i just installed mandrake 10 and i want to be able to install windows xp and boot into that or have a choice menu. how would i go about doing that? please be as decriptive as possible and im sorry if this is already asked i looked and couldnt find anything informitve enough for my newbie-nes.

i suggest you install first windows xp (i'm not sure with NTFS partition, because i have a FAT32 since xp won't install here) and drive into your mandrake installation and let mandrake do the job.

partition your hd and leave a space for linux
install your xp
install mandrake
mandrake will be able to use the free space

hope it'll help yah

any way to stop windows being evil and taking over the master boot record?

there are programmes out there where they take over your boot so you controll the boot via the boot programme its better as if you have a partion you just identify the OS and then it boots without the hassle of boot options etc.

take my few words: install xp first (i'm not pretty sure, but maybe you can format it in FAT32??) before installing your mandrake

where have u installed ur LINUX first????

u can install XP afterwards also,this will blow off ur grub or lilo,but both if these can be brought again....

Actually you CAN install linux first and then Windows XP later. Windows doesn't edit the MBR. It only edits the boot signature of the ntfs partition, then it sets the ntfs partition as active in the MBR. So all you have to do is...

install linux first

install windows second

go back and make linux the active partition again

add windows to the linux boot loader menu

and you've got it!

i said simple people im not good at this shit im not stupid but i need intructions.

The simplest way is really to install XP first, then use some user-friendy partition manager like Partition Magic (or get something for free) to create a FAT32 partition on your harddrive - if you plan on saving stuff from Linux that you wanna use in Windows too (With NTFS you can only read, not save). My harddrive is partioned as follows: Windows 2000 (FAT32/NTFS), data disk (FAT32), Linux (EXT3) and SWAP. Some may argue it is not the best (smartest) thing in the world but it sure works for me. I save all my data onto the "data" partition so I can access it from both Win and Lin. After your XP is installed and hard drive partitioned, install your favorite distro.
This I think is the simplest way .... meaning that you do not need to fool around with bootloaders and what not when you install XP after Linux.
But there is plenty of info on the web and on LQ as well on getting your bootloader to work after your windows installation disrupts it. Good luck

I've installed linux (Mandrake 10) under my primary master drive and then tried to install WindowsXP and it gives me an error

To install WindowsXP in the partition you selected,
setup must write some startup files to the following disk
76317 MB Disk 0 id Ido on Bus 0 on atapi [MBR]
However, this disk does not contain a WindowsXP-Compatable partition,
to continue installing WindowsXP, return to the partition section
screen and create a Windows-XP compatible partition on the disk
share. If their is no free space on the disk, delete an existing
partition, and then create a new one.
to return to the partition section screen, press enter
(I copied that by hand)

Well it's trying to write on my primary master drive, which contains linux.
Windows says it needs at least 1015MB to install.
I've tried switching which one is primary and which one is secondary, but linux won't boot, if I do that.
So I took out my linux drive and set the other drive as master, then WindowsXP wold install.(except it now says my CD disk is bad(I had slammed it in the drive and the disk still sticking out)(Windows is so frustrating)I'll see I can get another disk)

If your Linux is on a separate drive see if you can take it out, set the other drive to master then install windows onto that drive. Then install the other dive. See if that works. You may have to change which drives you boot from using the BIOS.