Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

Gee, if you followed the v.s. multi-boot (moral volcano), and that didn't work for boot.ini, then perhaps herman @ bigpond (reference) has something for boot.ini.
You are seeing the word "GRUB" only because it is embedded now in the code area of the boot sector sdb1 (you can see it if you pipe the dd output of those 512 bytes to hexdump -C): dd if=etcetc count=1 | hexdump -C

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

I'm just curious about something.
You said
“Immediately after installing kubuntu I ran the "dd if=/dev/sdb1 of=/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1" command and copied the created file to a floppy. Then I booted windows, copied that file to the root of the harddrive and then I added this line at the end of the boot.ini file: "c:\bootsect.lnx=”kubuntu 7.10””

First off, just to be sure here, by “root of the harddrive,” you mean you copied those 512 bytes to the Windows partition C:\, right?

Now, I haven't done this as I said, but I'm wondering what would happen if you try this another way:
You already installed GRUB to the MBR of sdb (root (hd1,0), setup (hd1)).
Try using dd to copy the 512 bytes from the MBR of hd1:
dd if=/dev/sdb of=/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1
(i.e., not sdb1 but sdb)

That might work, but it's hard to say exactly. That would give you GRUB Stage_1 which would point at Stage_1.5 on sdb, which would bring up Stage_2 on sdb1, all using the partition table that's part of the sdb MBR.

As I told you, I haven't thought all this through with XP, but I'm wondering, when XP sees the boot.ini reference to the bootsect.lnx file, how does XP know about the partition sdb1? Your XP partition table was made before Kubuntu was installed, so it does not contain an entry for sdb1.

[bartgrefte]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

I'm just curious about something.
You said
“Immediately after installing kubuntu I ran the "dd if=/dev/sdb1 of=/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1" command and copied the created file to a floppy. Then I booted windows, copied that file to the root of the harddrive and then I added this line at the end of the boot.ini file: "c:\bootsect.lnx=”kubuntu 7.10””

First off, just to be sure here, by “root of the harddrive,” you mean you copied those 512 bytes to the Windows partition C:\, right?

Yeah

Now, I haven't done this as I said, but I'm wondering what would happen if you try this another way:
You already installed GRUB to the MBR of sdb (root (hd1,0), setup (hd1)).
Try using dd to copy the 512 bytes from the MBR of hd1:
dd if=/dev/sdb of=/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1
(i.e., not sdb1 but sdb)

No change... Tried with the live-dvd.

As I told you, I haven't thought all this through with XP, but I'm wondering, when XP sees the boot.ini reference to the bootsect.lnx file, how does XP know about the partition sdb1? Your XP partition table was made before Kubuntu was installed, so it does not contain an entry for sdb1.

Think that the bootsect file points to it... Or just "says": boot from thát harddrive/partition

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

Boy, what a mystery. (But then, I'm not a boot.ini expert. As I said, I've not seen too many success stroies with this boot.ini thing.) Maybe it would work better if Kubuntu were installed to the same HD as Windows, who knows? But it sure sounds like you have done what you are supposed to do to make this go.

There's enough installed that GRUB would work if given the right chance.
When you boot from the Kubuntu drive, and get the GRUB boot menu (where you have been changing “1” to a “0”), you can see this as follows:
Hit “c” key to get the grub> prompt.
Type
root (hd0,0)
(that's Kubuntu, right? first partition—partition zero; on the boot drive, now hd0)
chainloader +1

That should boot Kubuntu from the GRUB installed to the Kubuntu boot sector.

===

Now if you kept XP as it is, but set BIOS to boot from Kubuntu drive, you could boot Windows from Kubuntu's boot menu (/boot/grub/menu.lst). That wouldn't change the XP MBR.

How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
Reply #12 -- Windows on a non-first hard drive.

Keep us posted on how this resolves.

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

I only just scanned Herman's deal on this @
http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/p9.html

He edits boot.ini to include:
C:\GRLDR="Start Grub"
Installs WinGrub, configures it to install GRUB
and >>> he installs GRUB in boot.ini

And, it works as:
“ I selected 'Start Grub', and WinGrub will automatically scan my hard disk and load the /boot/grub/menu.lst of the first Gnu/Linux installation it finds that has that file installed in it.”

Just wondering (again), why all this work if it were possible to simply do it as you have tried (and as the Moral Volcano has done)? Don't know. Perhaps you could look at Herman's work there. One thing is that it's another way of doing it to avoid overwriting the Windows MBR with GRUB IPL code.


If no other projects come up this week or next, I may try something, too, maybe WinGRUB. I'll have to use my XP disk to restore NTLDR to the XP MBR first.

Did you notice Herman installed GRUB to boot.ini?

[bartgrefte]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

Adding XP to grub and let the bios boot from the second harddrive as an alternate option sounds good.

But this problem will have to wait a few days. I'm going to skool in a few minutes and tomorrow I'm turning 21 , think lot's of people will come.

While I'm @ skool, I could ask the teachers if they know something about grub, it's ICT-(computerstuff)-skool so maybe...

I'll try to get on this again around wednesday.

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

I think that'll be an easy way to go for now.
All you need is a modified entry in /boot/grub/menu.lst for Windows:

title XP
root (hd1,0)
map (hd1) (hd0)
map (hd0) (hd1)
chainloader +1 # See EDIT below

(that assumes Windows is "normally" on (hd0,0); now, the Kubuntu drive will be hd0, so Windows will be seen on (hd1,0); then we do the map dance to fool XP into thinking it's still on the first (boot) hard drive)

And, set BIOS to boot first from the Kubuntu drive.

EDIT: chainloader +1, not chainloader +!; typo corrected by bartgrefte in a post below.

[bartgrefte]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

I'll try that, thanx!

But one question first. Would it be possible to install grub on a USB pen? Would like to keep the current grub the same so that I can try to get it working from the boot.ini at a later time...

And another thing. Bit offtopic though. Is it possible to add Vista (will install it at some time on a 3rd hd) to GRUB?

Ps, shouldn't that be "chainloader +1"

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

GRUB on flash drive: For what you need to do with GRUB (i.e., have it boot your OSs on other drives), use the special Super Grub Disk GRUB (explained in this how-to):
How To Make GRUB Thumb Drive
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081748.0
You could use that GRUB to boot all your OSs)

Vista: Yes, you can boot Vista from GRUB using rootnoverify (hdx,y) (not root (hdx,y)) and chainloader +1)
How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
--- Vista -- Linux Dual Boot (Also, some Vista – XP issues) Reply #11
Then read the reference:
http://apcmag.com/dualboot

(as always, please post any specific questions back here on the regular forum)

[Qqmike]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

bartgrefte: "Ps, shouldn't that be 'chainloader +1'. "

Yes; I corrected Reply #21 just now to reflect the corrected typo--Thanks.

[Guest]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

Just to chime in - I'm at a similar stage as well.

I had Edgy installed on a small primary slave drive, so I replaced that one with a larger drive I had laying around and started a fresh desktop install to the new drive.

It all went swimmingly, ran the dd commands while booted into the live cd to get my boot sector to windows like I had for Edgy (and slackware, and suse in the past), put it in windows and edited my boot menu.

Then I got the flashing _ when selecting the Gutsy item.

I've tried manually setting my hard drive parameters in BIOS to what WD says they should be and re-installed (thinking the geometry wasn't working when set at Auto as I had read in another post about a GRUB GRUB GRUB GRUB Disk error) but with the same result.

If I create a GRUB floppy per the GRUB manual using my installs /boot/grub/stage* files, I can get to a grub prompt. I then use configfile (sp) to point to my /boot/grub/menu.lst and I can boot into my install. I tried setting up GRUB on the /boot partition as opposed to the MBR of the install drive, did the windows copy sector thing, and now I get a GRUB _ with the flashing _.

Everything I've read in this thread seems to apply to my situation as well.

One thing I did notice when fooling around with the geometry was that GRUB doesn't detect the geometry as being what BIOS detects, or what WD says to put in manually. I don't know if that matters or not. I do believe I had my old drive set to user settings, not auto.

Also, Gutsy sees my drives as sd* and other distros seemed to see them as hd* drives. Don't know if that matters either - they're IDE drives.

Anyhow, just wanted to say you're not the only one in this spot and all the advice and help has helped me as well

[Guest]

Re: Add kubuntu to XP's boot.ini

Also, one other note - for some reason, every time I try the find command inside of GRUB, it gives an error (which I can't remember at this moment).