Installing Linux on a Windows Opperated machine

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 10 Feb 2006, 11:48

well, im a NOOB!!!!! when it comes to linux. i have Windows on my comp now, and i have a Knoppix cd. can someone tell me the quick steps of installing? im way busy and i dont have time to go thru a manuel. much appriciated

GODhack · Post by **GODhack** » 10 Feb 2006, 12:47

Knopix is easy to use as live-cd, but it can be quite difficult to install.

I think that for you it is better to change distro into simplyMEPIS and then follow this n00bie-friendly instaliation with dual boot tutorial:
http://mepis.com/docs/?Introduction:Installing_MEPIS

MEPIS is updated today so you will get latest and best GNU software in CD. And MEPIS is live-cd/easy_intall in one disk Linux distribution.

Post by **bad_brain** » 10 Feb 2006, 15:10

well, a good tip for beginners is to write down the partition sizes of the HDD so you´re able to identify the partition on which you want to install, because the drive names in Linux are usually pretty confusing for beginners.
once you have picked the right partition Linux will suggest the size of the different partitions it´ll create, for a beginner the default settings are ok, no need to edit them.
for extra security I recommend to install the boot record on a floppy (the name of the floppy device is usually something like fd0) , this reduces the danger of damaging the Windows system, for running Linux you simply have to boot from floppy then.
the installer should guide you through the rest...

a good (and not too extensive) HOWTO can be found here:
http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Installation-HOWTO/

p.s. RedHat (now Fedora) was my first Linux distro and I found it really easy to install, same with SuSe for example. just keep away from advanced distros like Slackware.

xtheblack9x · Post by **xtheblack9x** » 13 Feb 2006, 09:05

Merchant wrote:well, im a NOOB!!!!! when it comes to linux. i have Windows on my comp now, and i have a Knoppix cd. can someone tell me the quick steps of installing? im way busy and i dont have time to go thru a manuel. much appriciated

word of advice if you don't have much free time linux could be a bad idea because it is very time consuming to do things aspecally if you havn't used it before unless your happy with just using what it comes with. But don't get me wrong well worth the time

. proubly better to pick up and mess with when you have time.

bad_brain wrote:p.s. RedHat (now Fedora) was my first Linux distro and I found it really easy to install, same with SuSe for example. just keep away from advanced distros like Slackware.

also I would agree fedora was one of the easyest one's that i found also mandriva.

[post merge - gogeta]

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 16 Mar 2006, 17:53

well

seems like the cd i have is fried neway. GRR it was working fine a few weeks ago, but then... mahahaha.... i found it in my dogs mouth!! OMGWTF! im so mad.

*simmers*

well, knoppix wasnt my forte neway. how bout Debian? what other Linux distros are out there?

Post by **bad_brain** » 17 Mar 2006, 03:26

a LOT:
http://www.linuxiso.org

my favorite is still RedHat 9, no matter if the support has been ended. I never had any trouble installing it, and it´s really stable. I think the RedHat9-links on linuxiso don´t work, but they are available here too:
http://ccrma.stanford.edu/planetccrma/s ... droms.html

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 20 Mar 2006, 11:29

thanx ill look into it

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 18 May 2006, 19:51

bad_brain wrote:well, a good tip for beginners is to write down the partition sizes of the HDD so you´re able to identify the partition on which you want to install, because the drive names in Linux are usually pretty confusing for beginners.
once you have picked the right partition Linux will suggest the size of the different partitions it´ll create, for a beginner the default settings are ok, no need to edit them.
for extra security I recommend to install the boot record on a floppy (the name of the floppy device is usually something like fd0) , this reduces the danger of damaging the Windows system, for running Linux you simply have to boot from floppy then.
the installer should guide you through the rest...
a good (and not too extensive) HOWTO can be found here:
http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Installation-HOWTO/

1) where might i find the partion sizes, and which is best to use? i really cant afford damaging Windows
2)floppy device? you dont mean like a floppy disk do you O.o lol, how should i do that?

P.S. im using a cd of Ubuntu now, and its also saying it cant configure the network, something about an HTPD or something similar... @.@ i dont know

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 18 May 2006, 20:34

oo, and btw, i do have a dial up connection, i heard somewhere you need something special for that, another section of the CD. and what about a hostname? im hearing some crazy rumors

Post by **bad_brain** » 19 May 2006, 04:43

allright:
the partiton sizes are displayed during install, but you´ll won´t see the usual format you know from Windows (like C:, D:), so it´s good to write down the sizes first so you´re able to identify the partitons by their sizes.
and yes, I meant the good old floppy drive, it´s not a must to place the bootsector there, it´s just for extra safety (when something goes wrong with the bootloader/install you will still be able to boot Windows because the Windows MBR isn´t touched when the Linux bootlader is on a floppy), but no matter how you do it it´s inevitable to save all important data before you begin to install Linux.

dialup (analogue) modems can be a pain in the ass on Linux because the hardware support is not that good for those devices, so you might not be able to use your actual modem, you will see when the install is done.
there´s no need for a hostname, except you run a DNS-server too in your network, so "localhost" (which is usually the default hostname) is ok.

I guess you mean HTTPD, which is the server for websites (http daemon), once you have installed Linux you should be able to configure the network by hand (if it´s not part of the installation process), this includes the starting services too.
let us know when you have installed Linux, then it will be no problem to help you configuring the network...

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 19 May 2006, 22:07

well, <blush> my computer doesnt even have a floppy drive

well, what i was hoping was i could copy my entire HDD to a different devise incase i mess up, i cant afford loosing Windows or anything i have on the computer. is there anyway i can save everything i have? or should i just start out wiht a clean hard drive and just transfer the things i need?

??

Post by **bad_brain** » 20 May 2006, 06:53

well, if you mainboard supports booting from USB you can put the boot record on an USB stick instead...

the point is that when you want to put the boot record on HDD it has to be on the first HDD on which the boot record of your windows installation is located too. it CAN happen (it´s not very likely, but well...) that something goes wrong and your windows OS isn´t available any more. if you want to be on the REAL safe side you could mirror the windows partition to another drive....

Post by **Gogeta70** » 20 May 2006, 08:30

I installed Mepis linux a while back, on the same hard drive i had windows on. Everything went just fine, however i partitioned the hard drive myself... The hard drive i have had 2 partitions (before linux) the windows partition was hda1 and the other partition with diagnostic tools on it was hda2. It did a pretty good job partitioning the drive quickly, and i don't think that there's much cause for concern. Plus, if you fuck up the boot record, all you have to do is put in a windows install cd (any one for xp that i know of will work) wait for it to load up and when it gives you the options, press R and it'll give you a command prompt (may ask for a password, if it asks for password to administrator account, the pass is probably blank) and then type 'fixmbr' without the quotes. That's my 2 cents.

Merchant · Post by **Merchant** » 20 May 2006, 09:50

alright, when i loaded the install disk i got to the partitioning part and here were the choices:

Erase entire disk:IDE1 Master (hda) - 40.0 GB WDC WD4000BB - 76fJA1

Erase entire disk and use LVM: IDE1 master (hda) - 40.0 GB WDC WD

Use largest selected free space

Manually partition the hard drive

well, i tried using the free space one, but it said it wasnt big enough, which i know isnt true. im a little afraid to try manual, because i dont know what to do *hides*

ooo, another idea! i could dnld a partitioner and use it thru Windows before i even install Ubuntu. theres some online, if i partition before hand, i dont need to mess with the whole process of doing it thru Linux. but they are all like $50

suck-o.com

Installing Linux on a Windows Opperated machine

Installing Linux on a Windows Opperated machine

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