Dual booting with windows

[turbine]

Seems that windows is making it more difficult to dual boot with Linux. I use knoppix 6.2 to get around that on my eeepc's. Install knoppix to a flash drive and configure the netbook bios so that it will boot from flash. Repartition the netbook hard drive so that you have a large enough partition for the linux stuff. Make it ext3. The first time you boot knoppix, use the tohd cheat code and target the newly created ext3 partition. Tell it to create a persistent storage area. Only use half the space so that you have room for a backup. Now each time you boot using the flash drive, use the fromhd cheat code. After booting you can remove the flash and just run from disk.

[kl522]

What you describe works but if you want to boot from harddisk only, alternative bootloader 'grldr' will make life slightly easier. This is my boot.ini :-

[boot loader]
timeout=5
REM default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
default=C:\grldr
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect
c:\grldr="Knoppix(Linux)"

And this is my 'menu.lst' :-

######################################################
# GvR Sept 30th 2004
        color black/cyan yellow/cyan
        timeout=5
        default=0

title Knoppix on Internal HD (squashfs, normal)
        kernel /boot/syslinux/linux squashfs i915.modeset=1 lang=us apm=power-off nosound nomce loglevel=0 quiet dma noeject
        initrd /boot/syslinux/minirt.gz
        boot
title Knoppix on Internal HD (cloop, normal)
        kernel /boot/syslinux/linux i915.modeset=1 lang=us apm=power-off nosound nomce loglevel=0 quiet dma noeject
        initrd /boot/syslinux/minirt.gz
        boot

With the above I could menu select whichever I want to boot.

[turbine]

Where does this boot loader reside? If it's in the mbr, then that's what vista etc seems to object to.

If it's not in the mbr then what triggers it once you turn on the machine?

[kl522]

There is no need to mess with the existing bootloader of NT. The new ( chain- ) bootloader is installed as a file on the NTFS. The existing NTLDR is the one responsible for running 'grldr' - only if the user menu select it or if is a defaulted selection. As you can see from boot.ini.

To boot NT :-
NTLDR ---> (XP/Vista/Whatever...)

To boot KNOPPIX:-
NTLDR-->GRLDR (grub)--> KNOPPIX

[turbine]

I wonder if m$ has checksumed the boot.ini, with md5sum say, so that any modifications would get detected and complained about?

[kl522]

The boot.ini is protected from casual modification by keeping the file as hidden and readonly. If you use the NT to unhide and modify boot.ini, you might get a few warnings. Apart from that there is nothing else because NTLDR allows for multiboot NT versions, and a typical NT installer might automatically/programmatically edit boot.ini during the installation process. It's an allowed feature.

[ICPUG]

The boot.ini is protected from casual modification by keeping the file as hidden and readonly. If you use the NT to unhide and modify boot.ini, you might get a few warnings. Apart from that there is nothing else because NTLDR allows for multiboot NT versions, and a typical NT installer might automatically/programmatically edit boot.ini during the installation process. It's an allowed feature.

You and turbine seem to be talking at cross purposes. You are talking about dual booting with Windows XP/NT/2000. turbine mentioned Vista.

The XP approach doesn't work with Vista /Windows 7 because, amongst other things, there isn't a boot.ini.

However, it is possible to dual boot with Vista or Windows 7 without touching the MBR.

Use of EasyBCD and neogrub is one way.

Another way is to follow the instructions here:
http://www.sysresccd.org/Sysresccd-m...s_Vista.2F2008

in the section:

update your boot loader: Windows Vista/2008

(the menu.lst is as suggested here - not on the sysresccd site).

[kl522]

The XP approach doesn't work with Vista /Windows 7 because, amongst other things, there isn't a boot.ini.

However, it is possible to dual boot with Vista or Windows 7 without touching the MBR.

Thanks for the correction. Obviously I am left behind already.
I did not know they removed the boot.ini thingie.

[turbine]

Actually I do also want to dual boot with an xp machine so kl522's suggestions are most welcome. I haven't tried to implement them yet because my google search of grldr turned up several negative comments implying that it was a linux app that windows just did not like. I will still look into using it.

[kl522]

grldr is ***NOT*** a linux app. Certainly there are many false information on the internet, but the true ones should be more than the false one in this case, but I wonder why you only managed to read the false information. grldr is a DOS program.