Trying to install XP over a Linux Feodra 10
 

I've recently installed linux on my computer using the fedora 10 core and im not too happy with it. i want to go back to windows but i have tried looking up different ways to install XP again. Ive read quite a few things from partitioning the system through terminal to using windows 95 to partition the system and do it. i dont have the money to but a windows 95 CD software. can someone who knows how to do it please tell me how to.
i would really appreciate your time and help
:newbie:

use the free "gparted live cd" to reformat the drive to ntfs .
it is a very well known problem with the xp install cd -- it dies when it finds something that is NOT Microsoft.

how would i go about runnin that on my current fedora 10 os?

You can download GParted here: http://gparted.sourceforge.net/download.php

It's a 95MB iso file. After downloading, burn to CD as an image file, set computer to boot from CDROM, put the CD in the drive and go.

Did you install Fedora over your previous xp or do you have a dual-boot system?

Don't know what partition manager Fedora uses, you might look for something under system files.

from what i remember it is "partinage" a terminal only program that is on the install dvd . The fedora live cd ?? but should be there .

XP Does Partitioning
 

As soon as you put your XP CD in the first thing it asks you is about partitioning, It has its own partitioner -- no GUI like GParted or Partition Magic -- but it will get the job done. Just pay attention to the screens as the default time for each selection is rather short. Again, XP can partition the whole hard drive for you. Also remember that if you have a SATA Hard drive you will have to F2 into your BIOS and change the hard drive settings from AHCI to Compatibility mode or XP will not be able to 'see' your hard drive. Once you install it you have to fetch the right driver for it and install that before you head back into your BIOS and change it back to AHCI mode.
Good luck and too bad you didn't/t get to know Fedora better.
oldbie

JJCB
if the xp install cd sees a ext3 partition as the mbr and/or a LVM as the disk format . it crashes and dies ." tilt "
the dumb xp cd has no idea about what to do with NON MS partitions .

i have a single hard drive and installed fedora over my old xp system.

Me too, I think that GParted is a good solution. With this, you can delete the partitions and create a new one in ntfs, or just delete them and leave the xp installer to make it as it likes.

GParted is even in some Linux livecds, like Knoppix and Ubuntu, as well as in various rescue cds. I don't know if this is true for the Fedora dvd.

I think you can't buy any win95 cd anymore, because it isn't even supported by ms since very long. In any case, you don't need it.

Really silly behaviour!

i burned the gparted to a cd and put it in my system and ran the default setup. it didnt work for some reason. what do i do now?

I hope you did burn the ISO file as "image", not just data cd.

There is no setup, it boots and runs just from the cd.
If the default boot doesn't work, you can choose the alternate boot option, and then select the VESA graphics driver with a resolution 1024x768 or 800x600. It works on most systems.

However, it is safer to check the md5sum of the ISO file. A bad download wouldn't work.

i tried to run the gparted cd again. i went thru some of the setup and this came up

OK. This is because it doesn't detect well the graphics adapter. So, you have to enter the command
forcevideo
or
Forcevideo
in the command line.

If it doesn't work, you can try
sudo forcevideo
or
sudo Forcevideo

Older versions needed a capital F. Newer versions needed sudo before, I don't know the exact version you use.

Then, you can select the graphics driver and resolution.

Just Use the XP install disk
 

What you must do is remove grub from the boot sector.

Boot from the XP install CD and select recovery console. When you get to the c: prompt type FIXMBR - assuming you only have one hard disk. This will rewrite the master boot record to a Windows one. Then when installing windows remove all current partitions and create a new one in the free space.

If needed any Linux Live CD will have gparted installed, as they use it for the optional install. Grab an Ubuntu disk off a magazine cover, or just use the Fedora 10 disk you used to install in the first place. Open a terminal and type sudo gparted. I think Fedora uses root accounts, you may need to open a root terminal rather than use sudo.

good luck.

Actually, not so
 

Just let XP run wild over the entire disc as it will re-format it automatically regardless of what format it is in or whether there are partitions or logical volumes there now. I know as I've done this half a dozen times over the last year. That will establish a new parttion table and setup a new MBR with a standard disk signature. This is also true with installing Vista or Windows 7.

Howevwer if you are unsure and want the GUI, as some of the other fellows stated, virtually any Linux Live disk with the desktop install feature runs an embedded form of GParted in it and that will serve you well. Fedora has it.

I'm off to install Solaris 10 on an extended partition and will need your prayers! Good luck to you all.
JJCB ;)