Booting Linux and WinXP from the same drive.

[QuickSilver]

Ok, I have never tried this particular arrangement before, so I need to ask some stupid newbie questions, if you don't mind. I want to install WinXP and Linux on the same HDD. Obviously, this would require a seperate partition for each. The question is, how will I be able to select which OS I want to boot to at startup?

[QuickSilver]

I'm seeing some stuff here and there about something called Lilo/Grub that helps with this. Is it something that comes with Linux? Is it just an option you select during the install process, or is it it's own program?

[ZeratulsAvenger]

Lilo or Grub are bootmanagers that come standard with Linux distro's(well all the ones I have seen) and during your installation precedure of Linux it will ask you if you want to install Lilo or Grub(some have one, some have the other, some have both I think) and you say "Yes," and install it in the MBR if I recall(Mine kinda screwed up somehow, twice, maybe I am installing it on the wrong place although that worked the other 4-5 times I have install linux ). Then you should be allowed to configure which partition is set as the default to boot, and a time limit for how long it wait to boot that(if you want the other you select it during the countdown and press return). If it doesn't allow you to configure it there, you can manually edit it in Linux.

What you will then have is as the computer boots you are given a screen of different Paritions names, "DOS" was the default for Windows on one of my installs, and Linux being the other. You select which one you want to boot with the arrow keys and press enter and it starts booting. Voila!

[QuickSilver]

Ok, great! Thanks for the imput! Also, how does Linux get along with SATA?

[ZeratulsAvenger]

Link

With sata support, it's really not about the disks, it's all about the controller. If you're using kernel 2.6, most of today's sata controllers are supported, but in controller only fashion, mostly not RAID. The only raid exceptions are 3ware cards (which still use a SATA to PATA bridge on the card) and well, thats about it as far as OSS drivers. For controllers, most promise controllers are supported, sillicon image has the Sil3112 and Sil3114 chipsets, both supported, Intel has the Ich6 which uses piix module and it's supported. VIA has a few out there, supported as well. We use SATA in most of the workstation Pogo sells, as well as some of the servers. On the whole it's been pretty decent, although you run into some weirdness at times. Like some SATA drivers (those part of libata) 'give' the disk to the OS as a SCSI disk, so you have certian limitations (like partition numbers), while other SATA controllers report as a regular IDE device. It can be quite confusing at times. Also, many vendors are toeing the line between SATA-I and SATA-II, so they'll have all the SATA-I features, but also use some SATA-II features which may or may not be supported in Linux. But, if you're just looking for a new way to connect your disks, then SATA is pretty cool.

[QuickSilver]

Thanks for all the helpful info. Much appreciated!

[neouser99]

Check this out:

Link

-neo

[QuickSilver]

OK, I installed Fedora with Grub, but I must have goofed something up because it doesn't ask me to select an OS, it just boots right into XP, no count down or anything. How can I go back and reconfigure Grub?