I keep having problems with booting WinXP, as soon as I install Linux with LILO each time I boot windows it says "NTLDR missing".

If anyone of you guys managed to get WinXP and Linux fine please tell me what partition you've got Linux and WinXP on, what you've installed first, where you've installed LILO, what's in your lilo.conf etc... and any info that could be useful.

I REALLY NEED HELP!!

Thanks.

I dual boot, I installed windwows first (to get it's boot sector thing in place) and then I installed Linux (or lilo) after that. I use the NT boot manager to choose winme or winxp, and lilo to choose the linux install or the NT bootmanager.

Just try reinstalling the XP bootsector, boot from the CD and repair the install, FIXBOOT is the recovery console command. And then boot linux 8 off the CD and choose to boot an installed system then login as root and type lilo to try the lilo install.


Here's how my lilo.conf looks...

disk = /dev/hda
bios = 0x80
disk = /dev/hdd
bios = 0x81
disk = /dev/sda
bios = 0x82
boot = /dev/hda
vga = 769
read-only
menu-scheme = Wg:kw:Wg:Wg
lba32
prompt
timeout = 80
message = /boot/message

image = /boot/vmlinuz
label = linux
root = /dev/sda2
initrd = /boot/initrd

other = /dev/hda1
label = windows

image = /boot/memtest.bin
label = memtest86

On the up side, I have both xp and suse 8.0 (personal) running.

On the down side, I have discovered that despite surfing around the net on windows boxes for the last 5 years or so, I am a thick twat when it comes to computers and you could probably write my entire IT knowledge on the back of a postage stamp!!!

When I put the suse disc in, it asked me questions, I took it out when it told me to etc etc etc.

If I don't disable the on board sound chip, the suse hangs on boot and its a case of that magical reset button strikes again, also, it doesn't like the usb dsl modem I use (my brother spent about 4 hours configuring it last night - but lost me after about the third keystroke though he did get the modem running under the linux).

So after all that waffle, and having a look at my hard disc etc, the windows seems to be on the first bit of the disc and the suse says that is /dev/hda1 it then shows that the linux is on hda7, as far as I can work out the lilo has been put on the first bit and bruv seems to have set it to offer me a default of the beasts' OS.

the only time that i've managed to do anything with the linux that seemed to do anything was when I had to stick the install disc back in to get it to boot up so I could disable the sound card/chip/whatever it is that does the noise thing.

Sorry, that's no help really is it.

I'll get me coat!!

Ha it's alright mate, at least I like your story, it did make me laugh.

Check it out massive, wicked, boyakasha the expert bigjohn's in the place!!! innit!

ok fatdog, I'll try that and come back to you if it still doesn't work.
I'm warning you, if it doesn't work I won't send you the CDs, nah only joking

Good luck then, but if you insult my handle again I'll come over to belgium and kick your backside

Hey fatdog your Linux is installed on sda2, that means it's on a SCSI or RAID controller ay? Do you know what the command is to load the installation so that it asks for the drivers?
And what is the extention for a driver file?

Fortunately for me the setup autodetected my SCSI controller.

I say 'fortunately' because I don't know how to install one at all!

But I think that you need to load a module for your SCSI card... maybe the command modprobe does this???

I found this thread in which the person also got a "NTLR missing" error. He was using win2k. Maybe this will work for xp.
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...=NTLDR+missing

don't worry it's all fine now, it's jsut that SuSE installation set the windows partition to hda2 instead of hda1. Now I know a bit more about Linux and I understand it better so I just edited the lilo.conf file and it's all fine.
thanks for the help anyway.

Glad you got it working.

Yep thanks anyway mate.