I want to set up my system to dual boot Vista/openSUSE. What is the most efficient way to do it?

Question

I want to have 3 partitions: 15Gb Vista, 15Gb openSUSE, and the rest (approx. 130Gb) data storage. I am starting with a pure Vista machine. I beleive that the easiest way would be to shrink the Vista partition down to 15Gb, and then simply install openSUSE and then re-partition. However, Vista has issues shrinking volumes that small.

Answer 1

a 15GB partition for v!$t0 is not a good idea as the c:\windows\winsxs directory temds to grow rather quickly in the GBs size (this can easily reach 10 to 20 GB

it is thus advisable to leave the LostDOS partition to @ least 30 to 40 GB.

as the partition resizing in the disk Management provided by LostDOS doesn't allow to resize its partition to less then 1/2 the HD (or so) you have to use another tool like explained here

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/using-gparted-to-resize-your-windows-vista-partition/



if you don't have a v!$t0 DVD, you can get a recovery disc originally created & distributed by m$ (for free) from http://neosmart.net/blog/2008/windows-vista-recovery-disc-download/



the most important thing to remember when installing several OSes on a computer is NOT USING THE MBR (master boot record)

LostDOS doesn't (easy enough, they usually come installed on the 1st (and only) partition of the 1st (and only) hard disk, thus not much can go wrong) not even when installed after another OS (either an other LostDOS, in which case they include the previous instance in the boot menu of the more recent install or if it is a non m@ke$$h!t OS, just leaving it alone)



if you want to install openSUSE afterwards, it is very easy to configure GRUB (the boot loader that comes by default w/ openSUSE) in such a way that you can choose to start either openSUSE or LostDOS when starting up the PC AND can easily return to boot directly from LostDOS if you choose to remove openSUSE

or easily go on using only openSUSE once you feel comfortable enough w/ it & recover the (wasted) space of the LostDOS partition >:)



put the openSUSE DVD into the DVD drive of your PC and power it off completely

(sometimes, upon rebooting, the BIOS / NVRam & all don't get reset completely which can lead to conflicts if a different OS is started afterwards)



when the PC starts up select the DVD as boot media (one time boot menu or set the DVD drive as primary boot device in the BIOS menu).

as this is most likely the 1st install you make w/ this DVD it is advisable to check the installation media before starting the installation (it can be annoying & quite tricky to troubleshoot if the install fails near the end because some program source it needs to install is corrupt; as the boot menu / configuration is the last thing done before rebooting, you may have to change the active partition (the one from which the PC boots) with an utility disk or with the LostDOS install mediaa (if you have one)

arrow down to Check installation media & press Enter key

if you get a No error found pop-up, click okay to proceed to the actual installation.

if the check is not okay, return to LostDOS &

1st run a md5sun (shasun) program against the ISO image to make sure it is not corrupt

( http://www.irnis.net/gloss/md5sum-windows.shtml )

if the ISO is corrupt, try downloading it w/ a torrent program, as checksum verfification is part of the torrent download process.

if it is okay, burn it again & choose the option to have the burning program check the media after completion. if it is not okay, burn @ a lower speed or use another media.



once the installation starts, accept the license & all (Next)

when @ the Installation Mode page UNCHECK "Use Automatic Installation" (!)

continue w/ the setup until you get to the Disk step & click "Create Partition Setup"

choose "Custom Partitioning"

create the two partitions as you wish.

it is advisable to create a dedicated SWAP partition (a 4th one in your case) of about twice the size of RAM

continue with the setup until you get to the "Installation Settings" page

under the Booting section, make sure that the option

"Boot from "/" partition is enabled"

if it is not, click on the link next to it to enable it

review the other settings and once satisfied click on Install



if you ever wish to remove the openSUSE partition...

open a command shell in openSUSE

as root start the command > fdisk /dev/sda

type a to active a partition

choose partition 1 to make the LostDOS partition the one from which the pc boots

type a (again) to inactivate the openSUSE root ("/") parition

choose partition 2 (according to your question)

type w to save & exit

once you reboot v!$t0 will start right away & once there you will be able to reformat the openSUSE partition(s)

Answer 2

You simply install whatever Operating system u want by partitioning your drive during the install and when you boot up your system would automatically ask for which OS u have to use!!!

Answer 3

hi jay, first thing u do, dont go for vista.. Install win7. U will thank me later bro. I will give 1 idea. Use software called VMware. You can use both linux and windows at a time using it..

Answer 4

I would create a virtual machine that would run on vista, programs such as virtual machine and virtual box can do this