Debian 3.0r0 and WinME - Linux Setup, Configuration & Administration

[Ayn Sof]

Hey guys,
I saw the light a few weeks ago and decided to install Debian 3.0r0
alongside Windows ME. It was my first time installing any OS (let alone
Linux) but it was all good. The only problem is now when I try to boot up,
Lilo comes up all right, and I can boot Linux fine, but it won't boot
Windows. The only way I can do it is by booting from the rescue disk of
Boot Magic and choosing Windows. But then - hurray - Boot Magic comes up
instead of Lilo, and Linux doesn't boot . I've tried adjusting the
lilo.conf file in Linux, but it doesn't seem to help. I have a feeling it
might be a problem with the Windows partition wanting to be active or
something. If anybody has any ideas, I'd be really grateful,

James

[John Doe]

In article <3f6e6e88$0$23598$5a62ac22freenews.iinet.net.au >, Ayn Sof wrote:

> Hey guys,
> I saw the light a few weeks ago and decided to install Debian 3.0r0
> alongside Windows ME. It was my first time installing any OS (let alone
> Linux) but it was all good. The only problem is now when I try to boot up,
> Lilo comes up all right, and I can boot Linux fine, but it won't boot
> Windows. The only way I can do it is by booting from the rescue disk of

Need some detail here. Do you not have the option to boot into windows
(i.e. is 'win' or 'dos', or something like that, not one of the options
you can choose from?)

or you *do* have the option and it just doesn't work when you select it?

> Boot Magic and choosing Windows. But then - hurray - Boot Magic comes up
> instead of Lilo, and Linux doesn't boot . I've tried adjusting the
> lilo.conf file in Linux, but it doesn't seem to help. I have a feeling it
> might be a problem with the Windows partition wanting to be active or
> something. If anybody has any ideas, I'd be really grateful,
>
> James
>

having heard so many horror stories about dual booting with WinXP, I
just avoid lilo all together. During setup, when prompted to 'make my
system bootable' I just skip through all that. I do make sure to make a
boot floppy, though. That way... I have *manual* control over what I
boot into.

- Joe

[mjt]

Ayn Sof wrote:

> something. If anybody has any ideas, I'd be really grateful,

.... show us the output of:
# fdisk -l /dev/hd*

and the contents of /etc/lilo.conf
..
--
/// Michael J. Tobler: motorcyclist, surfer, skydiver, \\\
\\\ and author: "Inside Linux", "C++ HowTo", "C++ Unleashed" ///
\\\ [url]http://pages.sbcglobal.net/mtobler/mjt_linux_page.html[/url] ///
Q: Where can you buy black lace crotchless panties for sheep?
A: Fredrick's of Ithaca, New York.

[Ayn]

I _do_ have the option for windows/dos, it's just that when it tries to
boot, it tells me that a:\ifshlp.sys doesn't exist or is corrupted, and then
that a:\system\vmm32.vxd is missing or corrupted, and to please enter the
name of the windows loader (ie. c:\windows\system\vmm32.vxd). This freaked
me out the first time I saw it, 'cause I thought windows had been corrupted
by installing Linux, but windows _works_ when I boot from the Boot Magic
disk (but not from the windows boot disk). It's very weird.
When I'm in windows and I try to boot Linux, all I get is "Preparing the
machine to boot 'Linux'...". And it just sits there. Oh, and I tried to
make bootable floppies in the install, but it didn't recognize any of the
disks that I tried. Hmm...

I can't really send you the info on the boot partition table and lilo.conf
directly, 'cause I haven't yet gotten anything running on that computer, but
I can tell you that fdisk said that the windows partition is hidden (does
that mean anything?) on hda1, and Linux is the OS that it boots from first,
and it's on hda2. Lilo is supposed to be booting windows from hda1, which
should be right.

I hope you guys can make something out of that. Thanks,

James

[Hielke]

> I can't really send you the info on the boot partition table and lilo.conf 
but 
first, 

did you run the program lilo? u'll have to run 'lilo' after changing the
lili.conf.

[Ayn]

Yeah, I did - I reran lilo.conf after I made the changes but Windows still
wouldn't boot from Lilo, and Linux still won't boot from my Windows loader.
It's really weird. Someone said it might have something to do with the
active partition settings or something. I have no idea. I might just have
to change my 3.5" drive to one that Linux recognises, and make a boot disk
for Windows and Linux and load them manually.

"Hielke Hoeve" <nl> wrote in message
news:bn17sa$rko$civ.utwente.nl... [/ref]
lilo.conf 
> but [/ref]
(does 
> first, [/ref]
which 
>
> did you run the program lilo? u'll have to run 'lilo' after changing the
> lili.conf.
>
>[/ref]

[Michael]

On Thu, 30 Oct 2003 14:54:47 +1100,
Ayn Sof <com> wrote: 
Post a copy of

fdisk -l /dev/hda

and your /etc/lilo.conf
(You can omit the comments.)

And where is your boot manager installed? If you're considering booting
with floppies you might as well just use LILO as your boot loader.


Michael C.
--
com http://mcsuper5.freeshell.org/
Registered Linux User #303915 http://counter.li.org/