[Ma-linux] Converting Linux/XP Dual Boot to XP + VMWare/Linux

[Igor Birman]

You can install Windows over an existing installation but I would not recommend it - if you want to save yourself from headaches later reformat the drive and re-install from scratch. 

Check out wubi instead of VM ware: http://wubi-installer.org/.  If you do go with VM ware, check out EasyVMX: http://www.easyvmx.com/

Igor



________________________________
From: Kevin Kitts <kevin.kitts at gmail.com>
To: Igor Birman <igor_birman at yahoo.com>
Cc: ma-linux at calypso.tux.org
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2008 4:52:49 PM
Subject: Re: [Ma-linux] Converting Linux/XP Dual Boot to XP + VMWare/Linux

Thanks for the tips. I have grovelled to the Indian dudes before a few years ago - very painful - took almost an hour. I paid for a "full retail" version of XP years ago instead of getting an "OEM" copy so that I would be able to put XP on a new system if needed. I'm well aware that I'll need to re-activate - and I am just hoping for the best in terms of hardware/XP compatibility. 

If I have to re-install XP from scratch do I have to reformat the disk - or can I just overwrite the Windows XP related directories and then re-install my apps. I have a couple of apps that require a license key - but I have the license keys saved on a server and can re-install/key them later. I hate software with license codes!

Ubuntu seems to be all the rage these days - I think I will install that with VMWare. At work I have a dual 90" LCD system. I can run XP on the left screen and SUSE on the right screen simultaneously - great fun... ;-)

Kevin


On Mon, Nov 17, 2008 at 4:13 PM, Igor Birman <igor_birman at yahoo.com> wrote:

You can make the windows CD bootable:

Put the new drive in the new computer
Boot off the windows CD and select the Repair option
This will eventually bring you to a command prompt
Type: fixboot and press Enter, then type fixmbr and press Enter.

You will now be able to boot into the windows partition.

However, windows may or may not allow you to go further depending on how much it wants you to pay for another copy that day.  If it does let you get to the desktop, then you can install any new drivers and you are good to go.  You will probably have to re-activate windows, and since you won't have any network drivers installed, you will have to call the 800 number and grovel to the bored Indian dude on the other end of the line.  It's possible that you won't be able to get far enough to re-activate windows at all, in which case you will have to re-install windows from scratch.

You don't actually have the right to re-activate windows on a new motherboard, but they will do it anyway for you because they are so nice.

Or, you could pop in an Ubuntu CD and be up and running in 15 minutes :)

Igor



________________________________
From: Kevin Kitts <kevin.kitts at gmail.com>
To: ma-linux at calypso.tux.org
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2008 3:51:38 PM
Subject: [Ma-linux] Converting Linux/XP Dual Boot to XP + VMWare/Linux


Hi Everyone,
  I had a very nice little system (a shuttle SN25P) which I'd configured with 2 disk drives - one booted into SUSE Linux and the other drive booted into Windows XP. SUSE 10.x controlled the bootup process. Recently, my house had a "power sag/surge" - the lights dimmed briefly and then came back up. When the lights came back up my APC UPS made a loud buzzing sound and the Shuttle SN25P that was connected to the UPS just "blinked off". I've spent a few hours trouble-shooting including contacting shuttle (the system is 3 years old and out of warranty) - I'm not sure if it is the power supply or the motherboard - but I'm just planning to put the hard disks and video card into a new system.

I'd like to convert the Windows XP disk so that it can boot my new system with only the XP disk and I plan to just put VMWare on the new system and use it to run some new version of Linux. I don't really care if I recover the Linux disk - I have all my documents/files on a server I can restore later. However, I'd like to convert the XP disk so that it boots on it's own without the Linux disk being in the new system. Is there any easy way to do this? Incidentally, I have a "real" copy of Windows XP - I forget the name - but it is *not* the version of XP that ships with someting like a Dell system and can't be moved to a new computer.

Incidentally, I contacted APC about their warranty to replace computer equipment damaged while connected to their UPS. I've waited 30 days but my case is still under review. I'm not sure if there is much residual value in a 3 year old computer system anyway... will be interesting to see what they do...

Any advice most apprec.

Thanks,

Kevin
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://calypso.tux.org/pipermail/ma-linux/attachments/20081118/4457be16/attachment-0001.html