Maybe you can find something here that will help.

Thanks linuxcool, that's interesting that you can provide args at the chainloader stage too - perhaps that's what I missed.
I'll try that.

It didn't work.

There were a few anomalies:

1. After installing linux (with or without a boot partition) my DOS ("Windows Emergency Boot") startup disk no longer works, either from the BIOS setup or automatically at reboot - I'm prevented from accessing DOS to do fdisk /mbr

2. Unfortunately, GRUB on the floppy won't load _anything_, unless ...

3. The bootable linux partitions are removed, so that GRUB can boot Windows ME.

----------------------------------------------------------

From memory, my partitions were

hda1 Windows ME
hda2 native (boot)
hda3 extended
hda5 native
hda6 swap

----------------------------------------------------------

Here's my boot/grub/menu.lst file (as it was):

timeout=20
default=1
# tried default=0 just in case
fallback=3

title=Red Hat Linux
kernel(hd0,6)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 hdd=ide-scsi

# I've tried a number of arguments here, again jic it was looking in the wrong place but the error messages usually result in a file not found or cannot
# mount partition error

title=Windows ME
root (hd0,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1

# I also tried chainloader (hd0,0) +1

# ends

--------------------------------------------------------------------

As a linux novice I've been wrestling this one for a while now and I think my options are kinda spent for dual booting unless I fork over for PartitionMagic, so linuxcool, rabidundead, unless you have anything else up your sleeves I'm just gonna keep the partitionless installation.

I don't like quoting myself because it's not good netiquette but..

This holds true if only for the ThinkPad iSeries 1800 2632-I1J !!

thanks again for your help, though - I enjoyed the challenge :-)

Try this.

timeout=20
default=0
fallback=3

title=Red Hat Linux
kernel (hd0,1)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 hdd=ide-scsi

title=Windows ME
root (hd0,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1


I believe that you gave the wrong partition designation for the kernel location. You have a /boot partition ( hda2 ) and that is usually where the kernel is located. So, instead of kernel(hd0,6) I believe it should be kernel(hd0,1). Good luck.

linuxcool is right, sorry i was away for so long. ou of town (i got no laptop!) anyway, hda2 is on the 2nd partition of the first hd (hd(0) is the first hd) so the arguement for the boot as described by linuxcool's menu.lst is right.



if you have anymore probs, post em. i'll be back tonight at about 9pm CST(US) to spill my guts on it. off to work.



Later

_______

Rabid



"by the way, when useing GRUB, LILO is very bad mojo" :smash:

I think I tried that, but I'll try again a bit later.

Windows ME won't boot with those arguments though, and I still need it to unfortunately.

Looking through an old manual, I remembered that I don't actually need a /boot partition (something I had forgotten) and thought that maybe I could fool WinME but it had the same results :-(

I'll look back on this and laugh someday, right?

i know this can work, it does on my system. i also read something in this forum about fooling ME. it was successful, too. i think i'll look at my exact partitions and setup, then maybe you can replicate it on your system. i installed all of the linux stuff (and yes, i did laugh later) while juggling the windows ME data on my backup hdisk, and had all sorts of issues. but i think once i get home and can give you my exact partition schematic, and maybe we can beat this windoze monster. (i couldn't hurt cute ol' tux!)

ok i'm here

i am checking out that info for you, will return and edit this post to include my schematic and i will also look back thru the posts on this thread and sketch out your partition table, so that i can write out the right script for you to put into your menu.lst, ok?! brb...:^)

----------

ok back. ya know, i just remembered one pitfall i ran into!

there is a problem with the execution of the command line for the kernel line if it is not formatted EXACTLY AS SHOWN BELOW (last time i didn't use the vB 'CODE' command to preserve the formatting):

NOTE!!!: the kernel line MUST have the root= and hdc= commands on the same command line in GRUB in order for it to execute correctly! so make ure you make it like this in the menu.lst, becuz the command line editor part of GRUB will reformat it incorrectly, so the only way to get it to format right IS the menu.lst! AND the exact spacing IS important! best trick is to just copy from this post and paste it into your menu.lst, then edit only the reference numbers to the drives!
i'll be back in a moment to give you what i think your ACTUAL menu.lst should be, ok?! brb... :^)

----------
my partitions are this: remember that even though the hda is 1, the actual reference to the partition table is 0!, so my hda *5* is at (hd0, *4* ), get it?:

---------------

hda1 = windows me (hd0,0)
hda5 = / (my boot, where my kernel is; hd0,4 - note that i have also made this my root directory!)
hda6 = linux swap
hda7 = /home (linux)

i also have a second hard disk for my data, note this is NOT where my kernel is (and hence it IS a dual boot on the *SAME* hard disk!, goes to show it can happen with win ME!)

hdd5 = /usr
hdd6 = /var
hdd7 = /lfs (i'm building my own distro! called Wildebeast! this is what this is!)

the hdd is because i have my second hard disk as my secondary slave instead of on my primary ide bus, but that is just fyi, so you don't freak out! normally it would be, u guessed it, hdb.)

---------------

now that i've assembled all of my thoughts and data, lets get this thing up and runing:

this is what i think YOUR actual menu.lst should be, i will list my assumptions at the end so you can troubleshoot this. but i would really like to know your hd #'s = what mount type( like /usr or /home, etc.), that would be so helpful!

Also, when u say 'extended', that mean extended fat partition?(fat/dos, same thing to me)
:
-----------------
-------

also, guess what else i did!?! i have my windows ME startup menu enabled, this is just like booting from the loader into a DOS-like mode!, try this:

(if you can get into ME, go to start->run->"msconfig"->got to the general (default) tab, and set it to "diagnostic startup/mode" (been a while), this will enabl this dos-like 1,2,3 list from which you can choose 'normal mode' after GRUB, to get into your normal win ME desktop.)

------------

if you are already not able to boot to win ME to do this, use your redhat cd, go thru like a fresh install, and use fdisk to erase your hda2 (linux boot) partition, then reboot, go ahead and do the windows ME fix, then run redhat cd again and go thru the installation, use disk-druid->u just don't need to overwrite any other partitions other that hda2 - make sure NOT to load in LILO, and let redhat cd do the rest.

after done, reboot to GRUB and see if all of this paid off! MAKE SURE YOU DON'T CHANGE THE DRIVE DESIGNATION FROM hda2 to ANYTHING else, and that this is your boot for linux!)

------

...wew, hope this was worth all of the sweat and tears!
I'll be on the boards 4 a while, so go ahead and post, i'll check frequently!

----
Rabid

"i know it's work, but hell, they say it can't be done -> i did it, and i know it can, so if i did it, well, it's bound to be hard !" :smash:

[Edited by rabidundead on 06-13-2001 at 12:15 AM]

oh,yeh! if you end up having to do the windowsME fix for the dos-like mode setup, after you do that hda2 erase, you WILL LOSE THE menu.lst, since it resides in your boot partition! so make sure to use your linux boot disk to go into linux and recreate the menu.lst as i have prescribed in the above post!



whew, that was close! sorry! hope i caught you in time!

hope this helps you out, still will help if need it!

nite, all!
----
later
----
Rabid
"fixing linux, i enjoy. fixing windoze, i despise. diff is: one i fix frequently, the other, well, don't wanna be fixed.. seems to me, anyway :smash:

Hello I'm back -
Wow you've been busy rabidundead - thank you.
I'll try it but probably not until Monday, as I'm really flat out workwise.
Bear with me - thanks.

Grub is booting Windows ME. I had the hd type wrong - it should have been hdb - thanks.

It's not booting Linux yet though.

is what the partitions look like - pretty standard stuff, I thought.

This is the linux part of the menu.lst file - I copied and pasted it as you recommended rabidundead.

I tried hda=ide-scsi but that didn't work.

Just to clarify:[List=1][*]I copied the menu.lst file onto the floppy from where I unpacked the grub file (/usr/src), replacing the default menu.lst on the floppy.[*]After running GRUB once from the floppy, it appears to have changed the id and partition of hda3 to Win95 Extended. That's ok/normal right?[/list=1]

I didn't have to delete any partitions and still have both OSs running ok. The important one is still only running off a floppy though!
thanks again.

cubed, if the code you gave for your grub entry is accurate then you have a mistake in the kernel line.
Yours reads:

kernel(hda0,1)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 hdb=ide-scsi

It should read:

kernel(hd0,1)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 hdb=ide-scsi

The drive is (hd0,1) instead of (hda0,1) . I hope this helps.

D'oh.
That's probably it - I'll try it.
Thanks linuxcool.

the hda thing is pretty much it. thanx for helping while i was gone, linuxcool. i had a little 'accident' involving my computer. but, i'm cool, now. i just lost a lot of stuff thanks to windoze. i have to actually do this grub install agian myself, cuz i flashed my hd. not very cool, but now i'm completely rid of windoze



anyway, cubed, let us know how it went.. look forward to hearing from ya!



Later..

--------

Rabid

"just what i'd expect from micro$ stuff, it commits suicide and takes everything else w/ it... frickin' kamikaze tactic.. ah, but there was that 2nd hd windoze didn't know about! (saved my @ss)":smash::smash: -('mad as all heck' management)- :smash::smash: