Another bsd noob here. I've experimented with pc-bsd in a virtualbox for a week or so and have come to kind of like it. I wanted to install it on my os hard drive in the free space at the end of the drive. My drive is partitioned like this from beginning to end:

[m$/slackware/buntu/mandriva/_freespace_]

The m$ partition and the freespace are both about the same size. My first attempt at installing pc-bsd resulted in overwriting the m$ partition when I thought I was installing in the _freespace_ area. Using the gui os installer, it looks like it sees only the first partition on the drive - I don't see any way to select the freespace at the end of the drive. For now, I put m$ at the end of the drive where the freespace was, and left bsd at the front of the drive, but I would like to swap those two if I can -

My question: is there anyway to get pc-bsd to install in freespace anywhere other than the front of the drive ? I'm using fibonacci.

PC-BSD is based on FreeBSD, and hence the same restrictions apply. Typically when you install Windoze, it'll create a single primary partition and partition the remaining space as logical partitions. If this is the case, you can choose one of three paths:

1) recreate the logical partitions as primary partitions, reinstalling the other OS's. (Note: on x86/x86_64 you can only have 4 primary partitions, so you'd have to lose one of the Linux distros if you're running one of those architectures...alternatively you could create 5 partitions (3 primary, 2 logical), and install two of your Linux distros to logical partitions).

2) install Windoze to the last logical partition and install PC-BSD to the primary partition.

3) Purchase another hard drive, and use a primary partition on it for PC-BSD.

Thanks Rocket - as I said, I'm a noob - no experience with any bsd, not just pc-bsd. I guess what you're saying echos what I just found on the official pc-bsd forum:
-----
0/ PC-BSD requires a primary partition
1/ Installing PC-BSD into a primary partition, requires one to already be prepared for use.
-----

With that in mind, I should be able to put m$ back at the front of the drive where it was in the first partition(primary), and then use m$ or slackware to crate a new primary partition at the end of the drive so pc-bsd will have a place to go besides overwriting m$. This should work (do you agree?) since all of my *ux installs, except slackware, are sitting on extended logical partitions. Once I put m$ back at the front of the drive it will look some thing like this:

m$(pri)_/_slackware(pri)_/_buntu(logical)_/_mandrake(logical)_/_empty(pri)

actually, it will look more like this since I am using a single swap partition for all of my *ux's, and each of the *ux's are installed on a single partition - the swap was created with the first ux install, slackware, then one partition added for buntu, then another for mandriva.

m$(pri)_/_slackware(pri)_/_linux-swap(log)_/_buntu(log)_/_mandrake(log)_/_empty(pri)

If I have a primary partition already sitting at the end of the drive, then will pc-bsd see it and let me choose it rather than wrecking m$ again ? Or will I be able to put another primary partition at the end of the drive ? I know the max is 4 but do they all have to go together at the front ? (can't remember)

I've actually never tried that. I typically partition with this layout:

primary/primary/primary/extended(logical/logical/logical/etc...)

I can't off the top of my head think of a reason it wouldn't work to place a primary after an extended (you can only have one extended partition to hold logical partitions, though). If it works, please let me know heh.

FreeBSD requires a primary partition type a5. Run fdisk from within
Slackware and create it. You can use Slackware install CD/DVD for this job.

Thanks fellas. Ill probably try to re-install stuff this weekend and let you know how it works. I think I remember now reading somewhere that bsd required a primary partition but since I had never actually used it, I had forgotten about it.

I re-installed my os's over the past weekend and it went pretty well. It's kind of like I wanted to have it with nt on the front, then bsd followed by the other *ux's...

_nt_/_bsd_/_(extended_Linux1_/_Linux2_/_Linux3_)

Now if I can get my rt73usb wireless going Ill be set to do updates.