Starting Knoppix from Windows 2000

**pnti** · 05-02-2003, 02:20 PM

Hello:

I share a computer with my wife and she prefers Windows (2000).

I start Knoppix using floppy disk. I don't want to install lilo, etc. I'd like to start it from Windows 2000 startup menu (F8).

I keep Knoppix CD on the separate disk partition (/dev/hda7) in /KNOPPIX.

Can anybody help me in this matter?

Thanks.

**MattT** · 05-02-2003, 03:58 PM

This is actualy not too hard if you don't mind working with text files and you have a basic understanding of the Linux and Dos shells. Of course MS wouldn't make this too easy to do

See
http://rtfm.dyndns.info/tips/2002/11/13/51.shtml

**monkeyman** · 05-02-2003, 04:01 PM

This can't be done retroactively due to the nature of the Win2K boot menu, so I am unsure how much help this will be, but here goes:

Partition your drive so that drive C:\ is a FAT 32 partition,

If you use FDISK from a Win 98 boot disk, any partition over 512 MB will be FAT 32 by default.

After you have created your partitions and made C:\ active, format C:\ using the following command from the Win 98 boot disk A:\ prompt:

Format C: /s /u

You now have a bootable C:\ partion. Copy MINIROOT.GZ and VMLINUZ from a Knoppix boot disk and the loader loadlin.exe to C:\. Create an Autoexec.bat that contains the following lines:

@echo off
cls
loadlin.exe vmlinuz init=/etc/init lang=us initrd=miniroot.gz quiet BOOT_IMAGE=knoppix

The above loadlin command should be all one line. Copy it to C:\. Loadlin will search for a /Knoppix directory on all hda devices and boot Knoppix.

Install Win 2k on the next available partition and a boot menu will be created automagically. The partition that boots Knoppix will show as DOS on the boot menu, you can change the name to Knoppix by editing the Boot.ini file.

A caveat: I have yet to figure out how to get Persistant Home to be detected at boot as you are not presented with a knoppix prompt for cheat codes. However, you can save Knoppix Configuration to hda1 and copy the resulting .sh and .tbz files to the Knoppix directory from Win 2K or from the Knoppix item on the boot menu by pressing F5 to bypass the autoexec file and using the commands copy *.tbz C:\Koppix and copy *.sh C:\ Koppix. A little awkward and you end up with a huge .tbz file after a lot of configuring, adding a different icon theme and so on, mine is just over 35 MB.

I would also note I have 4 FAT 32 partitions on my hard disk: C:\ to boot Knoppix, H:\ for the swap file, I:\ for the Knoppix directory and J:\ which I labeled LINUX_SHARE and is used to store anything I want to keep from a Knoppix session.

Well, that's it, I guess.

**monkeyman** · 05-02-2003, 04:06 PM

Yikes! "using the commands copy *.tbz C:\Koppix and copy *.sh C:\ Koppix" should be "using the commands copy *.tbz C:\Knoppix and copy *.sh C:\ Knoppix" Sorry about that, only halfway through my morning coffee so I'm still a little groggy.

**pnti** · 05-02-2003, 07:33 PM

Hi:

I think that I am just starting to understand your letter. I cannot check it on my home computer, I will have to wait until Monday.

Generally it turned out to be much more difficult than I expected.

... (some time later) ...

It semms that I have just found a little bit simpler solution:

http://support.microsoft.com/default...d=kb;pl;153762

It's a Polish translation of the English original.

If I understand this text correctly I can install MS-DOS on Windows 2000 and then use loadlin to load linux.

Or on the other hand I can probably setup a DOS partition and use loadlin to start Knoppix from it. I don't want DOS in my Windows 2000.

Life is not so simple, even with Knoppix

.

w.

**A. Jorge Garcia** · 05-02-2003, 08:08 PM

I've tried the following with WIN95, WIN98 and WINME. I'm not familiar with WIN2000. Would something like: http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2192
work for you?

Regards,

**pnti** · 05-02-2003, 08:18 PM

Originally Posted by A. Jorge Garcia

I've tried the following with WIN95, WIN98 and WINME. I'm not familiar with WIN2000. Would something like: http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2192
work for you?

Regards,

Hi: All I want is to get rid of the startup disk. I don't use a CD-ROM.

Now I think that I don't need even loadlin and dos. I guess that I need to setup a loader of a KNOPPIX partition and bootsector of that partition should be called by Win2k bootloader. Am I right?

So eventaully I will select OS from Win2k and KNOPPIX will be started from Lilo.

So now my problem is how to install lilo in bootsector of my hda7 partition.

w.

**A. Jorge Garcia** · 05-02-2003, 10:53 PM

OK, try this:

http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2021

Regards,

**pnti** · 05-04-2003, 06:05 AM

It took me two nights, loss of all my data (10GB of programs and documments) but it is working.

THE system can be selected from Windows2000 startup menu and it is working fine.

I did it as you suggested: I have a DOS on hda1, Windows on hda2 and I use loadlin to load Knoppix from DOS.

I was not able to install lilo to start Knoppix from hda7 partition. There are many things that I have to learn.

w.

**Dave_Bechtel** · 05-04-2003, 10:38 AM

>There are many things that I have to learn.

--Not to be rude, but it looks like "BACKUPS" is one of them...

Originally Posted by pnti

It took me two nights, loss of all my data (10GB of programs and documments) but it is working.

THE system can be selected from Windows2000 startup menu and it is working fine.

I did it as you suggested: I have a DOS on hda1, Windows on hda2 and I use loadlin to load Knoppix from DOS.

I was not able to install lilo to start Knoppix from hda7 partition. There are many things that I have to learn.

w.