Hi, <snips> All this is experimenting and on a spare drive so if I have to reinstall everything OK fine - I have the time and thats how I learn. Thanks Johan . May this be a good day for learning
This is older but its still relevant... i've attached 3 text files (List Goddesses forgive me...) for you. It was put on this list 2 years ago ... some by a guy named Civilme which may help you understand how to do what it is you wish. I had the same question back then.
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FemmeFatale, aka The Skirt
Good Decisions Your boss Made: "We'll do as you suggest and go with Linux. I've always liked that character from Peanuts."
- Source: Dilbert
On Sunday 02 February 2003 12:54 pm, Russ wrote: > HI All, > > I actually have 2 questions here: > > 1. What is the difference between the different distros? They are all Linux > aren't they? Correct me if I am wrong but didn't Mandrake start out as Red > Hat? > > 2. If a person wanted to run different flavors on one drive, what would be > the best way to partition that drive? Could they all share the swap > partition? What about the partition that holds all user data? > > Thanks > Russ
swap and /home can be shared. /boot should be shared. keep separate /, /usr /var, and /opt partitions The big trick is to load one first. I suggest mandrake, then on the second one, SKIP the bootloader. You will find various kernels and initrd.img files in /boot. You need to use the boot configurator in Mandrake Control Center to add the other boot. I generally insist that the two do not see each other. That is not hard to do, as Mandrake offers more filesystem options than any other. RH would call most of them invalid filesystems. Yes Mandrake 5.2 was RH on steroids with KDE. Mandrake 5.3, the first commercial version, was very nice and not too much different from the RH code base. 6.0 and on were beginning real divergences, but still about 95% of the RH rpms will install and run on Mandrake GNU/Linux. The biggest difference in distros is the character: 1. Caldera keeps most of its own developed source code closed and charges per-seat license fees. 2. SuSE has closed source installer and configuration programs (YaST & similar) and its servers for update are all its own (usually choked). You pay for the most recent version or wait a while for downloads to be made available. 3. RH has adopted Mandrake's cooker philosophy partially in their "rawhide", but I think you will note the difference immediately if you ask this question on their mail help lists (have an extinguisher handy). 4. Debian has the most onerous packaging requirements and the strictest submission requirements of all the distros. They are usually seriously out of date with their stable releases and their install is very exacting in terms of steps and the longest around in terms of user time (short of rolling your own). On the Other hand, the precision of their packaging requirements produces a very very silky smooth update experience as long as you don't update the kernel. 5. Slackware is strange in its booting for those used to SystemV, and uses tar.gz tarballs for packaging its programs. It is revered as a geek's linux and some use it in preference to other distros as a matter of ego or demonstrating their prowess. It is a solid distro, because thewy basically all are pretty solid. 6. RedmondLinux and Lycoris are recent arrivals combining Windows lookNfeel (and somewhat windows lack of security) with linux complexity. 7. MandrakeLinux is the major distro supporting Free Software. The distro is ready for download the same day it is being sent for pressing for boxed sets. The boxed sets add support and some features and software packages not totally free software to the basic distro. As you can see, the Support Mailing lists are free and open without a lot of flaming. Friendliness and the extra effort to make things a little easier on the user are the hallmarks of Mandrake YES the base is the GNU/linux operating system--the linux kernel with the GNU software utilities--in all those cases. FreeBSD is one distro based on another fairly stable op system similar in command structure, but with a license that allows commercial exploitation of the base. Distros differ in features and packages. Mandrake has over 2000 programs within just the free version. I hope that answers your questions at least a little--there are ways programs are packaged as binaries that differ, (dpkg, rpm, tarball) and ways that the commerce is regulated (free software-----proprietary software), among the distros. Mandrake is the one that is made by a few staff and many volunteers, at least in terms of packaging the programs that go within it. Civileme Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
Anne,
To your last question..."yes". The vmlinuz file is the kernel. You now
have two specific kernel files vmlinuz-2.4.18-6mdk on the hde6 /boot
partition and vmlinuz-2.4.19-16mdk on the hdf1 /boot partition. Vmlinuz
is a generic link that will work with the existing lilo.conf file.
That's why you have the line in lilo.conf
image=/boot/vmlinuz
You could instead have a line
image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.19-16mdk
The initrd files are RAM disk images that hold modules that must be
loaded to the kernel on startup but the construct is the same, the links
used in the same way, etc.
The problem is that you have two different /boot directories on
different drives. It would be better to move the specific vmlinuz and
initrd images to hde6 /boot and then amend your lilo.conf file to look
something like this
<snip>
default=Mandrake-9 (if that is what you want as default)
<snip,snip>
image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.19-16mdk
label=Mandrake-9
root=/dev/hdf1
initrd=/boot/initrd-2.4.19-16mdk
append <etc.>
image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.18-6mdk
label=Mandrake-8.2
root=/dev/hde6
initrd=/boot/initrd-2.4.18-6mdk
append <etc.>
<the next stanza is for failsafe. If you're going to use 9.0 use the 9.0
vmlinuz and initrd filenames. Leave everything else as is.>
The last two stanzas (windows and floppy) don't depend on your linux
kernel.
Terry Smith
Cape Cod USA
On Tue, 2002-11-19 at 14:43, Anne Wilson wrote:
> John is telling me that I need to specifically tell the bootup which img and
> initrd versions I'm using. I understand his point, but before I do that I
> would like to understand a little better just what is happening here.
>
> In the directory that has the 8.2 boot, subdirectory /boot, I have
> initrd-2.4.18-6mdk.img (size 218,650) and one that has an icon looking like a
> link, called initrd.img which is also 218,650 long. In the directory with
> the 9.0 boot there is a similar pair of files, relating to 2.4.19-16mdk. If
> I open them in an editor and scan the first few lines (I haven't done more
> than that) the pairs look identical. Are they? Are they interchangeable -
> they would have to be, I guess, to do as John suggests. Are they there for
> just this situation?
>
> There are similar pairs for vmlinuz - so I expect the answer will be the same
> for these. But why is one of each pair looking like a link? How are these
> files actually used at bootup?
>
> Anne
>
> On Tuesday 19 Nov 2002 10:40 am, John Richard Smith wrote:
> > Anne Wilson wrote:
> > >On Tuesday 19 Nov 2002 1:41 am, Terry Smith wrote:
> > >image=/boot/vmlinuz
> >
> > should be image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.18-6mdk
> >
> > > label=Mandrake_8.2
> > >
> > > root=/dev/hde6
> > > initrd=/boot/initrd.img
> >
> > should be initrd=/boot/initrd-2.4.18-6mdk.img
> >
> > > append="nobiospmp devfs=mount hdc=ide-scsi"
> > > vga=normal
> > > read-only
>
> >
> > You are not telling the system which kernel and initrd file to use, and
> > it's best to
> > define both kernels and initrd files for both Mandrake OS , even though
> > it has booted
> > one OS on the one ill defined version.
> >
> > When you get used to this you can download other peoples amended
> > kernel versions and install them in /boot partition, and write a new stanza
> > to boot on it, without removing anything of the old setup, that way you
> > can test
> > things out easily.
> >
> > John
>
>
> ----
>
> Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft?
> Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft?
Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
On Wednesday 05 February 2003 09:36 pm, BCSoft wrote: > Greetings, > Having installed W98 and ML9 in a dual boot config I decided to try to > install Knoppix as a third boot option. I used the script provided for the > install and hoped Knoppix would recognize that another Linux system was > present. It didn't. After the install I had a W98, Knoppix dual boot. To > remedy the situation I booted to the ML9 install disk and chose the most > minimal install option possible. I figured ML9 would see itself, Knoppix > and W98 and make the appropriate Lilo entries. It didn't. So what I have > now is a dual boot with W98 and a minimal ML9. My first ML install is still > untouched (I used an unformatted, available partition for the minimal > install) and the Knoppix install is still untouched I simply have no clue > how to get to them. The goal is a ML Lilo menu with ML9, Knoppix and W98 on > it. I would possibly like to add DOS 6.22 (for certain games) later. Any > help is appriciated. tia > Rich There are two ways to solve this..... One is to make a /boot partition common to Knoppix and ML9 and use the Boot configuratopr to ADD Knoppix after skipping bootloader installation during install. The second way it to use the / partition of your latest install which has a /boot directory.... and to follow the procedurte given here: http://www.mandrakeforum.com/article.php?sid=473&lang=en Yeah, the instructions are that old--you no longer need to drag the /lib/modules files if you ever did, but you do need to make the / partitions of the other systems visible long enough to copy over the kernel (vmlinuz) and the initrd.img or more properly what they point to. Happy motoring!!! Civileme Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
