is this line nessesary
 

# DOS bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/hda2
label = WindowsXP
table = /dev/hda
# DOS bootable partition config ends


the above is part of my lilo.conf
what does the line table = /dev/hda do
I get the impression lilo would work with out it

"what does the line table = /dev/hda do"

I have not booted Windows in years so my recollection is hazy. But as I remember it, I think table= is used when booting DOS, Windows, etc. from a device other than /dev/hda. I think table= says to pass the partition table of the named device to DOS in a way that makes DOS think that the named device is C:

Since you are booting WindowsXP from the device that it recognizes as C: anyway, I think that you are correct in saying that table= is superfluous.

You could remove the line from /etc/lilo.conf, run lilo, and try to boot into WindowsXP. If it doesn't work then put table= back in lilo.conf and run lilo again.

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