From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Wed Nov 8 15:48:25 2006 Return-Path: X-Original-To: FreeBSD-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Delivered-To: FreeBSD-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D749316A403 for ; Wed, 8 Nov 2006 15:48:25 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from jan.grant@bristol.ac.uk) Received: from dirg.bris.ac.uk (dirg.bris.ac.uk [137.222.10.102]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4D6A543D78 for ; Wed, 8 Nov 2006 15:48:17 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from jan.grant@bristol.ac.uk) Received: from mail.ilrt.bris.ac.uk ([137.222.16.62]) by dirg.bris.ac.uk with esmtp (Exim 4.63) (envelope-from ) id 1Ghpet-0006K9-Ek; Wed, 08 Nov 2006 15:48:13 +0000 Received: from cse-jg.cse.bris.ac.uk ([137.222.12.37]:65070) by mail.ilrt.bris.ac.uk with esmtps (TLS-1.0:DHE_RSA_AES_256_CBC_SHA:32) (Exim 4.50) id 1GhpeY-0006hU-V0; Wed, 08 Nov 2006 15:47:50 +0000 Date: Wed, 8 Nov 2006 15:47:50 +0000 (GMT) From: Jan Grant X-X-Sender: cmjg@tribble.ilrt.bris.ac.uk To: Bob Schwartz In-Reply-To: <004001c7034a$dd79d1c0$0500a8c0@c1> Message-ID: <20061108154311.J42166@tribble.ilrt.bris.ac.uk> References: <004001c7034a$dd79d1c0$0500a8c0@c1> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII X-ILRT-MailScanner: Found to be clean X-ILRT-MailScanner-SpamCheck: not spam, SpamAssassin (score=-1.198, required 6, autolearn=disabled, ALL_TRUSTED -1.44, AWL 0.24) X-ILRT-MailScanner-From: jan.grant@bristol.ac.uk X-Spam-Status: No X-Spam-Score: -1.3 X-Spam-Level: - Cc: FreeBSD-questions@FreeBSD.ORG, 'Bill Moran' Subject: RE: Questions on first-time installation X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 08 Nov 2006 15:48:25 -0000 On Wed, 8 Nov 2006, Bob Schwartz wrote: > >>Be really careful. The windows boot loader should be able to boot a > freebsd install for you.<, > > Thank you. > > Either one works for me as long as I get full choice. If the windows loader > simply picks up bsd and offers it in addition to the two windows installs > that I need, no problem. Ditto if the bsd boot manager hands me off to the > windows boot manager and gives me both choices. > > My concern...and I was going to write the group and ask...is that bsd's > manager only returns one of the windows systems. > > What do you think, please? The dell box I have at home boots using the NT/XP boot manager, that Just Works. > >> Dell usually ship their machines with a small partition at the front of > the drive (at least, they did last time I received one). That partition is > at an odd offset and didn't agree with the FBSD partition editor: I found > this out the hard way. Things may have changed since then; I usually nuke > the dell partition anyway.<< > > They still do...and while I could nuke it, now that I have windows installs > that I don't want to disturb, I am afraid to. > > If I leave them there, what, in your experience, happens? Like I said, this experience is a few years old, but the fbsd partition manager wound up having problems and screwed the partition table. On the other hand, if you create an fdisk partition inside windows and don't do any fdisk editing from the freebsd install, just label and install into the precreated slice, you should be ok. Usual provisos apply: back up, and if at all possible try it first on some scratch kit. G'luck, jan -- jan grant, ISYS, University of Bristol. http://www.bris.ac.uk/ Tel +44 (0)117 3317661 http://ioctl.org/jan/ Leverage that synergy! Ooh yeah, looking good! Now stretch - and relax.