Installing Linux, a dual boot system with Windows and Linux

[NucleusKore]

PDF version of this guide - http://www.mediafire.com/?b1zushbgmeo
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Dual Boot with Ubuntu 8.10 - Click Here

Installing linux alongside windows can be quite daunting for new users. The fear of losing data is always there, besides other problems like corrupting your boot record, getting a completely unusable system at the end, etc.
The purpose of this tutorial is to simplify the process by the use of screenshots of an actual installation (a picture is equal to a thousand words someone said).
I have covered two flavours of linux, Ubuntu and OpenSUSE. The process is very similar in other
flavours.

Assesing your hard disk, partitions
To install linux on your PC you should first make some free space available on your hard disk for the install. Click
on Start->Control Panel->Performance and Maintainance->Administrative Tools->Computer Management



Click on Disk Management System



I have covered a few possible scenarios you might face.

• You have a 40 GB hard disk made into four more or less equal partitions. You can see your partitions and their corresponding drive letters (C,D,etc.) in the figure below.
  
  
  
  The idea is to free at least 20 GB for our linux install. This might seem like a lot and other's might disagree, but if you are looking for a full experience I'd recommend it. We will need this space later to make three partitons
  
  Swap - Space=1.5 to 2 times your RAM
  Root (designated as /) - stores your OS and system files, programs, etc. - Space approx 8GB
  Home (designated as /home) - like the Documents and Settings folder of Windows XP. Stores your preferences, bookmarks, wallpaper, My Documents and Desktop. - Space - remaining space
  
  The / is like the base directory in linux, into which all other directories (folders) are incorporated or "mounted". I took a very long time to understand the concept of "mounting". Don't worry about it for now, you will understand when the time is right.
  
  So here you will have to backup the data in the last two partitions by writing it to a CD or DVD or copying to another hard disk, and delete them as shown below
  
  
  
• You have a 40 GB hard disk with only one partition "C". This is the scenario in many laptops. The other partition may be a back up or EISA partition. Now you're in for a rough ride. If you have made the back up CDs and DVDs from the EISA partition using the tool the vendor has provided you, you can delete the EISA partiton but you will have to first backup your data, delete all partition using a partition manager like GParted, make a small C partiton, say 20 GB, with the ntfs filesystem using GParted, and then boot from your recovery cd/dvd and restore the system.
  

Resizing Partitions is something I do not recommend with any tool unless you have uninterrupted power supply in your part of the country/world or a power back up solution that lasts for a few hours.

Hardware check
With the advances in Linux and the new kernels this step may not be necessary, but will help you in troubleshooting later if required.
Click on Start->Control Panel->Performance and Maintainance->System
Click on the Hardware tab->Device Manager button
Make a note of the model numbers of your monitor, graphics card (display adapter), and any other devices.

Installing Linux
You are now going to install linux to the empty space on your hard disk that you prepared in the earlier step. Linux by itself is not a single monolithic entity unlike some popular operating systems. It is very much a collaborative effort. It consists of a core (also called a kernel) on which the entire system is built on an runs. Linux is modular. As you become more experienced, you will realise that you can add and remove modules depending on your requirement and create a highly customised system, to make a long story short - NO **** is forced down your throat. No hidden agandas, no long cryptic EULAs (the thingy which you blindly scroll down and click "I agree" without batting an eyelid), and no leash up your arse (pardon the bad language but that's exactly how I feel).

So let's get started !!

I shall first describe the installation with Ubuntu 8.04, followed by OpenSUSE 11.0
The first step in installing any linux distro involves booting from a live media, usually a CD or DVD.
Ubuntu CDs are available for free from SHIPIT
You can also download it from Ubuntu website or ask a LUG (Linux User Group) near you. SUSE CDs and DVDs can be downloaded from http://www.opensuse.org

To boot from the cd or dvd your bios should have it as the first boot device. Alternatively some bios allow you to select the boot device. The key used for this varies with different manufacturers. To see if your bios has a boot device select menu please refer the manual of your motherboard or take help from a more experienced friend.

I suggest you try the following - insert the cd or dvd and start your pc. If your pc boots too fast simply restart windows with the cd or dvd in the drive and see what happens. Very often the optical drive would have been set as the first boot device and the system boots from the cd automatically. If it still goes to windows and refuses to boot from your cd or dvd then you will have to adjust your bios settings or search for a boot menu as I described earlier.

Go to post number 19 of this thread for OpenSUSE installation or click here

Ubuntu Installation

If your pc boot successfully from your ubuntu cd you will see this screen



It is asking you to select the language. Use your arrow keys to select the system language and press ENTER. You will then get this screen

[NucleusKore]

Use the Up and Down arrow keys on your keyboard to select the option Install Ubuntu and press ENTER. The system will start booting.



You will see the Welcome screen in your language. Make sure your language selection is right and click forward



Select your timezone from the list, it is arranged by continent, and click forward



Select your keyboard type, most common is US International (see picture below), but make sure and use the test box made available to you to check your selection. Check not only for alphabets, capital and small, but also for special characters like ' " ? / + ; If all these are correct then your choice of keybord layout is fine, click forward



You will now be presented with the partitioning options. Ubuntu "intelligently" offers to resize your windows partition and do everything automatically. I advise AGAINST using this option, and instead select the manual option and click forward



You will now come to a screen which shows you the layout of partiitons on your hard disk. Note the nomenclature used in linux. The first hard disk is labelled as /dev/sda Partitions withing this are labelled as /dev/sda1 /dev/sda2 so on and so forth. Now in this example, there are some numbers missing inbetween as you can see. These have gone for the extended partition. /dev/sda5 is actually my D drive, but as it is not formatted it shows up as an unknown partition. /dev/sda1 is the C drive and has an ntfs filesystem.



Select free space and click on the "New Partition" button as shown below



Select type of partition logical, size 1.5 times your RAM (512 in this example), location for new partition Begining, Use as: swap area, and click OK



The proposed partition table layout will get updated as shown



and you will get this



Again select free space and click New Partition. Select type of partition logical, size 8000 MB or more, location for new partition Begining, Use as: Ext 3 journaling file system, mount point: / and click OK



The proposed partition table layout will get updated. Again select free space and click New Partition. Select type of partition logical, size: don't touch anything, let it be as it is, location for new partition Begining, Use as: Ext 3 journaling file system, mount point: /home and click OK. Note that you will manually have to type in the mount point in the box provided as /home

[NucleusKore]

This is how your proposed partition table layout finally looks like.



Remember, nothing has actually happened to your partitions as yet, this is just a proposed layout, so if you make a mistake in your newly created linux partitions you can simply go back and redo the partitioning. CLick Forward.

You will now be asked some details about yourself. You will have to give a password. Make sure you don't forget it. Click Forward



Import your windows settings. This is optional you can leave it unchecked as shown in the second figure and click forward.



Click Install, the installation will begin with the formatting and copying of files to your hard disk.


At the end of installation click on the Restart Now button



As the system shuts down, you will get a message telling you to remove the cd from the drive and press ENTER to reboot the system which you must do.


As the system boots for the first time after your installation, you will see this screen. This is the GRUB boot loader from where you can choose between Ubuntu Linux (first entry) and Windows (last entry), using the up and down arrow keys on your keyboard and press ENTER. If you do not respond in 10 seconds it will boot to Ubuntu automatically.

Enjoy your Ubuntu !!!



Optional: Installing the GAG Bootloader
Go to post number 23 of this thread or click here

[thewisecrab]

Thank You Thank You Thank You Thank You
This is EXACTLY what i needed
Thanks a million

[Cool G5]

Awesome post Nucleuskore. You have written in a very simple language & that's what I liked the most. The newbie's will find it easier to follow.

Reps for you.
This should be made sticky.

[thewisecrab]

But wait
I've got a prob...
I've got 4 partitions, roughly 50GB each
one partition is relatively empty
I want to give 10gb to ubuntu
so once i delete that partition,
how do i create a 40GB partition from the partition I deleted?
Also, what option do i select in the "partioning" part of ubuntu installation so that it installs by creating partition of the remaining space?
And how do I make Windows as first entry in GRUB?
Please reply

[ichi]

Originally Posted by thewisecrab

1.how do i create a 40GB partition from the partition I deleted?
2.Also, what option do i select in the "partioning" part of ubuntu installation so that it installs by creating partition of the remaining space?
3.And how do I make Windows as first entry in GRUB?
Please reply

1. Its as simple as create and then specifying size of 40GB
2. Once you have created a partition, its easy to go for custom partition.
3. First install linux, then its just a matter of changing a number in GRUB menu.lst file.


@Nukleuskore
Images speak for itself

[thewisecrab]

2. Once you have created a partition, its easy to go for custom partition

Plz forgive me for being a n00b...

[ichi]

^^I meant Manual Option (its like doing it yourself)
http://img230.imageshack.us/my.php?image=xp20lu4.png

See the mouse pointer. And read what Nucleuskore has written.

[Garbage]

Very nice tut Nucleuscore..

BTW, /me is asking admins to increase post character limits for NucleusCore..

[The Conqueror]

^Also the Image Limits
And What an amazing tutorial you have made!
Very Very Useful for those who are new to linux world.

[Garbage]

yeh.. He is coming with great HELP now a days...
@ NucleusCore bhai... kya khhate ho aaj kal ?? :P

Same for AptOnCD and OpenSuSE updates thread...

Keep it up...

[Krazy Bluez]

Best post on Linux installation, thanks, Now i am saving it for future use !

[NucleusKore]

This tutorial is far from over, still have to write about OpenSUSE. Hope to finish in a week. My parents and brothers are down on holiday, so everyone wants the PC. Will have it all to myself after the 27th.

[mediator]

All hail @nucleuskore. U shud contact Digit & offer to write the next magazine covering the same subject & ofcors for a moderate fee with which u may give a moderate party! Your efforts r admirable. Amazing tute man and so is ur site! Neat...................

Hope to see some 'M.D' stuff on ur site tooo.

[Ecko]

Shocked to see you were using windows for initial partitioning (rather formatting)
Ubuntu has got the best 1 ever I've seen & even i use live CD just for it
BTW excellent tut thumbs up

[IronManForever]

One Word; Mind-Blowing!

[NucleusKore]

Originally Posted by Ecko

Shocked to see you were using windows for initial partitioning (rather formatting)
Ubuntu has got the best 1 ever I've seen & even i use live CD just for it
BTW excellent tut thumbs up

This IS for windows users. Traditional Windows home users may find even the disk management system confusing if they see it for the first time.

[NucleusKore]

OpenSUSE Installation
If your pc boots successfully from your OpenSUSE DVD you will see this screen



Use the Up and Down arrow keys on your keyboard to select the option Installation and press ENTER. The system will start booting.



You will see the Welcome screen in your language. Make sure your language selection is right, tick I Agree and click next



Your system will be probed



Select New Installation, and uncheck Use Automatic Configuration



Select your timezone from the list, and click forward



Choose your desktop. I'd recommend GNOME desktop if you have <b>less than</b> 512 MB RAM, and KDE 3.5 if you have more than that.



You will now be presented with the partitioning options. OpenSUSE "intelligently" offers to resize your windows partition and do everything automatically. I advise AGAINST using this option, and instead click Create Partition Setup



Select Custom Partitioning (for experts)



You will now come to a screen which shows you the layout of partiitons on your hard disk. Note the nomenclature used in linux. The first hard disk is labelled as /dev/sda Partitions withing this are labelled as /dev/sda1 /dev/sda2 so on and so forth. Now in this example, there are some numbers missing inbetween as you can see. These have gone for the extended partition. /dev/sda5 is actually my D drive, but as it is not formatted it shows up as an unknown partition. /dev/sda1 is the C drive and has an ntfs filesystem.

[NucleusKore]

Select /dev/sda and click on the the Create button, you will get a dialog box as shown below



Click the dropdown list against filesystem and select swap



You now have to enter the size of the swap partition. For example, if you want a partition of 512 MB size, in the End box type +512M as shown below. If you want 1 GB then you have to type +1GB. Swap partition size is typically 1.5 to 2 times the amount of RAM you have.




Click OK. Now again select /dev/sda and click on the the Create button, you will get a dialog box as shown below. Select the filesystem as ext3, End as +8GB, mount point as /



Click OK. Now again select /dev/sda and click on the the Create button, you will get a dialog box as shown below. Select the filesystem as ext3, mount point as /home
Leave the End value as it is



The proposed partition table layout will get updated as shown



You now have to mount your Windows partitions. This will enable you to read and write to your windows partitions from linux. Windows partitions are marked as ntfs, fat16 or fat32 in the partitoner. Usually, as is also the case in this example, the C drive corresponds to the first partition on the hard disk, so it is /dev/sda1
You can also confirm this by seeing the size of the partiton in the partitioner (I am assuming that you know the size of your windows drives/partitions). So select /dev/sda1 and click Edit. You will get this dialog box



Now type /windows/c as shown in the mount point box. Click on Fstab options



In this tick mountable by user, and in the Arbitrary option value box add the entry

umask=0002

inbetween users, and fmask=133
so it should read

....users,umask=0002,fmask=133....

Please note it is umask and not unmask Click OK

Do the same for other windows partitions, the only difference being the difference in mount point. D will become /windows/d E will become /windows/E so on and so forth. There is no need to mount the partition marked as extended partition.

This is how your proposed partition table layout finally looks like.



Remember, nothing has actually happened to your partitions as yet, this is just a proposed layout, so if you make a mistake in your newly created linux partitions you can simply go back and redo the partitioning. Note the partition table down in a book and keep it safely. You will require it to rescue your system if need be, and to install the GAG boot loader later (optional but desirable). Click Next.

You will be shown, one last time the partitioning tasks that the installer is going to perform. Click Next



You will now be asked some details about yourself. You will have to give a password. Make sure you don't forget it. I have unchecked Automatic login and Use this password for system administrator. This need not be done if you wish so. I am kind of fixated with the traditional OpenSUSE install. Fill in the details and click next.



If your password is weak you will get these prompts. I usually give yes to override them, this is optional, you may take them seriously and give a strong password if you are in a multiuser environment.

[NucleusKore]

Key in your root password (also called administrator password) and click next



You will now be shown an overview of system wide changes that are going to be made and what is going to be installed.



Click on Booting. As you can see there is a tick mark against OpenSUSE indicating that it will boot automatically in case you do not make an OS selection in 10 seconds at the time of booting. In case you want to make Windows the default select windows and click Set as Default, and click OK. Else leave it as it is.



You will be shown an updated overview of system wide changes that are going to be made and what is going to be installed.



Click Install, and in the popup dialog box, Install.



You will be shown your host name and domain name. Leave everything as it is unless you know what you're doing. Click Next



The Network Configuration will come up.



Click Disable IPv6. You'll get this warning. Click OK and click next.

[NucleusKore]

Click Next till you get the hardware configuration window.



OpenSUSE will automatically probe your system and configure your hardware. Your screen may blank momentarily to configure your display, don't panic ! Just wait patiently. You can configure your printer from here.



Click Next, and then Finish.



Enjoy your OpenSUSE Linux!!!

[NucleusKore]

This may be difficult for first time users who have no idea on command line usage in dos or windows. If you are familiar with the cd command to browse directories then you may proceed with Method 1, else use Method 2.

Ubuntu and OpenSUSE by default use the GRUB bootloader which is again, by default, written to the first sector of your hard disk, a location for the Master Boot Record (MBR). If anything happens to this boot record because of a virus attack or a system bug your system simply won't boot. Updating Ubuntu or OpenSUSE over the internet, updates (especially kernel updates) sometimes mess up the boot loader because of wrong entries or pointing. You'll find enough of these instances in the official forums. This can be avoided if you put your GRUB bootloader in your / partition instead of your MBR. In your MBR you can install any third party bootloader like GAG as I have described below. This is optional and if you are happy with GRUB you need not install GAG. If you want to learn more about GRUB go through this wonderful article.

Install GRUB to your root partition. In a terminal type

grub-install /dev/root_partition

where root_partition is your root partition, and press ENTER. An example: if /dev/sda7 is your root partition, just type:

grub-install /dev/sda7

Close terminal

Download GAG from here

http://www.mediafire.com/?q1hhft5azyi

You can also get the latest version from here
http://gag.sourceforge.net/download.html

Save it on your linux desktop.

Installation Method 1:
Right click on the file and select Extract here. Open a terminal and browse to the folder using the cd command. In that folder enter the linux folder using the cd command.

At prompt type

sudo ./copy-file.sh

and press ENTER

Then type

sudo ./gag-install /dev/sda

and press ENTER. If this does not work (in OpenSUSE), type su and press ENTER to become root, and then type

./gag-install /dev/sda

and press ENTER.

Restart your PC

Installation Method 2 (EASY):
Right click on the file you just downloaded and select Extract here. Open the folder, you will find a file cdrom.iso in it, write that file to a cd using the default cd writing software in linux (simply double click on it and burn). Restart your PC and boot from the cd.


Whichever of the above you have followed, you will now get this screen



Press 4 to install GAG. You will get this screen next



Select your keyboard (usually 1 in India)

then your language



You will then come to this screen. press S to setup the bootloader



The alphabets you have to press to execute a function are highlighted in red in the GAG set up screen. Keys are case insensitive. Press A to add an operating system



As you can see, partition A is the floppy, B is the first windows partition, so press B



You will now have to type a name, say Windows



You will have to now type a password, optionally, so press ENTER to avoid giving one



You now have to select an icon, Press C for windows



Now you will come back to this screen


Press A to add an operating system



Now if you remember the first partition you made was swap, so that's D, followed by /, that's E over here (refer the partition table in your notes). So press E (in this example).

You will now have to type a name, say Linux


You will have to now type a password, optionally, so press ENTER to avoid giving one



You now have to select an icon, Press D for Linux



Now you will come back to this screen

[NucleusKore]

Press H to save in the hard disk, you will get this message, press ENTER



Press R to return to the main menu, you should see this



Extra options in the setup include setting a timer for a default OS to boot.
Read the index.html file in the docs folder of the gag file you downloaded.
All the best !!!

[Garbage]

OMG... It's superb...

Requesting mod for STICKY !!!

[ichi]

awesome, openSUSE looks way better than Ubuntu.
Am tempting to install it over Ubuntu now, as am using Arch mainly
thanks for this nice tut.

[The Conqueror]

OpenSuSE Looks cool...

[NucleusKore]

PDF version of this guide - http://www.mediafire.com/?vuvfmgfm02j
md5sum 42befee063ab7317d5791d8983ca6052

[ichi]

^^thanks
How do you convert it to pdf ?

[NucleusKore]

Using OpenOffice 2.4.0
That's one of the lesser known features of OpenOffice. Even in OpenOffice 1.4 we had the option of exporting our files as pdf and swf !!
All we have to do is type our document and click the pdf icon in the openoffice writer toolbar