Hi there, OK, if you're constructing a multi boot platform as you seem to be, you have another option to explore. this is the firewire boot to external HDD to run another OS.
I do this on certain occasions where necessary as I don't like having windows on my macbook pro. I'd rather have windows on a pure windows machine, that way if something goes wrong, at least my mac isn't harmed. The way to go about something like this is to prepare an external firewire or USB HDD system (2.5" is a good idea as it's small and doesn't take space if you're a laptop user, or if you're a desktop user, then a 3.5" drive system would be best. When formatting, ensure you create the boot support. from your bot loader, use the external drive as a bootable environment to install to. that way you don't screw up the GUID and boot records etc for the mac drive. the boot system on macs is a little sensitive and should be handled with care. I've not had the excuse to create this exact situation which you've gone through on a mac but ther than the advice I have offered, don't think I'm much help. merry christmas and a happy new year to all. lew On 24 Dec 2011, at 12:08, f10r14n wrote: > Hi, > > Perhaps any of you guys have done something similar to this and may > have some insights. > > Here's the situation: > - I started off with a mac OSX partition, windows partition, the > always existing EFI partition and the recovery partition, detailing 4. > - I shrunk the HFS (mac OSX) partition to make more space available to > Windows, only to find out that disk utility, and pretty much no other > program I've tried, can enlarge NTFS partitions reliably and > accessibly. So I ended up creating a new partition using the free > available space with the FAT filesystem so it would be writeable and > modifiable by boh mac and windows. > - Then, as some may already guess, Windows stopped booting. > - I later found out this is because of the MBR and GPT tables going > out of sync. There is a linux/unix utility called GPTSync, which comes > with the rEFIt bootloader, to fix this problem. > - I ended up having to use a vinux live CD because mac OS wouldn't let > me modify the RDISK0 while I was on it, and the MBR and GPT now appear > to be in sync. HOWEVER > - Since MBR is limited to 4 partitions and I essentially created my > data partition between the shrunken HFS+ and the NTFS partition, it > became partition 4 instead of partition 5. What has happened now, I > think, is that the actual windows NTLDR partition, which is now > partition 5, was not put in the MBR table. Rather, the empty dat a > partition, partition 4, has been used. Of course, booting from this > won't make a lot of fireworks flash so I am sort of stuck. > - I can do two things: > - I can delete the data partition, leaving me with 70 gigs of > unallocated space, resync the tables. This will most likely give me my > Windows back, but I will be back where I started. > - I have to alter the partition order, so 5 becomes 4 and vice verza. > I have no idea how. > > Any help apreciated. > Florian > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "MacVisionaries" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en. > Mr. L. Alexander. Free Macs For The Blind. E-Mail: [email protected] Direct line: 07936 877500 Twitter: @macsfortheblind Free Macs For The blind is a charity project supplying older but working apple macs for blind and visually impaired people throughout the UK FOR FREE! Do you have an old unwanted mac, any hardware, software, old PC's, etc or a copy of outspoken 9.2 you would be willing to donate? please get in touch. Mac Access Dot Net; The British Mac Accessibility Network, we're here to help anybody disabled with anything Apple! http://www.mac-access.net -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en.
