Need hard drive help

[Ezor]

I'm new to Linux and have been playing with the Knoppix CD which I would like to install on the hard drive. Currently running Windows XP. To avoid problems with the NTFS file system, I could just install Windows 98. Considering that I don't care which Windows version I use, would this be a good idea,? Also, to avoid any problems with partitioning, I could just install another hard drive. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[OErjan]

actually juat making a / and a swap partition on some free space would be enough, if oyu then make a fat32 partition aswell you can easily share files between the two.

if you could a extra new disk that you could make the 3 partitions on would be nice, not necesary but...

or even make 4 primary partitions on that new disk (yes 4 primary partitions works)
/ 3-4Gb
swap (rule of thumb says 2x memory, id say less if you have more than 512Mb)
fat32 (30Gb or so seems fair) for sharing files...
and rest for /home (10Mb min)

[Harry Kuhman]

I'm new to Linux and have been playing with the Knoppix CD which I would like to install on the hard drive. Currently running Windows XP. To avoid problems with the NTFS file system, I could just install Windows 98. Considering that I don't care which Windows version I use, would this be a good idea,? Also, to avoid any problems with partitioning, I could just install another hard drive. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Any of your choices would work. If you already have XP I would think you might leave it there. The only issue is that you can not write to the NTFS partition with Knoppix. Realize that XP and NTFS are not the same thing; although most XP users do use it with NTFS partitions. I'm guessing that you have NT in a NTFS partition, but you don't have to have in installed in NTFS, it will work find in a FAT partition (without some of the extras most people don't use anyway). So options include just leaving it alone and adding a second drive, shrinking the NTFS partition and adding a FAT partition in the available space, shrinking and adding Linux style partitions in the available space, backing up your XP system and making the partition Fat and then putting XP back on it, and many more, or combinations. You could make that new drive that you add FAT and copy XP there, then rejumper the drives so that the new drive is the new master; XP should run fine from it (and if there is any problem you still have the original on the drive with the NTFS partition). Once you were satisified that XP was running from the new drive, you could then repartition the old drive (now the slave) any way you want. Or you could have left some space on the new drive, and add the partitions there and keep the old drive for something else. Choices, choices, choices.

[Ezor]

Thanks for your help. I've decided to go with an extra drive, Seagate 80 GB. Once I get Knoppix up and running, I'll trash Windows on the other drive and use it to play with Debian or Suse. FWIW - I had a WIN modem which of course doesn't work. Rather than mess around looking for and trying to install a driver, I bought a US Robotics serial modem # 5686E which works just fine.