FC2 Install does not Create Boot DISK?

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Fri, 10 Sep 2004, Edward wrote:
>
> John Best wrote:
>
> > I finally got my LINUX system installed.  But one issue remains.
> >
> > I specified not to use the grub loader to prevent possible corruption/issues
> > with my existing windows system.
>
> [...]
>
> >
> > Or is there a way I can get to linux to make the boot disk?  (USE RESCUE???)
>
> You can use Windows.
>
> OR - you could simply install grub. If you're worried about corruption,
> you may have a right to be, because there has been some dual booting
> issues with FC2, but you have your backup, and there have been fixes for
> this issue for a long time. Again, archives, faq, release notes or
> google will turn it up.

For anyone reading this thread and considering installing FC2:

"Corruption" is a very misleading way to refer to the dual-boot problem.
There is a mismatch between partition table formats of FC2 and Windows
that may temporarily render your Windows installation unreadable if you
aren't careful about how you install FC2.  It doesn't depend on the
bootloader, though, and it is easily repaired and involves *no loss of
data*.  See, e.g., http://www.ces.clemson.edu/linux/fc2.shtml.

If you are worried about losing the Windows MBR, install grub on the
partition containing /boot (must be primary).  You will then need to boot
with rescue and use fdisk to set that partition active.  This is how I
configure my dual-boot machine, and it works great.  The MBR stays intact,
so all I need to do to turn the machine back into "pure" Windows (for
service calls) is to make the /boot partition inactive.

-- 
		Matthew Saltzman

Clemson University Math Sciences
mjs AT clemson DOT edu
http://www.math.clemson.edu/~mjs