I am running XP on a sata 80gb hd. I have installed 7.10 on a separate ide 40gb hd. When I get to the partitioning window, I choose the option "Guided .use entire disk" and select the 40gb hd. When installation is completed, my PC reboots in XP. No GRUB menu. I know that 7.10 is on the 40gb hd, because Windows can't read it anymore, even though it is detected by the device manager.
What am I doing wrong. I've tried F8 and the only option is XP, and the bios won't let me choose the 40gb hd to boot from. Nonetheless, the last two options are not what I am after. I would like to use GRUB.
Any suggestions ?
I have just solved my problem. I was able to boot from 40gb in the bios boot menu and have just set the boot manager in 7.10.
Thanks anyway. I might still need your help at a later time.

Welcome to LQ!

Just to explain what happened: In order to use GRUB for the whole system, you'd have to use the MBR (master boot record) of the first harddrive, which originally was the WinDoze drive; the setting in BIOS is a possibility to determine which one's the "first", thus you've solved the problem by correcting the boot order. Good thinking!

The next time you are in the same situation, don't simply put GRUB on a "harddrive" (that'd result in GRUB sitting there and waiting to be addressed by some other boot manager) or any "MBR" but into the "MBR of the first harddrive". I hope Ubuntu really lets you do that (it's a long time since I had to do an actual installation - but I remember setting up a system that way without a hitch somewhere around Breezy).

M.