installing multiple OS's

[-0MEGA-] · 08-22-2005, 08:30 PM

i currently have windows xp home, and i want to install a few version of linkux and another version of windows, now i know that i will have to make a partition for each OS, but when i do that and install to that partition, when i start up my computer will it give me a list of os's to choose from or is there some other way you do it?

elmarcorulz · 08-22-2005, 08:32 PM

by defalut, it will give you the list

[-0MEGA-] · 08-22-2005, 08:45 PM

k, thanks, and how big should i make each partition? I have a 200GB hard drive now.

flame1117 · 08-22-2005, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geoff5093

k, thanks, and how big should i make each partition? I have a 200GB hard drive now.

I would just make it like 2GB's bigger then how much room it takes. that way there is room for updates drivers and add-ons and stuff like that.

since you have a large harddrive maybe play it save and make it 4GB's extra.?

Also you may have to enter your bios and choose for it to come up with the list, or it might just boot off the first one.

jpwarz · 08-22-2005, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geoff5093

i currently have windows xp home, and i want to install a few version of linkux and another version of windows, now i know that i will have to make a partition for each OS, but when i do that and install to that partition, when i start up my computer will it give me a list of os's to choose from or is there some other way you do it?

Make sure that your OS installs have a packaged bootloader with them. I am unsure if there are any that don't come with one but just a thought. The two most popular choices seem to be Grub and Lilo.

mikejr · 08-23-2005, 02:37 AM

Most *nix installations run from 1.5 - 4 GB depending on what you install. Obviously you can use more. More importantly, you need a root partition and a swap partition. Alternatively, you can have a partition for /boot , / , /home, /tmp, /var, and /usr and set up your fstab to mount things in a more secure way. For instance, once the system is installed, you rarely write to the /usr directory so you can mount it read only (unless installign something)...

For a basic home system to kick around, that's probably not worth the effort...

As for booting, just about any installation is going to use Grub these days, it's easier to keep right. This is the bootloader in the MBR, and it's responsible for booting the OS's on your PC. Different distros can share the swap and boot partitions as well...

celsdogg · 08-23-2005, 07:34 PM

when u install multiple os's also keep in mind to install the weakest/oldest os first, then the the stronger/newer, to the strongest/newest. for example, i wanted to install 98SE, 2k pro, and red hat, so i installed 98 first, then 2k, then red hat.

when i was finished lilo came up asking if i wanted to boot red hat or 2k, if i chose 2k, then the MS boot manager asked if i wanted 2k or 98. . .

kof2000 · 08-23-2005, 08:35 PM

i remember when i had suse and xp if xp is installed first it doesnt give me a list to choose from, but if boot from suse i can use to boot from it OR xp.

Rambo · 08-23-2005, 11:14 PM

I have windows xp pro and Ubuntu installed on my computer and the way I got it to select which OS to use was by using this: http://gag.sourceforge.net This is a graphical user interface which pops up after the boot POST screen thing, and you can select which partition to boot with your keypad numbers. It's really cool actually

08-22-2005, 08:30 PM	#1 (permalink)
[-0MEGA-] Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Concord, NH Age: 20 Posts: 27,082	installing multiple OS's i currently have windows xp home, and i want to install a few version of linkux and another version of windows, now i know that i will have to make a partition for each OS, but when i do that and install to that partition, when i start up my computer will it give me a list of os's to choose from or is there some other way you do it? __________________ Desktop // Laptop Core 2 Quad Q9550 @ 4.0GHz // Core 2 Duo P8400 2.26GHz Asus Rampage Formula X48 // Intel PM45 ATI 4870X2 2GB GDDR5 // 512MB GDDR3 9800M GTS 4GB (2x 2GB) DDR2 940 // 4GB DDR3 800 750GB SATAII w/32MB // 200GB SATAII 7200RPM Creative SB X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty SilverStone 750W +12V@60A 3DMark06: 21391 // 9179

08-22-2005, 08:32 PM	#2 (permalink)
elmarcorulz VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK Age: 21 Posts: 6,033	by defalut, it will give you the list __________________ C2D E6300 @ 2.6Ghz Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 2GB DDR2 667 1TB (1x500GB 2x250GB HDD) BFG 8800GTS 320MB PFC Til I Die

08-22-2005, 08:45 PM	#3 (permalink)
[-0MEGA-] Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Concord, NH Age: 20 Posts: 27,082	k, thanks, and how big should i make each partition? I have a 200GB hard drive now. __________________ Desktop // Laptop Core 2 Quad Q9550 @ 4.0GHz // Core 2 Duo P8400 2.26GHz Asus Rampage Formula X48 // Intel PM45 ATI 4870X2 2GB GDDR5 // 512MB GDDR3 9800M GTS 4GB (2x 2GB) DDR2 940 // 4GB DDR3 800 750GB SATAII w/32MB // 200GB SATAII 7200RPM Creative SB X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty SilverStone 750W +12V@60A 3DMark06: 21391 // 9179

08-23-2005, 07:34 PM	#7 (permalink)
celsdogg Gold Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Maryland Age: 26 Posts: 306	when u install multiple os's also keep in mind to install the weakest/oldest os first, then the the stronger/newer, to the strongest/newest. for example, i wanted to install 98SE, 2k pro, and red hat, so i installed 98 first, then 2k, then red hat. when i was finished lilo came up asking if i wanted to boot red hat or 2k, if i chose 2k, then the MS boot manager asked if i wanted 2k or 98. . . __________________ VALERIE - AMD Athlon XP Palomino 1800+, 1GB DDR SDRAM, nVidia GeForceFX 5700 128MB DDR, two 160GB Seagate HDD, two 250GB Seagate HDD, WinXP Pro SARAH (Toshiba Laptop) - Intel Pentium 4 2.8ghz, 512MB DDR SDRAM, Trident Cyberblade XP2 32MB, 60GB Samsung HDD, Ubuntu Linux 7.10 MARGARET - AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+, 2GB Corsair XMS DDR400 Dual Channel, nVidia GeForce 8600GT 256MB GDDR PCIE, 80GB Seagate SATA, 60GB Maxtor PATA, 60GB WD PATA Ubuntu Linux 7.10 + WinXP Pro

08-23-2005, 08:35 PM	#8 (permalink)
kof2000 Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Oahu Age: 27 Posts: 6,273	i remember when i had suse and xp if xp is installed first it doesnt give me a list to choose from, but if boot from suse i can use to boot from it OR xp. __________________ QX9650@4.2 swiftech \|9600@3.0 9700 nt 780i \| 790fx 8gb ddr1200 \| 8gb ddr1200 2x150gb 3x1tb \|2x250gb 3x8800gtx \|3x2900xt 1gb 2x20xdvdrw \|2x20xdvdrw 15in1 card reader \|15in1 card reader ng15/g9 \|ng15/g9 1200w psu \|1200w psu 2x28" LCD \|2x28" LCD

08-23-2005, 02:37 AM	#6 (permalink)
mikejr Bronze Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Virginia Age: 34 Posts: 71	Most *nix installations run from 1.5 - 4 GB depending on what you install. Obviously you can use more. More importantly, you need a root partition and a swap partition. Alternatively, you can have a partition for /boot , / , /home, /tmp, /var, and /usr and set up your fstab to mount things in a more secure way. For instance, once the system is installed, you rarely write to the /usr directory so you can mount it read only (unless installign something)... For a basic home system to kick around, that's probably not worth the effort... As for booting, just about any installation is going to use Grub these days, it's easier to keep right. This is the bootloader in the MBR, and it's responsible for booting the OS's on your PC. Different distros can share the swap and boot partitions as well...

08-23-2005, 11:14 PM	#9 (permalink)
Rambo Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 3,838	I have windows xp pro and Ubuntu installed on my computer and the way I got it to select which OS to use was by using this: http://gag.sourceforge.net This is a graphical user interface which pops up after the boot POST screen thing, and you can select which partition to boot with your keypad numbers. It's really cool actually __________________ "75% of all statistics are made up, including this one. 62.481% of people who read that believe it is true. *And if you're one of the 37.519% who don't, copy and paste this into your signature." -* tlarkin, Cromewell, and Rambo.

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