W2K and Linux mandrake 8.0

[wide angle]

Hi Guys

Presently I have W2K pro on my system which has 3 partition (NTFS) C: for the OS D: Empty E: data files

I got mandrake 8.0 and wish to install on D: partition

Is this possible or I have to install fresh without any other OS?

Thanks for your valuable reply.

Henry

[aym]

it's possible to install Mandrake without losing the other OS, but Mandrake uses another file system, so you can't install it on D:, you need to free some space on your hrad disk (by deleting the last partition), and then you can install it.

[wide angle]

What File Sytem should I use to install
mandrake?

[aym]

Mandrake will do the job for you, I think that you can delete the NTFS partition and create Linux partition during the setup process, RedHat's setup does so, not sure about Mandrake.
Linux file system is called ext3, you'll need at least one ext3 partition and a swap partition.

[jglen490]

Originally posted by aym_7 it's possible to install Mandrake without losing the other OS, but Mandrake uses another file system, so you can't install it on D:, you need to free some space on your hrad disk (by deleting the last partition), and then you can install it.

Mandrake 8.0 will go onto your "D:" drive just fine. Use the "Expert" mode in the installer, take your time, read what it is telling you, and think before you answer any questions it asks. When you get to the place where it sets up the filesystems, Linux needs to direct the installer to the unused "D:" partition which will probably be identified as "hda2" (or possibly "hda5", as a logical partition). (Corrected really bad run-on sentence!)

The installer will ask you to set how many partitions you want and what filesystem type each partition will use. You will need two partitions: one will be a swap partition (Linux swap - filesystem type), the other will be the "/" (root) partition (use Linux ext3 - filesystem type). You could set up many more partitions, but as this is your first try at Linux and you are dual-booting with WinXP, I would recommend a minimal approach.

You will also be asked to install a boot manager - your choice of Grub or Lilo - and you will be asked where to install it. My recommandation is to install Grub, on the MBR not the boot sector. As long as you give WinXP a name when prompted (i.e., "WinXP") and properly identify or confirm where it is located (probably "hda1"), you shopuld have no problem. Thousands of people have taken this approach. There are other ways to dual-boot, but this is probably the simplest.

Study this, come back with questions. Hope you enjoy your Linux experience !!

[aym]

No you are wrong here, after that, drive D: will be lost or resized, and new partitions will be created for mandrake, so it won't be installed on drive D:
If Mandrake is really installed on drive D:, then Windows should be able to read Mandrake files just fine, but this won't happen, because Mandrake uses ext3 not NTFS or FAT, and Windows can't read ext3

[jglen490]

O.K. -- to clarify. You can use the partition that currently is your "D: drive" as the space on which to install your Linux. The Mandrake 8.0 installer, when used in the "Expert" mode will detect available space and then you can select the hard drive area (i.e., your current D: drive) that you want to use for your Linux installation.

Then continue on as described in my second paragraph.

Now, what is currently your E: drive will likely be re-identified as "D:", but I'm not sure if Win2K does that. If all that is on the partition is data, then the worst that could happen is that some of your references in Win2K apps to specific data file locations may be mis-identified, though still existing, after your Linux install.

On the other hand, you may decide to move your data to your present D: drive and then use the partition that is your present E: drive as Mandrake's home. That'll be your choice !!

[aym]

Originally posted by jglen490 ... On the other hand, you may decide to move your data to your present D: drive and then use the partition that is your present E: drive as Mandrake's home. That'll be your choice !!

This what I recommended in my first post, and I still recommend it.

[Dswissmiss]

quick comment...mandrake 8.0 is over a year old. version 9.0 just came out a few days ago, you should check it out.

i'm also new to linux and mandrake, its very intimidating at first, but i'm really starting to get into it

good luck