There's a long thread on alt.os.linux titled "Please recommend partitioning schemes for Linux" that might interest you.
Remember that with the dd command you can make a low level iso image of any partition be it windows or empty and recover it by more or less reversing the command arguments. A backup isn't a backup if you need the original system to recover it. On Sat, 26 Mar 2011 14:00:34 +0000 Sebastian Tennant <[email protected]> wrote: > 1. When I install the first of these GNU operating systems (Debian Squeeze), > should I opt to overwrite the existing Windows bootloader in the Master > Boot Record (MBR) with grub2? I would, actually I would use grub1 for a while yet > 2. If Windows won't boot from grub2 (for whatever reason) after I've written > a > suitable grub stanza for it, is there a way of restoring the original > Windows bootloader to the MBR so that I can continue to use Windows while > I > think about an alternative approach? There is if you back it up beforehand. I haven't done it in ages so I'll only say that much but I believe both linux and windows provide for it. Dire straits booting ANY bootable partition is real easy with grub1 and all you need for that is any popular bootable linux installation optical disk or live-cd/dvd. Or just an old grub boot floppy. The thing is to get to a linux command line prompt and launch grub. Once that is done, with grub1 if partition 2 is an otherwise autonomous bootable windows partition grub > root (hd0,1) [observe filesystem recognized] grub > hide (hd0,0) [unconditionally hide any #1 windows partition] grub > hide (hd0,2) [unconditionally hide any #3 windows partition] grub > unhide (hd0,1) [unconditionally unhide the #1 partition] grub > rootnoverify (hd0,1) grub > makeactive grub > chainloader +1 grub > boot Note that humans don't start counting by raising the thumb and saying "zero". grub2 uses human partition numbering, but still not so for drives :-) for partition #2 with gub2 it might be like set root=(hd0,2) chainloader (hd0,2)+1 boot but validate that first, I'm very new to grub2 For a linux partition (grub1 again, partition #12) root (hd0,11) kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda12 splash=0 3 initrd /boot/initrd boot HTH _______________________________________________ Help-grub mailing list [email protected] http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/help-grub
