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**vinnywright** · Feb 09, 2011, 04:21 PM

Re: Trying to set up xp pro 64 and Kubuntu dual boot

it sounds like grub(the boot loader) got installed to the partition Kubuntu was installed to...... instead of the MBR you can reinstall it from the live cd

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1195275

thare are allso wayes to have the windows loader boot Kubuntu......google it.

just a FYI Kubuntu-10.04-LTS has x86-64 as well.......and for stability is recommended........ unless you just whant the latest

VINNY

**oshunluvr** · Feb 10, 2011, 06:22 AM

Re: Trying to set up xp pro 64 and Kubuntu dual boot

The F8 function doesn't work because Windows does not identify any filesystems other than it's own.

To expand a bit on what Vinny is talking about:

When you do a linux install, most installers offer you the option of not installing the bootloader (grub-pc AKA grub2 on Kubuntu) or if you do choose to install grub, allows you to select where to install it.

Since your computer is still booting directly into windows, it seems likely you opted to not install grub or installed it to a partition instead of the hard drive Master Boot Record.

You may know some of this already: Linux refers to hard drives and their partitions as devices and letters/numbers them for access and identification. In your case, I am assuming you have only one drive so it will be labeled as sda and referenced as /dev/sda.

dev = device
sda = scsi drive A

From there, each partition is numbered. A hard drive can hold 4 Primary partitions, one of these can be an Extended partition, the Extended partition can hold Logical partitions (practical limitation is 15 partitions maximum per drive). Logical partitions begin numbering at 5.

Therefore; Primary partition 1 = /dev/sda1. Note that an Extended partition is not accessed directly by a filesystem so you won't be addressing it directly, rather you address the Logical partitions it contains.

Grub, to be booted to at power-on needs to be installed to the MBR as I said before, so you address the drive as a whole and install it to /dev/sda, not /dev/sda2 or any other partition.

At this point for you I suggest the following:

Repartition your hard drive for a better linux experience. Currently (my assumption) you have two primary partitions 90GB for WinXp and 70GB remaining. Leave WinXP alone, delete the 70GB partition and create 1 small Primary partition for swap and an Extended partition with 2 Logical partitions in it.

The size of these will vary a bit depending on your needs. If you're using a laptop, swap should equal your RAM in size. For a desktop, it should be 2-4GB or equal to RAM if you want to use hibernation.

The first Logical partition is for your linux install (referred to as "root" or "/") and the second is for /home (which contains your personal files and settings). Separating your /home from your / is important for data safety and will facilitate future upgrades or re-installs. / should be 8 to 16GB and /home whatever is left. I'd suggest 16GB at this point since you're migrating from Windows and you might want to install a ton of programs to try or even (gasp) other desktops than KDE.

This leaves your drive like so:

Primary Partition 1 = /dev/sda1 = WinXP 90GB
Primary Partition 2 = /dev/sda2 = swap 4GB
Primary Partition 3 = /dev/sda3 = Extended (all remaining)
Logical Partition 1 = /dev/sda5 = / 16GB
Logical Partition 2 = /dev/sda6 = /home 50GB

The Kubuntu LiveCD will allow you to re-partition the drive and re-run the installer. I suggest partitioning and formatting before running the install. In my experience this seems to go somewhat smoother than trying to do it from within the installer. If I recall correctly, the installer will ask if you want to install the Boot Manager to your first hard drive - be sure to answer "Yes."

Oh, and welcome to the Kubuntu community!

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Trying to set up xp pro 64 and Kubuntu dual boot

Trying to set up xp pro 64 and Kubuntu dual boot

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