MSWindows/NT or MSWindows/2000

GNU/Linux Desktop Survival Guide
by Graham Williams

MSWindows/NT or MSWindows/2000

Set up MSWindows/NT or MSWindows/2000 and it will automatically set up a dual boot for any DOS or MSWindows/95 system installed. If you install MSWindows/95 after installing MSWindows/NT it will break the MSWindows/NT boot mechanism and you'll have to repair it.

Next install Linux but don't let lilo install a master boot record (although in my recipe below I do). Instead have it install a boot record to the root partition. You probably also want to create a boot floppy so you can boot your Linux system the first time after installation.

MINI and Velox (98.30): After compiling the kernel set up dual boot. Use LILO to install boot sect in MBR. On MINI /etc/lilo.conf is:

  boot=/dev/hda
  root=/dev/hda2

Run lilo:

  # lilo
  Added 2.2.18 *

After running lilo (if you overwrite the master boot record--MBR) you can no longer boot into MSWindows/NT immediately. But, lilo stores a backup MBR in /boot/boot.0300, so don't despair. Copy the lilo boot sector to file then restore the MSWindows/NT MBR using lilo -u.

The recipe is:

  # dd if=/dev/hda of=/root/bootsect.lnx bs=512 count=1
  # mcopy /root/bootsect.lnx a:
  # lilo -u /dev/hda

  # reboot (into NT)
  C:\>copy a:\bootsect.lnx c:\bootsect.lnx
  C:\>attrib -s -r c:\boot.ini 
  C:\>notepad c:\boot.ini
    [boot loader]
    timeout=5
    default=C:\bootsect.lnx
    [operating systems]
    C:\bootsect.lnx="Debian GNU/Linux"
    multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Windows..." 
    multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Windows..." 
    C:\>attrib +s +r c:\boot.ini 
    C:\>reboot (into Linux)

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MSWindows/NT or MSWindows/2000