I am new to Linux and would like to know what common issues exist w/ most versions of Linux when they co-exist with another operating system on the same machine.

I don't want to know issues that are operating system specific (e.g. -> Linux & Windows XP), just one's that may appear with any OS.

Any help would be much appreciated.

As far as I know, none. If you dual boot Linux and another OS, they are each seperate entities. When Linux is running, the other OS is not. When the other OS is running, Linux is not.

You can still break your other OS if you mess up partition it's on, although this is common sense.

Thanks for your help but there has to be some issues since I am trying to answer this question for a project at school. Since this is the question, there MUST be at least a couple common issues because my teacher would definitely not accept your reply as the answer.

Do not, however, think that I am cheating on my assignment, since I am suppose to find outside sources to answer my questions.

Thanks anyways

Googling for "dual boot" or "multi boot" should give you some ideas.

If it's a school project, then you've to search a bit, google or even Linux questions forums (there's a search button) for peoples dual booting their systems and having problems. It really is that simple. Here is an example:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/history/270119

There can be many problems: boot loader, partition table, file system, crappy hardware... most likely it is more of an user fault then actually a "dual boot problem".

Thanks for all your help.

Any more input would be greatly appreciated.

None of these are actual issues though. If the user overwrites his old bootloader configuration, is that an issue, or stupidity on the user's part?

gfrair, if these are the types of "issues" you are looking for: Messing up your boot loader configuration & forgetting your boot loader password, not having the knowledge to partition your system, not setting up swap space correctly, etc...

No, unfortunately those aren't the types of issues I'm searching for. I'm looking for common issues that may exist simply because there are 2 or more operating systems on the same machine (one of which being Linux).

If a bootloader problem occurs because Linux is installed first or second, that could be a common problem, but user caused errors aren't what I'm looking for.

Thanks,

Good luck, but you probably won't find any. Basically, your question is almost the same as asking "Are there any issues that could occur if I run Linux on my PC in London and Mac OS X on my home PC?"

They are seperate entities. Granted, the files are on the same physical hard drive, so messing up your hard drive by turning off your computer improperly could potentially affect the other operating system, but again, that's user caused.

The only issue is 'user stupidity'. Basically, users think their machine is indestructible and no matter what they do, there is always a simple way to fix it. All the 'issues' spread from this.

But as others have said, there are no real issues with it, as they are totally seperate.

By the way, welcome to LQ!

Thanks you all very much for your support, this has helped vastly in answering my question. Thanks as well bornhj for the warm welcome.

Now for a problem encountered when Linux is one of the operating systems on a multi-boot system:

I have encountered one problem. This is not just a Linux problem, but also a FreeBSD problem. Oh, wait! Its actually a Windows XP problem! Now that I've been mean to MS, I'll tell you what it is...

I have encountered this single problem. Occasionally, when installing a Linux distribution (usually one that should have not been released as even beta without more tests), the Windows boot complains about a missing file. Usually popping in the CD and restoring the bootloader via recovery console is enough to satisfy this problem (fixboot,fixmbr). However, when GRUB (or FreeBSD's bootloader) is installed, the Windows XP disk won't load past the "checking your hardware" screen, remaining there with, what I can only surmise is, an I/O error, as the disk spins down and the HD light stays on bright, forcing a hard reboot. The only way around this is to rewrite the bootsector with a DOS or Win9x boot disk, using fdisk. I haven't found this problem with LILO.

Its a rare problem, but worth mentioning, as this happens under certain circumstances (doesn't seem to be specific to any drive controller, motherboard, or drive).

Aside, why does everyone have this aversion to helping someone with their homework? I see these kind of "you're on your own, you lazy bum" answers all the time. Its kinda rude. Remember that if someone is truly being lazy then it will bite them later. Eveyone is the captain of their ship. If they want to head out to sea without charts, its their fault if they crash on a reef. So it is with school. If you slide through on ssomeone else's coattails, you're gonna be useless when you graduate. Employers will see through you and you'll be unemployed with a big debt from your school.

And, hey, this is actually a good question that might bring up some important issues that may get addressed due to its exposure.

If you reread the answers you will see that there are a few pointers to how to go about answering the very general question. Helping, okay. Doing, no.

Are you refering to the NTLDR Missing error in your post, vectordrake? That can be a nasty one.

Sometimes that's the file. It's been a long time since the "missing HAL.DLL" problem arose, but its usually one of three files that disappear. I've ranted about this before a few times. I think its just a protectionist measure Microsoft introduced in later versions, but maybe I'm being paranoid. Nevertheless, its a problem that comes up and it needs an unorthodox solution (what new PC comes with a Win98 boot disk as a precaution? NONE DO!!!!! Why should they?)

The next time I come across this, though, I'm gonna try to fix it with either astrumi or RIP, because there's gotta be a better way. This problem doesn't really bother me, as I've done the reading (days of it, as there's nothing out there in it) and found what works. I don't want others to go through that when its a quick fix. Its a real show stopper for anyone who doesn't know what to do when their Windows disk refuses to load.