I'm trying to set up qemu, but can't find enough information... I have a dual boot system, windows xp and archlinux. I mostly use linux but need xp for some things still... What I want to do is to be able to boot up my xp without shutting down my linux. But how??? All information I can find is how to make a clean install of windows from inside linux to an image file, but that's not for me...

Well, if that's not for you qemu isn't for you, either,
because that (and only that) is what it offers. The
"problem" is that qemu creates a PC with standard
hardware that WON'T match any real PC out there
(or at least I strongly doubt it would). And hence,
even *IF* you could present your actually installed
windows to the virtual PC as the OS Windows would
most likely refuse to boot.


Cheers,
Tink

ah, I see... is there any way to do what I need, with some other software, or do I have to re-think stuff over here?

I don't know of any product that will let you run the
pre-installed windows under a different OS. That
doesn't mean there isn't one, of course

One can (to a certain extent) make use of installed
products on the real XP using wine, I think.


Cheers,
Tink

yes, I know about wine, which is a really intresting project. but my main concern about needing windows is that I can't get my tv card working under linux yet... (needs a cvs version of v4l which I don't seem to be able to compile) wine doesn't work with windows drivers, so I thought that maybe qemu did... awell, I guess I have to wait for v4l/kernel updates instead...

Which card do you have, which kernel are you using?
Have you got a thread to that effect going here?

qemu wouldn't have solved that problem, either, btw (nor
would vmware), since they both (as I pointed out above)
don't pass the system on to the VM, but rather whip up
a "fake" standard hardware (which happens NOT to
include TV cards).


Cheers,
Tink

I'm using the 2.6.13 version of kernel (arch own I think)... I had a thread both here and on arch forum, but I didn't get helpful replies... well, some helpful but I couldn't manage to compile it anyway...
I have the compro dvb-t300 tv-card and found some wiki about how to get it running. needed a cvs version of v4l and I downloaded that and tried to compile... no good. my kernel sources were missing. I found the headerfiles make complained about and copied them into the cvs of v4l and then compiled again, this time with success. then I installed the drivers (make install) and tried them out (modprobe saa7134 card=71 or what number it was) and nothing. dmesg gave me card autodetect anyway and nothing worked... then my card stopped working in windows xp also, when I booted into that instead. had to reinstall windows... *sigh* and this was my most sucessful attempt of getting tv in linux to work! I've tried it so many times, both with my new compro and my old pinnacle.... it seems that I simply just can't do it... :-( (and it's because of that I can't remove windows alltogether, wich I really want to do...)