Date: Mon, 31 Aug 2020 18:24:40 +0200 From: Polytropon <freebsd@edvax.de> To: "Thomas Mueller" <mueller6722@twc.com> Cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: (very OT) Ideal partition schemes (history of partitioning) Message-ID: <20200831182440.09a3e5d0.freebsd@edvax.de> In-Reply-To: <202008311611.07VGBww5001944@r56.edvax.de> References: <CAGBxaXkf53K4EHtq9cDaRm3MOZZixyBq-aQfZ7upHo-wUwrmCg@mail.gmail.com> <20200829154417.8dd5f83d.freebsd@edvax.de> <202008302219.07UMJtgP003679@r56.edvax.de> <20200831064257.42c29cd1.freebsd@edvax.de> <202008311611.07VGBww5001944@r56.edvax.de>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Mon, 31 Aug 2020 07:49:21 +0000, Thomas Mueller wrote: > from Polytropon (excerpt): > > > On Sun, 30 Aug 2020 22:12:10 +0000, Thomas Mueller wrote: > > > from Polytropon (excerpt): > > > > > Most multi-OS settings seem to work best with BIOS + MBR. > > > > Boot selection can either happen using a PF key at system > > > > startup, if it's more than one disk, or you have a separate > > > > software solution, like GRUB or FreeBSD's boot manager, if > > > > all systems are on one and the same disk. > > > > How is that? It seems to me that GPT would be practically > > > the only way for multi-OS. > > > I've been running multi-boot system even before GPT existed, > > and so have many others. With MBR and the restriction with > > only up to 4 "DOS primary partitions", it could be a bit > > complicated, but using "DOS extended partitions" and the > > "logical volumes" inside them could help. For example, I > > once had an experimental system with DOS, OS/2, and Linux. > > If I remember correctly, there were 3 primary partitions: > > #1 for GRUB, #2 for DOS, #3 for OS/2; then one extended > > partition where the Linux filesystems were included in. > > Later I removed Linux and installed FreeBSD, using the > > 4th entry as primary partition #4, and inside it, regular > > FreeBSD labels. But that was many years ago, and time had > > some undesired effects on my memory... :-) > > I used to run IBM OS/2, from 1.3 to Warp 4, until one single-digit > day in April 2001, when the two-hard-drives setup crashed, trashing > my data. I also had such kind of experience once with a OS/2 install: The install went as planned, to a secondary disk, leaving the primary disk for DOS aside (and having boot selection in BIOS simply by turning off disk 1), but after the system rebooted, something happened to disk 1: C: was D:, D: was E:, E: was F:, F: was gone, and the original C:'s content therefore had vanished entirely. With manual and pen and paper and handheld calculator, and the help of a homemade "rescue floppy" with Norton Disk Editor (DISKEDIT.EXE), I was finally able to reconstruct disk 1's partition table as it was before, and C: was back, no data loss. System rebooted - everything as before. That of course was at a time where the name "Norton" was not associated with "The Yellow Plague"... ;-) The cool thing about OS/2 was that you could use the CD from DOS and generate install floppies in case the intended machine didn't have a CD drive (or one that wasn't supported); for booting OS/2's install CD, you needed two floppies: "Start Disk" and "Disk 1 for CD install", those came with the CD in a cardboard box, and as I said, if you needed further floppies, you could easily generate them from DOS. > I used Lilo as my boot manager in those days, main OS then being > Linux Slackware. Yes! LILO was it at that time, not GRUB. Also Slackware was my first Linux, which I used for a long time; it came with a PC magazine, 2 CDs in a jewel case. And of course: Yes, I still have those. :-) > I was able to boot FreeBSD 8.2 from Lilo, as far as I remember. At that time, I used FreeBSD 4 (transition from S.u.S.E.-Linux to FreeBSD as primary workstation OS). -- Polytropon Magdeburg, Germany Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0 Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?20200831182440.09a3e5d0.freebsd>