ukbsktbll

Ok I have thought of doing this because i really like Vista, but i know its not always the best OS for some things. I have pretty good knowledge of computers but it is by no means advanced. Is this something that is hard to do. I already have XP installed on a HD that is already partitioned.

ukbsktbll

would this work good, whats the difference is something like this and adding linux to switch between xp and vista

http://articles.techrepublic.com.com...1-6157570.html

Rome5

No, it's not that hard and most Linux distributions make it even easier (Ubuntu included). When you install Ubuntu you'll also be installing grub, which is one of the Linux boot loaders. Grub will detect other operating systems (even on separate drives) and include them in it's configuration for you. For the most part, it's as simple as that. If it doesn't quite get it right, fixing it is not a big deal, even if it requires manually installing grub.

You'll be installing Ubuntu alongside XP on one drive with Vista on a second drive, correct? Which drive is your primary boot drive?

Done_Fishin

Whilst not impossible perhaps you should also weigh up the odds regarding "what happens if ?"

The more installs you do the more chance that something will go sour and you'll need a re-install.
If Linux goes sour on you, a re-install of Linux may well allow all your OS's to work ...
If XP goes down then it's possible you may have to re-install both Linux & Vista.

the way around this is to keep this stuff, if possible, on separate drives and boot using the boot menu making sure that all other drives are disconnected at the time of installation ..

If you must boot to less than three drives .. keep Windows on one and Linux on the other and boot either to Windows (Dual boot XP/Vista) or Linux.

ukbsktbll

ok what is the advantage over doing it with linux and without linux such as the link i posted? I currently have XP on a 100gb partition on a 360gb sata so the other partition is somewhat in the range of 240.

I have two other 360gb satas.

So is there a site out there with a simple guide?

plus i can easily back up my stuff to one of my other HDs

Rome5

The advantage would only exist if you're booting Vista, XP, and Linux. Dual booting Windows; as long as the latest version is installed last, will be as easy as what you found. Include a Linux os system in that configuration and things get a bit harder (your link is meant for Windows/Windows dual booting). Vista won't detect a Linux os and allow you to boot it so you would still need to install a separate boot loader. Allowing grub to handle it for you simplifies the process because grub will detect Windows OSs and it's setup for you during the Linux install.


Also know that if you let grub handle the booting process for all operating systems, you won't have to reinstall Ubuntu simply because Vista or XP need to be reinstalled. Grub is separate from the Linux operating system. It can be uninstalled and reinstalled at any time without reinstalling linux entirely.

Adding a separate '/boot' partition when installing Ubuntu will allow you to boot your other operating systems even if Ubuntu fails.

ukbsktbll

well i have never used linux so is there a reason i would do the dual boot with linux over just having xp and vista?

ukbsktbll

http://lifehacker.com/software/ubunt...ntu-193474.php

that a straight forward guide? Do you install ubuntu on xp or vista or on a blank partition.

wmorri

Hi,

There are so many reasons that I would recommend that you use Linux. So many in fact that I can't really list them all. The main reason that I would recommend that you install linux, is two fold.

First: You will learn a new OS, this will help you in the long run if you ever run into
problems with one of your windows OS's. You can boot into linux and maybe fix your problem.

Second: You will have the benfit of using completely free software. All the programs that you will use are free and the support is free. Plus the support can be better because it is unlikely that you are they first person to have a problem, so there will be a fix out there for you.

It looks like a very straight forward guide. Lifehacker is a great website that I have used on many occasions. I would caution you about step four, Installing Automatix. This is a different repositories library and system. It can cause problems with getting some programs that you may want latter on down the line.

Cheers!

Bartender

+1 on the Automatix hesitation. Notice the guide is from 2006. Automatix had a fairly large following amongst Linux users about that time. Well, new Linux users anyway.
Seemed to me that more experienced folk thought Automatix was poorly written and unnecessary. I remember some nasty forum threads regarding this subject, especially when arnieboy, the author of Automatix, jumped in to the thread.

It is well worth it to just figure out which programs you want, enable the multiverse and universe repos, and get the packages yourself. Either by using Synaptic or terminal.

ukbsktbll

Ok should stop after completing step three?

So this is where is gets a little confusing to me. First I would install Vista on another partition. Then do I boot upon start up the Unbuntu cd? - which needs two partions of say 5gb and 1gb?

Done_Fishin

I'd say that Ubuntu will need 10Gb with a 3 GB swap partition .. no point in cramping yourself .. they say it will work with a lot less .. but then you won't have any room to experiment

wmorri

Hi,

I have to disagree with you on that one Done. He currently has two gigs of ram. I would say that only 1gb swap should be more that enough. I would also give you your about 20gb or more if you have the room that will give you some play room if you want to install some programs.

Cheers!

Rome5

Yes.

Once the Vista install is complete, you can reboot, but don't need to have the Ubuntu cd in right then. You can reboot and use Windows boot loader to test XP and Vista if you want. It's up to you. The only thing you need to do is be sure that Vista is installed completely before trying to install Ubuntu. That's it.


---
Ubuntu will need a minimum of two partitions, yes. One is the root partition. That's where the kernel (OS itself), programs, and your personal files will be stored. It needs to be large enough handle all of those, but how much space will really depend on how much you plan to use Ubuntu. 10GB might be just fine if you don't use it that often or don't need a lot of room for more programs. 20GB would be better if you really plan on using it. More than 20 even. Better to over compensate if you have the free space.

The other space needed is for swap; which is just virtual memory. Like wmorri said, 1GB would be plenty. How much swap needed depends on how much RAM a system has. RAM will take the brunt of the load and swap will only be used when necessary. You have enough RAM to handle a good share, so don't overkill the swap.

ukbsktbll

OK i will be bumping to 4gb for vista. So I need four partitions one for xp, one for vista, and two for linux - one being 20+ and the other being about 1gb or more?

wmorri

Hi,

Yes that is exactly it. Let us know if any of the installs don't go as planned and we can help with what we can.

Cheers!

Bartender

As usual, things are never as simple as you'd like them to be.
One primary partition, formatted in ntfs file system, for XP.
One primary partition, also formatted in ntfs, for Vista.
Correct so far.

It's important to note that Windows operating systems must start up from a primary partition. Linux operating systems are more versatile. They're able to start up from within an extended partition.

All you really need after the two Windows primary partitions is an extended partition that takes up the rest of the drive. Think of an extended partition as a box or basket that will hold logical partitions. You don't format an extended partition as any specific file system. It's just a box. You can make several logical partitions within the box if you wish. You're not limited to the "4 primary partitions and you're done" rule.

So, you make the extended partition. After that, you could just toss in the Ubuntu disc and tell it to install to the largest free space. Ubuntu will make a swap partition without any further input from you. Or you can install Ubuntu manually to the extended space, in which case you can set up the Linux partitions however you want. Lots of people, myself included, prefer a /home partition separate from the / partition.

But you may not want to add that level of complexity just yet. You'll be fine if you just let Ubuntu auto-install to the largest free space.

I agree with wmorri. If you have 2GB of physical RAM, the swap space will be used infrequently if ever. The old rule of thumb, when physical RAM was 1 GB or less, was to make the swap twice the size of your RAM. Since most systems come with at least 2GB RAM anymore, that rule is obsolete for new PC's.

ukbsktbll

Ok so i make two partitions one for each OS. So really I have three cause i was planning on giving 100gb to each vista and XP. then I will have a third partition on my first HD of say 60gb. I install unbuntu to that and it will configure it as it needs? No need to make specific partitions for the swap, and all?

Bartender

Well, what do you mean by installing Ubuntu to the "first" HDD? Are we talking two different HDDs? If so, do you mean the "first" HDD is physically connected as the master (PATA) or on the #1 SATA connector?

I'm not sure if that will cause problems or not. Windows wants to be first, and if it were me I'd go so far as to make sure the Windows HDD is "first" physically just to avoid any weird confusion in BIOS or whatever. SO if you're talking one HDD forget what I said above. If we're talking two HDD's I'd sure suggest opening up the PC and physically connecting the Windows HDD "first".

If you let Ubuntu install automatically, yes, it'll make a swap partition all by itself.

wmorri

Hi,

If you choose what partition on what hdd you want to install Ubuntu on it shouldn't be a problem. In the installer you have a couple of options. Use an entire hdd, use only the space avalible, use X partition on X hdd, or use linux partitions all ready there. You don't have to worry about the last one. If you use the first option then all the hdd will be set up with the root and swap partitions. The second one will only look for empty space, and the third options is self explanatory.

Cheers!