For a year or so I've noticed some change in Linux has made dual OS life a bit interesting for me. Typically I would create all of the partitions with Linux FDisk since it gave the most control over the task. For example the listing below: Pri 100MB FAT C: Ext All Free Space Log 100MB Reiser /boot Log 2GB FAT D: Log 4GB FAT E: Log 4GB Reiser / Log 4GB Reiser /home Log 200MB Swap Grub is the OS menu on the hard drive MBR. Once Linux is installed and working, I then boot to MS DOS 7, check the partitions C, D, and E, format them, and unzip a prepared Windows image. Upon reboot, the partitions are scrambled - example: <- GDISK Screen Scrape -> Disk Partitions Cylinders Heads Sectors Mbytes Model 1 4 2501 255 63 19623.5 IBM-DTLA-307020 Partition Status Type Volume Label Mbytes System Usage 1 PRIMARY 682794.4 UNKNOWN 3479% 2 PRIMARY *UNKNOWN* 263172.0 UNKNOWN 1341% 3 PRIMARY *UNKNOWN* 10.4 UNKNOWN 1% 4 PRIMARY *UNKNOWN* 904228.1 UNKNOWN 4608% <- GDISK Screen Scrape -> The only solution I have found to this is to build the partitions with GDisk, then install Linux and set up file systems and mount points. At first I thought it was the new Dell Optiplex GX150 system with Maxtor 40GB drive I had just gotten the first time this happened, payment for not keeping with the tradition of quality clone systems. But today the same thing happened on a clone system of mine - based on a Gigabyte GA7IXE4 with latest BIOS and an IBM 20GB drive. So all I can think is that it is the newer Linux code - FDisk...??? Ideas? Solutions? TIA! Michael Lueck Lueck Data Systems http://www.lueckdatasystems.com/