy

win9x--------> fdisk /mbr
win2000,XP----> from recovery console, fixmbr


lotsa threads with good explanations try the search box

i tried typing those and it doesnt recognise the command. when i boot it just says :

GRUB version 0.93 (639k lower / 260352K upper memory)

[minimal BASH-like line editing is supported. for the first word, TAB lists possible command completions. Anywhere else TAB lists the possible completions of a device/filename.]

i was using RH9. all i want to do is get rid of this and linux altoether on this machine so i can just boot into the windows partition as usual. i dont quite understand what happened, in windows i deleted the partitions and the reformatted them as fat32, and everything was fine until i rebooted

i do not have a windows cd by the way

Any help would be great thanks

andy

Andy,

I have read most of your other posts on other topics and I am getting the idea that you must do things on impulse. The jump to Linux was a good one. Perhaps Red Hat was a bad start, as RPMs seem to cause problems soon out of the gates. Perhaps you can give it another go sometime with a boxed set with a manual in it.

Here is what you do to get your windows back. I am gonna answer for both types of fixes, since I don't know what version of Windows you have. If you do as I tell you to, it will probably bring your Windows back:

1: If its Windows 95,98,98SE,ME do this ---

Get someone who is nice with windows 98, 98SE, or ME to make you a recovery floppy. That can be done in the control panel under add/remove programs, I believe. Once that is made, you have all you need.

Boot your computer with the floppy in the drive (be sure that your boot sequence in your BIOS is set to boot from floppy before the hard drive). Let it boot to the A: prompt. When done, type "fdisk /mbr". Remember the space before the "/" switch. Then remove the floppy and reboot your machine. You should be back to Win98 or whatever.

2: If you have Windows 2000 or XP, you'll be best served by borrowing a friend's installation cd and booting from it (choose 'boot from cd' when prompted). The same rule applied to BIOS settings: set it to boot from the CD before the HD. Let it churn along and get itself to the 'choose what to do' screen (about 5 minutes on my P-III 700). You'll at that point have the option to install Windows, upgrade Windows, or enter the recovery console. Choose the recovery console. Let it boot into it. You'll be presented with an A: prompt. Type "fixmbr". Reboot. You should be back in Windows. If that doesn't work, you've got more than bootloader problems.

The above steps are well documented on the web. A quick google search with even general search terms will give you results enough to keep you reading for days. I am sure there are other threads on this site as well that describe the procedure (regardless of whether its not a Linux-related question). Good luck

BTW: If you get back into WIndows, write down your product ID# and keep it in a safe place. Then, you might consider checking out prices on the cd for your OS. Ebay has a lot of sales on Windows disks constantly. You'd be well served to have one in case you ever hose your system. Sorry to see you give up on Linux. Perhaps after reading the manual for your distro of choice, you'll have a better handle on what to do if something goes wrong. Listen to the Boy Scouts and "be prepared"

Thankyou very much i will try this asap you are right i defintely need to stop doing things like this on impulse! dont worry though i havent given up on linux, just i needed the space on my laptop, i have a spare laptop that i intend to make 100% linux and have linux on secondary HD's at work do u think it would be best to use a different distribution like SUSE or MANDRAKE or something?

many thanks and fingers crossed

thanks

andy

Glad to see that you didn't get bit too hard by the mad penguin. Honestly, I feel most at home in Debian and Mandrake, for different reasons (I can't comment on SUSE since I haven't installed it, but they will be going places - if you like KDE, theirs is the best distro to go with, since they seem to be the major financial sponsor). Mandrake is compiled for pentium or faster, so it is a bit more responsive than an i386 install. It has great tools as well, such as Mandrake Control Center. Its actually possible to configure a network, printers, and new hardware, as well as user and group permissions in a GUI that doesn't make you click through 50 different wizard windows. Most RPMs out there will usually install on Mandrake, although they have some compiled on Mandrake systems that run a bit better. There is URPMI, which is Mandrake's attempt to resolve dependancies. Instead of rpm this and rpm that and rpm the other thing, you hit urpmi packagename and it even fetches most dependancies.

Debian is another story because of, mainly, apt-get. If you want a package installed, you type apt-get install packageX and it installs it with dependancies, all ready for use. Very rarely do you break your system. The default installs (what NetBSD calls 'canned distributions'LOL) sometimes have too many packages that do the same thing, so its easier to install them 'by the each'. Currently, I am trying to install Gentoo on my machine. Got the system there but the bootloader is being stubborn, so I am relegated to Windows XP for a little bit until I figure out the parameters (which I will write an unfficial mini-howto forwhen I figure it out). Perhaps that would be the new recommendation. Although its from source, their instructions are the most lucid that I have seen.

If you wanna see a good hardware detection routine, get a coppy if Knoppix, Gnoppix, Mepis, or Damn Small Linux. You'll be amazed at these. They are all Debian-based live cd's. A great way to get another feel for Linux. If you like them, they'll install to your hard drive easily. Wait until the 2.6 kernel comes as default on a distro. That'll be a good one. Many improvements there.