[clue-tech] Re: Windows help

[Brian Gibson]

On a side note, unless performance is a critical issue, it's much easier to use and setup VMs than dualboots if you have the spare memory.  I'm satisfied with VirtualBox but if you need 3D acceleration I believe you need to move to VMWare or Parallels.  Also Wubi is an alternative if your dual-OS install is Windows and Ubuntu.  These two options are less painful paths to a multi-OS install than messing with partitions and MBRs. 



----- Original Message ----
From: David L. Willson <DLWillson at TheGeek.NU>
To: clue-tech <clue-tech at cluedenver.org>
Sent: Tue, November 24, 2009 11:09:05 AM
Subject: [clue-tech] Re: Windows help

No problem, Louis.  I'm glad it worked out for you.  Good persistence.  Since the following contains a bunch of good Windows-Linux migration and coexistence info, I hope you won't mind if I send it out onto the list.  I'm sorry for calling your message off-topic; I think Brian's right, that it was on-topic, and I was being overly strict in my interpretation, as shown by the return to topic.  Sorry...

Windows installs always destroy the GRUB MBR, overwriting it with a Microsoft MBR that leads to the WinNT boot loader.  Unlike Linux setups, Windows setups don't attempt to create boot options for foreign OS's already present on the system.

I can show you at the next Installfest how to backup and restore the MBR using dd, if you like.  It's usually something like this:

backup

   dd if=/dev/sda of=my-MBR-backup.dd bs=446 count=1

restore

   dd if=my-MBR-backup.dd of=/dev/sda

There's no need to control the block size on restore, because dd automatically stops at the end of the input file.

David L. Willson
Trainer, Engineer, Enthusiast
MCT, MCSE, LPIC-1
tel://720.333.LANS

----- "Louis Miller" <veganguy1 at gmail.com> wrote:

<snip> 
> Well, there was a small smudge on one of the recovery discs, and once
> I cleaned it with my handkerchief, I was able to re-install with not
> too much of a problem. It wouldn't have worked without the Gparted
> Live CD, though. I guess, now, that I know dual-boots and I have the
> knowledge to completely recover my system without any help, that I can
> re-create a dual-boot system. I thought the GRUB boot menu was still
> on there, but it must have gone.
> 
> Louis
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