Quote:
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Originally Posted by Jun87
Fedora installation (DVD) ran without any problems. However I chose not to install grub, because It would have messed up the MBR. Right?
But now I can't boot off my HD.
How do I get it to boot Fedora?
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Hello Jun87,
Some Generalities
GRUB can be installed either in the master boot record of the hard drive (usually the one set to boot from BIOS) or it can be installed in the first sector of the Linux boot partition. But it has to be installed somewhere for the Linux system to boot. And GRUB itself has to be booted somehow. Once installed somewhere, GRUB can be booted directly by BIOS, or by another system's boot loader, a boot floppy, a boot CD. Some examples of the basic sequence of events:
Code:
How XP boots (for comparison):
BIOS -> MBR boot code -> Volume Boot Record -> NTLoader -> XP starts
boot code
GRUB in MBR:
BIOS -> GRUB stage1 -> GRUB stage1.5 -> GRUB stage2 -> Linux starts
in the MBR in the DOS in /boot
Compat. Area
(sometimes)
GRUB in first sector of Linux
boot partition booted by NTLoader:
BIOS -> MBR boot code -> Volume Boot Record -> NTloader -> Copy of GRUB
boot code stage1 in the
XP partition
-> GRUB stage2 -> Linux starts
A Little More Specific for Your Case
You are concerned about GRUB being installed in the internal drive's master boot record. Many people are. And for Dell laptops with the Dell PC Restore feature, that can be ruined by installing GRUB in the MBR. Some alternatives to avoid installing GRUB in the MBR of your laptop's internal drive...
1. You can install GRUB in the master boot record of your USB drive if it is BIOS recognized and can be selected to be the boot device in your laptop. Many laptops allow you select other boot devices for a moment during their boot splash screen. Or if not that, you could enter the BIOS setup program to manually set the USB to boot when you want to boot the Linux system installed there. A little trouble, but still workable.
2. You can install GRUB in the first sector of the Linux boot partition on the USB drive and have the XP boot loader, a floppy, or a CD launch it.
Really Specific
To install GRUB in the USB's MBR in order to select it to boot at start up, you can use the
Change Drive Order option after selecting
Configure advanced boot loader options during installation. That would allow you to to select other drives besides your internal drive for installing GRUB in their MBR. Be very careful with that since your laptop's internal drive is running. A foul up or misunderstanding can install GRUB in its MBR unintentionally.
Another way to do that same thing with a margin of safety is to remove the laptop internal drive while you install Fedora to the external drive and GRUB into its MBR. Most laptop drives are simple to remove nowadays. You can read how a guy did this very successfully in
another thread.
To install to the first sector of the Linux boot partition for booting with the XP boot loader, a floppy or a CD, watch for and select
Configure advanced boot loader options during installation. On the next page, select
Install Boot Loader record on: /dev/sd_ first sector of boot partition. You can read about how I configure the XP boot loader to boot GRUB in
another thread. Regarding creating a boot floppy or CD, more on that later if necessary.
Conclusion
Some other people will have other ideas that you may like better than mine. For example, someone will probably talk about just installing GRUB without reinstalling Fedora again. I will let them talk you through that. Think about the options, do a little checking around, make a decision. If you have questions or need help, come back to this thread and post. Best wishes for now.
Installing/Booting Fedora on USB HD with Presario laptop
