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    #1

    grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

    I have an XP laptop, and a Seagate external usb hard drive. I have installed Kubuntu on the external hd, and when I have the external hd plugged into the laptop, the grub menu comes up properly and I can choose either OS - no problems there.

    However, what I want is to be able to boot directly into XP whenever the external HD is not plugged in. I won't be carrying the external hd with me wherever I take my laptop... How can I make this happen? What else do you experts need to know to help me out?

    Thanks
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    #2
    Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

    Your first place to look is Qqmike's HOW TO: GRUB Methods - Toolkit
    Windows no longer obstructs my view.
    Using Kubuntu Linux since March 23, 2007.
    "It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data." - Sherlock Holmes​
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      #3
      Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

      Originally posted by Snowhog
      Your first place to look is Qqmike's HOW TO: GRUB Methods - Toolkit
      I've started looking through all the info you pointed me to, but I don't have the hours (days?!) it is going to take to get through all of it and figure it all out. (And just so I'm clear - I do appreciate the link you included, and I will eventually make it through all of it to find a solution if I have to. What I need to determine is whether or not I have to...) Here's what I want to happen, and I need to know if there is a simple way to do it:

      - XP is working properly on my laptop, Kubuntu is working properly on my xHD, but only when my xHD is plugged in
      - Is there a simple way to make it so that I will be able to boot directly into XP without having my xHD plugged in? Of course, I still want to have grub take over when the xHD is plugged in, so that I can have the choice.

      Again, I'm sure I can wade through all the info contained in the link you sent, and I really do appreciate it. Is there a shorter / quicker way to get what I want?

      Thanks

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        #4
        Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

        While I was typing all this, you posted. But here's what I have, and it does answer your question, but it will take some work and knowledge of GRUB. Method #3, though, boots using BIOS--simple.


        Here's the words and some ideas to think about, but there's a lot of digging for you to do if you are not familiar with the bootloader GRUB.

        Your laptop must support “Boot from USB,” which it apparently does.


        Method #1

        Install the XP bootloader to the MBR of the laptop so it will boot XP if nothing else is connected to the laptop.
        Install GRUB to the MBR of the external HDD (using the GRUB files from Kubuntu on the external HDD).
        Configure menu.lst (on the external HDD in /boot/grub/menu.lst in Kubuntu) to boot either XP or Kubuntu.
        (When the external HDD is connected, and BIOS boots from it, XP will be seen on drive hd1, and so you'll need the map commands in XP's boot entry in menu.lst).
        Configure your laptop BIOS so it boots from the USB first (if it is connected) and the laptop second -- ** if this is possible! And if the laptop BIOS will detect the USB when the USB is connected! **


        Method #2

        Make a small partition on the laptop XP hard drive, say 200 MB.
        Make that partition a “separate dedicated GRUB partition.”
        Install GRUB from that dedicated partition to the MBR of the laptop HDD.
        Configure GRUB's menu.lst (in the separate GRUB partition) to boot either XP on hd0 or Kubuntu on hd1.
        Configure your BIOS to boot first from the laptop HDD (and second from the external HDD).


        Method #3
        XP's bootloader is installed to the MBR of the laptop.
        GRUB is installed to the MBR of the external HDD (and points at Kubuntu on the external HDD).
        Set the laptop BIOS to boot from the XP HDD.
        When you turn on the laptop, either boot to XP automatically, or enter BIOS setup and select the external HDD to boot to.


        Considerations:

        The way you do these things is (1) to know GRUB, (2) know your BIOS, and then (3) to experiment until it works for * your machine and your BIOS * .


        References:

        How To Make GRUB Thumb Drive
        http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081748.0
        (and all the posts there – explains booting to and from an external HDD, beginning with Reply #1)

        How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
        http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
        General principles
        And see Reply #12: separate GRUB partitions.
        An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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          #5
          Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

          Qqmike-

          Thanks. Method 1 has the end result I'm looking for, so that's what I'll work toward. Looks like it won't be a 'quick' solution given my current skill level, but I believe I'll be able to make it happen. I appreciate the detailed post!

          DanG12
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            #6
            Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

            I forgot this one (using the map commands in menu.lst when XP is on a non-first hard drive):

            How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
            http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
            --- Install Windows XP *after* Kubuntu, and install XP to a non-first hard drive: map command Reply #12
            An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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              #7
              Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

              OK. So I've got the XP bootloader back up and running. When the external HD (xHD) is not plugged in, XP boots up automatically as desired. And, I followed the instructions given to set up grub on the MBR of the xHD, but now when I boot up with the xHD plugged in, while the grub menu comes up (so menu.lst is clearly being read), when I choose Kubuntu I get error 17, and when I choose WinXP I get error 13.

              I've read through everything that seemed related in the posts referenced by you and snowhog, but I can't for the life of me figure out what is going wrong. And, I can't figure out what to search for when looking up grub via Google - basically, I don't know enough to know what I don't know.

              Help!

              Thanks in advance for any input anyone can provide. I appreciate it.
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                #8
                Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

                Look into your /boot/grub/menu.lst on the external HDD, or post it here.

                The boot entry for Kubuntu should have:
                root (hd0,?)
                kernel etc etc
                initrd etc etc

                and the boot entry for XP should have
                root (hd1,??)
                map (hd1) (hd0)
                map (hd0) (hd1)
                chainloader +1

                ? = the partition that Kubuntu is on (on the external HDD)
                ?? = the partition XP is on (in the internal drive)
                An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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                  #9
                  Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

                  Got it. Thank you very much for your help - I appreciate it!
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                    #10
                    Re: grub config w/Kubuntu on external HD

                    You bet -- glad you got it figured out!
                    An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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