Partitioning an HD for dualboot with Win8

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Partitioning an HD for dualboot with Win8

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Started 9 years ago by silvercoon
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silvercoon

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I have an HP 2000 Notebook PC with Win8 preinstalled. I'd like to hear suggestions on partitioning the HD for a dualboot. I've heard of setups that use various directories like so: boot, home, swap, temp - this is the setup I used for my old system, and aslo what I'd like to use again.
I've enabled legacy mode in my bios, so I can boot Slitaz and Puppy Linux LiveCDs. I just want make sure I proceed correctly so I won't end up turning this thing into a brick.

OS: Win 8.1 64-bit
PROC: AMD E-300
RAM: 4 GB
HD: 273 GB (total - @80 G for OS)

Posted 9 years ago #
oui

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Oh, sorry Silvercoon, I just see that you did get no answer... You can use SliTaz about as you do that with Puppy. Or more. Puppy prefers frugal mode from Hard disk or directly use from CD (the new versions from USB stick). SliTaz also can do that. But it offers an option more, start from web (enter simply "web" as parameter in the initial commando line invitation and use the new menus comming from web; all CD's from SliTaz can do that, also very old CD's). But SliTaz prefers a full installation, different from Puppy, as Puppy as no update system and SliTaz a very good one (but no upgrade! And the possibly next version, Slitaz 5 is already in testing and waiting for more! I did opt for SliTaz 5 RC and I am really totally happy! I use the 32 bit version but I have also a 64 bit version installed on a laptop but I use that laptop only a few times as it's screen and it's keyboard are different and the resolution on screen not really best any more compared with high resolution monitors). Slitaz does not need a big partition: in 5 GB, you can install a lot of stuff...

you can start Slitaz with common boat loaders like grub legacy (Puppy), grub4dos (SliTaz would install it is you wish it at installations time), as well as grub2 (also with SliTaz; Slitaz offers a good possibility but update-grub, you will need it to add more like Puppy, has an other name in SliTaz!)

good luck

Posted 9 years ago #
silvercoon

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I prefer using Puppy as a liveCD as some do. I have previously used SliTaz on a Vista-era system, but I was limited to running from the CD because the the HD wouldn't boot. I could still treat the HD as an external drive.
The reason I mentioned the directories is because I want to know what structure would be best for a SliTaz install: boot (some believe a separate dir for bootup processes is a good option), root (an aspect of hierarchy philosophy - good for a backup), home (of course), swap (I've heard that if this is set too high past the RAM amount, it could burn out my processor), temp (good for saving space in the home dir), /proc/var (?). The next time I boot my SliTaz CD, I'll look at the partition manager options.
Thanks for responding.

Posted 9 years ago #
silvercoon

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After my last post, I booted my SliTaz liveCD and had a look around (again). My old cd was corrupted for some reason and would only boot to the command line. I noticed some of the same folders in the directory tree, so my next question is does the temp folder function like a swap file? One of the main reasons I want to go back to Linux is that I'm tired of Windoze throwing everything including the kitchen sink into memory at startup.
Also, can I please be informed by email when the Alsa bug is fixed?
Thank you for your time.

Posted 9 years ago #
christophe

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Slitaz is very small so I do not think there is much to worry about.
My preference would be for a frugal install (i like frugal installs) with a small /home and link of /home/me/Documents to my windows documents.... but this is me (and frankly, i turned away from windows 3 years ago and wonder if I still need that link.....)
Frugal install has my preference because it is fast and safe

Posted 9 years ago #
silvercoon

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I used GParted on the SliTaz liveCD to check my options. sda4 seems to be the best option, as there is plenty of space there (200 GB+)and there are no flags. The others have either 'hidden/diag' or both, or something else that indicates the space is in use. And the ones used by Windows are clearly marked, of course.
But when I tried to create a partition on sda4, I recieved a warning about formatting. This is likely just a precaution, but I just want to be sure it's safe to proceed before I go further.
Now my next ? is which fs type does the current SliTaz prefer (or does it depend on my system specs)? I've heard most people use ext2/3/4, or one of the reiser versions.
Also, is the frugal install what I think it is (a minimal OS), or can it be built on at my leisure without re-installing? I used to run Mint before my first SliTaz try, and while Mint is efficient, when its detractors say it's 'bloated', it's highly accurate. I would rather run from the command line if I have to and install what I need, than to have a ton of 'options' I don't need and probably
will never use, if at all.

Posted 9 years ago #
oui

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Hi

Silvercoon, if you have 200 GB+, I don't understand you any more! Make an usual installation and begin with that! You create in this memory room using the completely usual technic of logical partion a little partition with about 10 GB for SliTaz, it is for SliTaz very more as enough, and a swap partition for all Linux (each system needs only one Swap for all event. installed Linux distributions... The swap has to have about the size of your RAM or more if you want but it is not really usefull!). And install SliTaz! Where is your problem?

Each Linux system follow about the same kind of configuration and needs ALL CLASSIC UNIX REPERTORIES. You have no choice but you have nothing to do yourself to have a correct environment, Linux does it for you (as long as you don't create yourself a own Linux distribution completely from scratch or compiling a system following the system methode)... That configuration can be placed in the RAM at boot time and stay in it along the use (frugal install) or use a file system being on the harddisk. That is the only one difference: where the file system is placed at runing time! And you have nothing to decide yourself... You can only decide if you want to place some subdirectories on separate partitions or not. But if you don't know that, it is probably to much for you actually... Make a completely traditional installation and begin so... Explore the possibilities given by this classic system and you will discover more using it!
Goog luck.

Posted 9 years ago #
silvercoon

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[1] Gparted tells me when I try to create a partition on /dev/sda4 that proceeding will erase _all_ data on /dev/sda !
[2] tazpkg said it couldn't find packages.list - even though I had an active wifi connection (possibly a server error, though)
[3] The usual 'dependency hell' errors.
[4] There's always the Alsa bug...
[5] The system bios HP bundled herein has a 'legacy mode' which is windoze's way of begrudgingly 'offering' support for non-approved, non-MS OSes. You have to jump through hoops to get anything else working - and any Linux distro, no matter how new, is part of that narrow vision.

So there you go. I'm not interested in debating OS semantics with someone who believes just because something works on their system, it should work error-free on others. I ran an older version of SliTaz on a Vista-era system that worked well until the HD wouldn't boot - then I ran from a liveCD and used the HD like an external drive. So it's not like I was born yesterday.

Posted 9 years ago #
oui

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Hi

You did probably see an other message from gparted! You can make different choice in gparted:
- create a completely new table: all data become inaccessible any more - there is the case where all data are away (because the table is away!!!)
- shrink an actual partition WITHOUT to generate a new table: normally nothing worse happens - after the process, the big partition is smaller an generated place for new partition
- use the free room generated shrinking a partition, it would be the next step: you redefine the size so that you preserve a bit place for the swap (your future sda4, for ex. 2 GB) an generate in the rest of the free place an extended partition (200 GB - 2 GB for sda4 = 198 GB, your new sda3) being itself to subdivise in logical partition (sda5, for example 10 GB for SliTaz, sda6, for example 10 Gb for Puppy's frugal "installations", so the 4 .. 6 GB of all the *.sfs-packages offered by Lazy-Pup from RSH, etc, sda7 a development / build system, etc., sda8, for a saving copy of the one or the other, etc.)

Which SliTaz are you using?

SliTaz 4.0 and early rel. of 5 did not recognize my HD (as well as sometimes my Intel-Chips!) and it was not possible to install. I thing it was not a matter of Gparted, because it was the same for the other operators, including bash etc.

but I use the version of begin of March 2015 and it works wonderful really!

save if possible you data (a slow 64 GB USB stick did cost last week under 20 Euro at the good-quality-and-high-level-discounter of my country!)

and try to shrink your Windows partition

after that to create as well your sda3 (198 GB) as a big extended partition as your sda4 for swap (2 .. 8 Gb depending on your RAM) with Gparted

reboot

create now your sda5 with your wishing size (for ex. 10 GB in ext3 or ext4; I prefer ext4 but I never use any more some old software not able to read in ext4 - old software were not able to do it!)

and install you SliTaz correctly in it!

and good luck!

Posted 9 years ago #
sixofeight

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@ silvercroon
Your win8 was installed in uefi mode, so your HDD is most likely formatted
in GPT mode.
Then you changed to legacy mode in the bios to boot slitaz = msdos
Partitioning scheme.
That's why Gparted warns you that you will loose all data if you proceed
and overwrite the partition table.
don't do this unless you have a full disk image backup on an external media.

Posted 9 years ago #
silvercoon

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SliTaz-5.0-rc2

Thanks to this bastard child of a BIOS from HP/Microsoft, I am unable to boot any Linux liveCD unless I put the BIOS in 'legacy' mode. So no hope for installation. VM machines always crash for me (I've tried FreeDOS so I could run NOCTIS). I can't trust that somehow even if I successfully installed Linux, FreeDOS, or even some form of BSD, my system won't be rendered unbootable because I have to be 'protected' from non-approved OSes.

So now I have to wait until I am able to replace HP's malware with a more friendly version, or build my own system. The Free Software Foundation is reportedly working on a public domain BIOS, but getting certain companies' support is easier said than done.

Posted 8 years ago #

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