Proper dual booting

Jerry McAllister jerrymc at clunix.cl.msu.edu
Fri May 27 08:13:12 PDT 2005


> 
> 
> Hello.
> 
> Here is what I see when I turn on my computer:
> 
> F1   FreeBSD
> F5   Disk2
> 
> This doesn't look very good. How do I make it like this:
> 
> F1   FreeBSD
> F2   Windows XP
> 
> I heard I had to rewrite code.
> But that's pathetic! Plus, I'm kinda dumb.

Before you start calling thing pathetic, you had best try understanding
how they work and why they are the way they are.    You will both look
less foolish and get along better as well.

I haven't followed anything about what disks you have installed or
what you put on each, but:

What you are seeing implies that you have FreeBSD as the only bootable
slice on disk 1 and that there is an MBR on disk 2 - and maybe some
bootable slices.  

Normally you would put your MS junk boot on the first slice of the first
disk and put any other OSen after that.   That is because MS often does no
work friendly with other systems.   If you did that as most instructions
say you should, it might look like:

  F1  MS-DOS    (or ??)
  F5  Disk2

  or

  F1  MS-DOS
  F2  FreeBSD

It will attempt to list the bootable primary slices plus additional
disks with MBRs.   Then if you select the addition disk, it will show
you the list of bootable slices on that disk.

The FreeBSD MBR intentionally limits itself to fitting in the small
standard MBR block so it will work with the  widest variety of systems.
That means it has limited space to create extra lists of labels to
display.  You can rewrite the existing one to replace one of the existing
ones with one you want - that is what they mean by rewriting code.

Or you can use a third party MBR.

The third party MBRs skip that requirement of accomodating all systems boot
and take advantage of the fact that most modern systems (including FreeBSD) 
wast some blocks at the beginning to make geometry work out conveniently.   
So they have lots of room to have extensive lists of OS labels and such
things.   But, they won't work with all systems and BIOSen.

SO, choose your poisen and quite calling people pathetic when you don't
know what you are talking about.

////jerry

> 
> --
> 
> Fafa Hafiz Krantz
>   Research Designer @ http://www.home.no/barbershop
>   Enlightened @ http://www.home.no/barbershop/smart/sharon.pdf
> 


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