How much free space do you have on D: ?

You should install Ubuntu on its own partitions. The usual way to do that is to shrink D: to create "unpartitioned space" then install Ubuntu into the unpartitioned space (creating new partitions).

Assuming you have enough free space on D:, you should start inside Windows XP by defragmenting D:, then boot into any Linux liveCD (such as a Ubuntu install CD) and use the GUI partitioning tool to reduce the size of D: (which in Linux is probably called sda2, but you should be able to deduce its name by seeing the sizes and names of your partitions).

I don't recall the exact sequence of prompts when installing Ubuntu. I think there is a choice to use the entire disk. Be very careful not to choose that, because it would wipe out both C: and D:.

I think there is a choice to use the unpartitioned space, which is what you probably want (after you have created unpartitioned space by shrinking D:).

If you end up needing or wanting to specify the partitioning details for Ubuntu, I suggest you create an "extended" partition of all the space freed by shrinking D:, then create a single / partition for all of Ubuntu's files, using all but 2GB of the extended partition, then create a swap partition of about 2GB.

There is this...

http://apcmag.com/how_to_dual_boot_w...lled_first.htm

It is a bit old, but will give you an idea. Google will tell you more.

This linux live-cd can be of use with partitions. The Ubuntu partitioning tool can be confusing to some.

http://partedmagic.com/download.html

Hi,

you can split the windows d: drive partion in to two using paration mangic or some other partition managers without losting any data on your d: drive,

then create a linux partion while installing ubantu.

Thanks thorkelljarl and kamalmin for the suggestions. I have the latest Ubuntu iso, and that will take care of the partitioning, right?

Thanks. I have 100gb free space on D:, should be more after I do some cleanup + defrag. When you mentioned I need to "shrink" D:, that also means "to resize" it, right? I have my iso file on my flash disk. Would you suggest using it to resize my D: or can I also use GParted?

I guess I'll have to specify the partitioning details. I'm a bit confused about an extended partition. Perhaps like this?

| C: 75gb (xp)| D: 190gb (files) | E: 30gb (ubuntu) | 2gb swap |

Also if I may add, given that I'll have a separate partition for all my files, how much space should Ubuntu need? Thanks again.

You will not "see" the Ubuntu (ext4) partition from Windows... letters for partitions are a Windows thing: probably C: -> /dev/sda1 and D: -> /dev/sda2

GParted is found on Ubuntu LiveCD: just boot it and look in the "System" > "Administration" ("Gparted" can resize partitions without loosing any data on it, like "Partition Magic" or something like it, for use in XP)

another tip: 30GB for Ubuntu is fine (or even 15GB or 20GB), since you can see/mount the windows partitions from there (but the other way is not true: Windows will not see the Ubuntu partition)

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Right, I understand, thanks.

Great, I'll just use the live cd instead.So, am I right with my understanding of what johnsfine mentioned about an extended partition? Ignoring my drive labels, was the representation correct?

It's a shame I have these questions. I'm a programmer but this is my first time installing Linux and working with partitions and such. Even if I think I know what I have to do, I have to make sure I won't mess my computer up. Thanks again for the help people.

You have room for four...

An often used way to install linux is using three partitions,"swap", "/"(root), and "/home". Since you already have two partitions, you may partition the rest of the space as an extended partition on which you can have many logical partitions.

http://linux.about.com/cs/linux101/g...ded_partit.htm

linux has a different structure and terminology than Windows. The easiest way to learn what things are called is by using google.

http://linux.oneandoneis2.org/LNW.htm

You will soon find the "man" pages necessary.

http://linux.about.com/od/itl_guide/a/gdeitl24t01.htm

You might not need an extended partition. But using one anyway could simplify repartitioning at some future time if you wanted to try another distribution or version of Linux and wanted to install/test the new one before deleting the old one.

Without an extended partition, you are limited to a total of four partitions. If you don't have some hidden recovery or OEM partition, then you only need four. So you probably don't need an extended partition.

Many systems have a small hidden partition before C:, so you might have three partitions and only know about two of them. In that case adding two more partitions requires an extended partition.

An "extended" partition is a container for "logical" partitions. If you use an extended partition, you can have up to three "primary" partitions outside the extended partition and then you can have a large number of "logical" partitions inside the extended partition.

Other people will advise you to use three or more partitions for Ubuntu (/, /home and swap). I don't think separate partitions for / vs. /home is a good idea. If you do decide on more than two partitions for Ubuntu, that plan means you need an extended partition.

I think I get it now. Since 4 are the maximum primary partitions, one should have an extended partition with logical drives inside if he needs more than 4 partitions.

I think I may need more partitions. Would a separate partition for /data and /var be nice? I might use Ubuntu for [php] programming, though I'm not setting up a server.

A separate data partition would be a good idea. A partition for /var would be useful if you have a server as that is where files go in most distributions.

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Generally I don't think separate partitions are a good idea.

If you don't understand why a specific directory should be in a separate partition, you probably will do yourself no good by making it a separate partition.

linux is flexible...

You can partition and install linux in many ways. What you choose depends on what you want and need. If you are going to dual-boot for the first time, you can install linux with the number and kinds of partitions that the linux distributions suggests.

Your problem is the danger of damaging your Windows installation by having a linux partitioning tool overwrite it.

Your constraint is the limit of four primary partitions, but as explained, this can be avoided by making one of the four an extended partition.

If you are unsure, you might pick a linux distribution and google for it and installation. There are active forums for many flavors of linux with general information and specific help. Good Luck

Ok then. I guess I'll just do more research to find out what partitioning scheme best suits me. I learned a lot in this thread. I appreciate your time in helping me guys. This is a great forum indeed. Thanks to all who helped.

Well, I just found out through Disk Management that my D: is already a logical drive (inside an extended partition of course). Do I need to take another route or do something about it?

I'm not yet installing ubuntu by the way, I have to get my files backed up first. Thanks again.