On Fri, Oct 15, 2010 at 11:05 AM, Felix Miata <mrmazda@earthlink.net> wrote:

On 2010/10/15 10:09 (GMT-0400) Chuck Payne composed:

...

That is because Windows over wrote the the grubs. It's always best to install Windows then openSUSE or any Linux.

Only occasionally is that actually true. The problem is the virtual inevitability of Windows needing to be _re-installed_. Do you expect everyone to re-install Linux after each re-installation of Windows? That's ludicrous!

Instead, plan for the re-installation of Windows, in part by not needing Grub on the MBR in the first place, instead being content to use _standard_ MBR code for all installed operating systems, and install Grub always and only on a partition. http://fm.no-ip.com/PC/install-doz-after.html gives a short course how. http://old-en.opensuse.org/Bugs/grub#How_does_a_PC_boot_.2F_How_can_I_set_up... confirms the preference for partition installation location for Grub. -- "The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive." Proverbs 16:21 (New Living Translation)

 Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata  ***  http://fm.no-ip.com/ -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

What I meant, before it become a flame war, is when I install a new system. I install Windows then Linux. You are right. I only stated so that he understands that Windows will overwrite grub on the master boot record. :-) -- ----------------------------------------- Discover it! Enjoy it! Share it! openSUSE Linux. ----------------------------------------- openSUSE -- en.opensuse.org/User:Terrorpup openSUSE Ambassador/openSUSE Member skype,twiiter,identica,friendfeed -- terrorpup freenode(irc) --terrorpup/lupinstein Have you tried SUSE Studio? Need to create a Live CD,  an app you want to package and distribute , or create your own linux distro. Give SUSE Studio a try. www.susestudio.com. -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On 10/15/2010 11:39 AM, Mark Misulich wrote:

In my case, I had an xp install disk from the original computer that I rebuilt. However, when I tried to install it after replacing all the parts inside, I found that xp wouldn't install. My best guess is that dell keyed it to the old system.

dmidecode is your friend here. Also, if you want to virtualize any windows os (regardless of manuf. coding), you can customize how virtualbox reports the dmi information for any machine. See the virtualbox docs for specifics (IIRC the dmi mods are either in chap. 10 or 13) -- David C. Rankin, J.D.,P.E. Rankin Law Firm, PLLC 510 Ochiltree Street Nacogdoches, Texas 75961 Telephone: (936) 715-9333 Facsimile: (936) 715-9339 www.rankinlawfirm.com -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On Fri, 2010-10-15 at 18:03 -0400, Felix Miata wrote:

On 2010/10/15 12:39 (GMT-0400) Mark Misulich composed:

...

I had an xp install disk from the original computer that I rebuilt. However, when I tried to install it after replacing all the parts inside, I found that xp wouldn't install. My best guess is that dell keyed it to the old system.

What exactly does "wouldn't install" in your case mean?

Dell XP CDs are special:

1-Using one to install on a Dell means no need to input an activation key or any personal data. The only way it can know that it is a Dell is something in its BIOS that a generic BIOS lacks. If you use one on a non-Dell, or an "upgraded" Dell (which is no longer a Dell, if it lacks a Dell BIOS on its new motherboard), usually it behaves just like an OEM XP disk, demanding a serial key/activation information withing 30 days in order to continue working normally.

2-Whether this ever occurs on a non-Dell XP CD I've never encountered, but there can exist data on a HD with previously installed OS(s) that will cause the XP installer to initialize improperly. The result is that when the screen should turn from white on black to white on blue, it goes all black instead, making it impossible to continue installation. I've never been able to pin down why, only work around by first doing FDISK /mbr with a DOS floppy, then zero filling partitions starting at the first, until I determined which one contained the failure trigger. -- "The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive." Proverbs 16:21 (New Living Translation)

Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata *** http://fm.no-ip.com/

Hi, what happened was that I was using a Dell install disk from the original computer. It would start out white on black, then go to white on blue and begin setup. Then, it would go to a blue screen of death. I don't remember exactly what it said, but it was something along the lines of "There is a problem with the hard drive, it has a virus or another problem. I don't remember what the other specified problem was, but it was something reasonably serious and also improbable. The hard drive is a brand new Seagate 500GB hard drive. I then tried to install Vista using some recovery disks I had from a laptop that died. It wouldn't install either, The message on that attempt was that something to the effect that Vista didn't support that computer. I asked a friend of mine that works on Windows computers, and he thought that it was a problem with the Dell install disk being keyed to something in the original computer. I also asked the guy that I bought the parts from to rebuild the computer, and he thought it was the same thing. I don't know, because I was able to use the Dell XP disk to install XP on yet another computer about a year ago. But the Win7 install disk worked right out of the gate, and I had no problems installing it to the harddrive. Guys on this list are very knowledgeable, so maybe this more detailed description of the problems I had will help them to pin down what was happening. Not to open up another can of worms, but I haven't been able to install Opensuse 11.3 on any of my computers using the dvd. The dvd isn't recognized by the computer when I try to boot from it. The same computers will recognize the 11.1 and 11.2 install disks. I have to install 11.3 using the net install cd, because the computer will recognize the presence of the cd when I try to boot from it. Any ideas about why this is? If there is no quick easy answer to this I will open another thread on this issue. -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On 10/15/2010 08:42 PM, Mark Misulich wrote:

Not to open up another can of worms, but I haven't been able to install Opensuse 11.3 on any of my computers using the dvd. The dvd isn't recognized by the computer when I try to boot from it. The same computers will recognize the 11.1 and 11.2 install disks. I have to install 11.3 using the net install cd, because the computer will recognize the presence of the cd when I try to boot from it. Any ideas about why this is? If there is no quick easy answer to this I will open another thread on this issue.

What did you use to burn the 11.3 DVD? I have always had success burning from konsole or an xterm with: growisofs -dvd-compat -Z /dev/dvd=image.iso No coasters at all... -- David C. Rankin, J.D.,P.E. Rankin Law Firm, PLLC 510 Ochiltree Street Nacogdoches, Texas 75961 Telephone: (936) 715-9333 Facsimile: (936) 715-9339 www.rankinlawfirm.com -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On 17/10/10 11:15 PM, Mark Misulich wrote:

On Fri, 2010-10-15 at 18:03 -0400, Felix Miata wrote:

...

On 2010/10/15 12:39 (GMT-0400) Mark Misulich composed:

...

I had an xp install disk from the original computer that I rebuilt. However, when I tried to install it after replacing all the parts inside, I found that xp wouldn't install. My best guess is that dell keyed it to the old system.

What exactly does "wouldn't install" in your case mean?

Dell XP CDs are special:

1-Using one to install on a Dell means no need to input an activation key or any personal data. The only way it can know that it is a Dell is something in its BIOS that a generic BIOS lacks. If you use one on a non-Dell, or an "upgraded" Dell (which is no longer a Dell, if it lacks a Dell BIOS on its new motherboard), usually it behaves just like an OEM XP disk, demanding a serial key/activation information withing 30 days in order to continue working normally.

2-Whether this ever occurs on a non-Dell XP CD I've never encountered, but there can exist data on a HD with previously installed OS(s) that will cause the XP installer to initialize improperly. The result is that when the screen should turn from white on black to white on blue, it goes all black instead, making it impossible to continue installation. I've never been able to pin down why, only work around by first doing FDISK /mbr with a DOS floppy, then zero filling partitions starting at the first, until I determined which one contained the failure trigger. -- "The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive." Proverbs 16:21 (New Living Translation)

Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata *** http://fm.no-ip.com/

Here's what I get when I try to install XP. A blue screen with white letters comes up and says:

A problem has been detected and Windowz has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer.

If this is the first time you've seen this Stop error screen, restart your computer. If this screen appears again, follow these steps:

Check for viruses on your computer. Remove any newly installed hard drives or harddrive controllers. Check your hard drive to make sure it is properly configured and terminated. Run CHDSK /F to check for hard drive corruption, and then restart your computer.

Technical information:

*** Stop: 0x0000007B (0xF78D663G, 0x0000034, 0x00000000, 0x00000000

The partition was reduced from 100GB to 40GB (the size of the original hard drive that was in the computer when built by dell) but it still doesn't setup. The install disk has included in it SPack 1a. I realize that this isn't suse, so if you just want to write me directly with your ideas Felix, that is ok.

Hey Mark, Are you using sata drives/controllers? Sounds like Blows can't find the hard disk and you may have to slipstream or find the drivers and put them on a floppy disk to load during the install. I've had that problem and that's what I did to get around it. Regards, Phil -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On Mon, Oct 18, 2010 at 5:15 AM, Mark Misulich <munguanaweza@gmail.com> wrote:

On Fri, 2010-10-15 at 18:03 -0400, Felix Miata wrote:

...

On 2010/10/15 12:39 (GMT-0400) Mark Misulich composed:

...

I had an xp install disk from the original computer that I rebuilt.  However, when I tried to install it after replacing all the parts inside, I found that xp wouldn't install.  My best guess is that dell keyed it to the old system.

What exactly does "wouldn't install" in your case mean?

Dell XP CDs are special:

1-Using one to install on a Dell means no need to input an activation key or any personal data. The only way it can know that it is a Dell is something in its BIOS that a generic BIOS lacks. If you use one on a non-Dell, or an "upgraded" Dell (which is no longer a Dell, if it lacks a Dell BIOS on its new motherboard), usually it behaves just like an OEM XP disk, demanding a serial key/activation information withing 30 days in order to continue working normally.

2-Whether this ever occurs on a non-Dell XP CD I've never encountered, but there can exist data on a HD with previously installed OS(s) that will cause the XP installer to initialize improperly. The result is that when the screen should turn from white on black to white on blue, it goes all black instead, making it impossible to continue installation. I've never been able to pin down why, only work around by first doing FDISK /mbr with a DOS floppy, then zero filling partitions starting at the first, until I determined which one contained the failure trigger. -- "The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive." Proverbs 16:21 (New Living Translation)

 Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata  ***  http://fm.no-ip.com/

Here's what I get when I try to install XP.  A blue screen with white letters comes up and says:

A problem has been detected and Windowz has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer.

If this is the first time you've seen this Stop error screen, restart your computer.  If this screen appears again, follow these steps:

Check for viruses on your computer.  Remove any newly installed hard drives or harddrive controllers.  Check your hard drive to make sure it is properly configured and terminated.  Run CHDSK /F to check for hard drive corruption, and then restart your computer.

Technical information:

*** Stop: 0x0000007B (0xF78D663G, 0x0000034, 0x00000000, 0x00000000

The partition was reduced from 100GB to 40GB (the size of the original hard drive that was in the computer when built by dell) but it still doesn't setup.  The install disk has included in it SPack 1a.  I realize that this isn't suse, so if you just want to write me directly with your ideas Felix, that is ok.

Not sure if this is your case, but I remember that at least on Dell desktops you should configure SATA HDD as ATA in the BIOS before installing Windows XP. If it is configured as AHCI, you'll see this issue. After Windows has been installed, you should install Dell driver and then re-configure HDD as AHCI. Regards, -- Mark Goldstein -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org

On Sat, 2010-10-16 at 00:57 -0400, Mike McMullin wrote:

On Fri, 2010-10-15 at 10:09 -0400, Chuck Payne wrote:

...

On Fri, Oct 15, 2010 at 9:43 AM, Mark Misulich <munguanaweza@gmail.com> wrote:

...

Hi, there was a previous thread that I read about a month ago where someone had installed Suse first, then windows. After that they couldn't get Suse to boot. I just rebuilt my 10 year old desktop with a new MB and CPU, and installed Suse first on an extended partition, then Windows.

After the window install, Grub didn't show up and Suse wouldn't boot. I reread the thread I mentioned above, but didn't find clear directions as to how to resolve the problem. After a little research, I found out how to fix the problem, so here is how I got it to boot. I used gparted, available here:

http://gparted.sourceforge.net/download.php

I booted from the gparted disk, then when its desktop came up, I opened up a terminal by clicking on the terminal icon on the desktop. Then I typed the following commands:

YouType: grub Terminal: grub>

YouType: find /boot/grub/menu.lst Terminal: (hd0,5) "or different, depending on your set up, so replace the numbers to reflect your installation."

YouType: root (hd0,5) Terminal: filesystem is ext3fs, partiontype 0x83

YouType: setup (hd0) "I did this because I was setting up grub in the MBR, change this to reflect you preference of where you want grub to live." Terminal: Checking...Succeeded...Done

YouType: quit reboot

My grub already had an entry for windows because I had partitioned my first primary drive and formatted it to NTSF before I installed any operating systems. So I was able to boot windows after reboot. If you don't have a windows entry in grub, then place one like this:

Start menu>Applications>System>FileManager>FileManagerSuperUserMode>boot> /boot/grub>/boot/grub/menu.lst

Once the grub menu is open, then add this entry to the list making sure to place the root location of Window in the partition where windows is located:

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: windows### title Windows rootnoverify (hd0,0) chainloader +1

Save the changes to the grub file, and you should be good to go after this.

...

That is because Windows over wrote the the grubs. It's always best to install Windows then openSUSE or any Linux. You can try and re-install grub. Download the DVD use it to repair. I haven't ever done it. But if you do a search on fix grub after windows install, you will fix the step to fix it.

I've seen several very poorly written tutorials out on the web, and even had to try one of them, this is simple and should work at least for GRUB 1, I cannot say about GRUB 2. I've had a look at Felix Miata's solution, but I do not normally give /boot it's own partition. I'll definitely know better after I do a Win7 install. (Oddly enough that will put me at 7 installed os'.)

I have looked over the Grub 2 commands, as I had a multiboot problem with Xubuntu & openSuse on a different computer. Xubuntu (Ubuntu) uses Grub2, while suse uses grub 1. The procedure is similar, but the commands have changed. I resolved the particular problem in a differant way, so I don't have the experience to back up writing a procedure to distribute to the list. -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org