Hello,

I have two laptops with only Linux installed. Laptop1 has Knopixx STD and Laptop2 has Fedora installed. I want to format both laptops, partition the drive, and install Linux and Windows XP Professional (dual boot). The computers will later be networked with a server so I can play around with Samba.

Unfortunately, I'm having a helluva time removing Linux. I created a boot disk on laptop2 to remove Fedora. Whenever I reboot the machine, it loads vmlinuz but then goes directly to the graphical login screen. I can press 'c' for the GRUB command line. At this point I am unsure what command I would use to format the hard drive. Do you have any suggestions?

Also, how willl formatting the computer through Linux affect NTFS?

Thank you for your help,

Laura

just start the OS install and do the partitioning/formatting then...

oh, and at this point, ntfs is essentially read only from within linux.

If you want to be able to read and write to your XP install, then create and install it on a FAT32/Vfat partition. Same is true going the other way (windows wont be able to read linux if it is on a Reiser or EXT3 partition).

Can I format a hard drive with Linux on it using a Win XP disc? I thought I had to format Linux using either Partition Magic or a Linux boot disk, create my paritions, and then begin installing Windows and Linux.

Linux (Fedora) boots directly into the graphical environment. If I use the boot disk I have made then I get a prompt that looks like this:

boot#
boot# ls

(this lists vmlinuz and some other files on the boot disk)

Where to go from here to format the hard drive? I'm too cheap to buy Parition Magic.



Thank you for the advice on the file system, I'll install xp in fat 32..

start the windows xp install

when you get to partitioning, it will show your linux partitions as UNKNOWN

delete them (Assuming you have all your data saved elsewhere, this is a no turning back step)

now create a fat32 partition and instruct windows XP to install on it. VERY IMP dont use all of the drive... leave half (or whatever amount of space you want to allocate to linux) as free space... dont worry about creating the linux partitions now

finish windows XP install and reboot

start linux install

using whatever util comes with the distro or fdisk, or cfdisk, create your linux partitions in the FREEE SPACE you left in the win xp install during the linux install - most distros allow this to be very easily configured.

when the install asks where to install the boot loader (grub reccomended), chose MBR

good luck

oopps.... and if you get errors after rebooting from the windows XP install, you may have to boot to the windows disk, get to the recovery console and use the FIXMBR and FIXBOOT options....

the linux install will blow these away later, but as I recall XP requires a couple of reboots just to finish it's install. you will need the windows boot loader for those few reboots.

Thank you! You rock. I'll give it a try tonight.


L

finally, to simplify matters, I would only create two linux partitions...

/

partition - holding all free space except the amout allocated to swap. use fat32 if your distro supports it

/swap

partition - about a gig or equal to your ram - format type is swap

werd. good luck.