Multi-boot Config

Hi.

I have PM ver. 7.0 and have used it to make 2 of my systems dual-boot. One system runs Win98/RHLinux 7.1, defaulting to Win98 as the booting OS, & another running win98SE/WinME. Best thing I can suggest is reading the manual for PM thoroughly beforehand. There may be some applications which may cause problems with PM, ie Norton System Works which may cause a disk write error, virus protection programs which detect a change in the MBR as a virus attack (PC-Cillin did on mine), & SoundBlaster Live sound cards which may interfere w/ PM operations that require going into boot-mode.

On my Win98SE system (a 4100), I decided to uninstall Norton System Works beforehand, & had to remove SoundBlaster entries from Config.sys & autoexec.bat before I started. I created the 2nd partition & installed ME on it w/out a hitch. I chose 98SE as my default boot OS.

On my Win98 system (an XPS T450), after creating the extended partition for Linus, & all it's logical partitions (boot, swap, & root), things didn't go right the first 2 times. PM makes it easy though...I simply deleted the logical partitions/reformatted the extended partition & started over again. Win98 remained intact on it's primary partition. Got the Linux install right the 3rd time (I was wanting to make Win98 the default boot OS which is the problem I ran into there...figured out how thru the Linux install procedure).

For making one OS the defaul boot OS, you might consider installing boot magic, which came included with PM 7.0. That's what I used on my 4100 (Win98SE/ME). On the Win98/Linux system, Boot Magic proved difficult (I finally gave up on it), & Linuxs' install program proved to be the best way to choose the defaul booting OS.

From what I see in my manual here, you should be able to use PM (assuming you have 7.0, which supports XP) to accomplish what you're trying to do. If I could manage it on 2 systems, you can too. Worse thing that can happen is you hose it so badly that you need to reformat the entire drive, but I never even came close to that, even after screwing up the Linux install twice.

Hope this helps. Good Luck!

:-)




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Message Edited on 12/12/01 02:07PM by Pam G.

If you are going to Multi-boot, you can, & should use NTHS and FAT32.

Dell Dimension 4100(extinct)
Windows 98SE/ Windows XP Dual Boot
1.0 Ghz Intel Pentium III
BIOS VersionAO10
256MB 133MHz SDRAM
32MB NVIDIA TNT2 M64 AGP Graphics Card
20.4 GB ULTRA ATA-100 HARD DRIVE
3Com V.90/56kTelephony Modem
16X DVD Rom/ 8x24x32x CD-RW
SB Live!1024
Altec Lansing ACS340-Speakers/HK-695
Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro Dell Edition
Microsoft Wheel Mouse Optical USB
19' P991 Trintiron

Message Edited on 12/12/01 08:31PM by Nhclass

Obviously, Nhclass didn't read the manual like I had suggested. :-O

Guess they have a sample configuration of a HD with an active primary Win98 (FAT32) & a hidden primary NTFS partition just for kicks... Or, maybe having a FAT or FAT32 file system & an NTFS file system partition on the same drive is merely an Urban Legend & I was looking in the wrong manual... Urban Legends About Hard Drives??? ;-)

Thanks, GB. :-)



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~Pammie
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"Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug..."
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Message Edited on 12/12/01 06:53PM by Pam G.

You might want to check your facts. On separate partitions, it's quite possible to have NTFS on one, and FAT32 on another. It would probably be best to install the FAT32 OS first.

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Sorry, i was thinking that WinME was going to be installed after XP, which would mean XP would have had to have FAT32 partition.
Sorry for the confusion :-(

Sean

Dell Dimension 4100(extinct)
Windows 98SE/ Windows XP Dual Boot
1.0 Ghz Intel Pentium III
BIOS VersionAO10
256MB 133MHz SDRAM
32MB NVIDIA TNT2 M64 AGP Graphics Card
20.4 GB ULTRA ATA-100 HARD DRIVE
3Com V.90/56kTelephony Modem
16X DVD Rom/ 8x24x32x CD-RW
SB Live!1024
Altec Lansing ACS340-Speakers/HK-695
Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro Dell Edition
Microsoft Wheel Mouse Optical USB
19' P991 Trintiron

Message Edited on 12/12/01 08:33PM by Nhclass

Message Edited on 12/12/01 08:44PM by Nhclass

Must be this sheet from MS:

How To Multiple Boot With Multiple OS's From MS Itself :-O

Also, check out these links:

Multi-boot
Multi-boot
Multi-boot

:-O



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~Pammie
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"Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug..."
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Message Edited on 12/12/01 09:09PM by Pam G.

Thanks all for your experiences, links, etc. I can see that I have a lot of research to do before this undertaking. It seems that a multi-boot (3 or more) system is not that common; would like to here from someone who tried it successfully. Thanks again for the input.

My System:

Model: 4100/866/133
BIOS: A05
Memory: 128 PC133 cl3
Hard Drive: Maxtor 40Gb Ultra ATA 100, 7200
Monitor: P991-32 Mb Radeon DDR @ 85 Hz
Audio: HK Speakers, SB Live Value
CD-RW: LG 8x4x32
Printer: Lexmark Z-12 USB/Parallel
Scanner: Epson 610 USB
Current OS: ME
ISP: @Shaw
Browsers: Netscape 4.78, IE 5.5 SP2
Security: CAI, ZoneAlarm, ScriptSentry