HOWTO: Dual boot XP & BT (With LILO)

[killnine]

Hey guys,
I finally got my harddrive setup working and I wanted to share how to do it. Because a lot of other howto's on this forum are straight jacked from other distributions (and they didn't work for me), I thought I would write this up real quick. This is V1.0 so hopefully it wont have any bugs, if it does, just reply or PM me.

This tutorial assumes a few things


You first installed XP
Now you want to install BT
You want to save your XP install but want BT too
You only have one hard drive, but have partitioned it
Your lazy ass doesn't wanna swap floppies to get boot files onto your C: drive for NTFSloader

Step 1: So first, you have to have XP on your machine

Step 2: Use a disk partitioning tool like Partition Magic (usually free with new hard drives) to cut up a partition for BT. Make it EXT2 so that you can actually boot to it and write to it from Linux.

Step 3: Load the BT CD and install to hard drive. MAKE SURE TO INSTALL TO YOUR PARTITION FOR BT! DONT OVERWRITE YOUR XP PARTITION! As for where to write LILO, just let it write to /dev/hda1 or your master drive.

Step 4: Once you have written BT to your hard drive, you pretty much cannot access your XP partition anymore. But fret not! We will soon have it back. Just go back into your newly installed BT, get to a command prompt and type this in:


$: liloconfig

This is going to lead you through installing your windows info onto your boot loader. Just choose the simple session, then click enter, then install to your master boot record. It will give you an error, but thats cool. You will now be kicked backed to console

Step 5:

Now type this into console:

$: nano /etc/lilo.conf

This will open up your newly created information that you will boot from. What you did earlier created this file. However, if you leave some permissions to how they are, your shizzle isn't going to boot and you will get tons or 'cannot write to....' errors and stuff is just going to be a nightmare. Therefore, scroll way down to where is says #Linux bootable partition config begins. Change it to this:

# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = current
label = back|track
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends


That last part is very important. Its on the "TRIBOOT" howto, but it doesn't really make a big deal out of it. If you dont make it read-write, your system wont boot correctly. Damn, thats annoying because you have to reinstall.

Step 6:

The last thing you have to do is initiate LILO, or whatever. This pretty much sets everything in place for when you next boot. Just type this into your console:


$lilo

You should get something telling you that you have two choices, Windows* and Back|Track. The star, I believe means its new, or something. You got me *shrug*. However, this should allow you to dual boot to either partition.



Conclusion: Now this pretty much lays it out for people who JUST WANT BT on their box with XP. The triboot Howto is good but this just lays it out for all those folks (like me) that just need 2 confusing OSs on their computer.

[hobbes]

Way to go, killnine, looks like you really learned a lot doing this. Thanks for putting up a howto, I'll add it to the collection.

[killnine]

The next one on my list of "To-Do"s is installing open office on a HD install of BT. After all, I am sure a lot of us are students or faculty that need to at least read Microsoft's silly documents =D. Look forward to that sometime soon (though I have finals now....)

[saratis]

i must say this one looks a lot like my reply i posted yesterday...

being: this (http://forums.remote-exploit.org/showpost.php?p=6362&postcount=26)

Maybe we could merge them to make it even better. I think my post goed in a bit more detail which can be useful for some people....

[hobbes]

i must say this one looks a lot like my reply i posted yesterday...

being: this (http://forums.remote-exploit.org/showpost.php?p=6362&postcount=26)

Maybe we could merge them to make it even better. I think my post goed in a bit more detail which can be useful for some people....

Some of the notes on troubleshooting were helpful, yes, but you omitted an important step which was to include the 'read-write' line in the linux config section. This is essential to avoiding boot errors.

[killnine]

Yeah, sorry for flooding the forum with this, maybe we can combine threads or whatever. If you wanna just ammend yours, I can get an admin to remove this thread. We should probably just give props to all the people who have helped contribute to making a Howto on this subject. I just figured that the Triboot one wasn't the end-all be all tutorial. So, i did what worked for me

[waqapak]

i followed your specific instructions but then afterwards when I type in lilo i get this message :

Fatal: raid_setup: stat("tmpfs")

so i posted on this forum and XATAR solved the problem (thanks again)


Right, the problems that most of you are having is that you do not configure the lilo.conf file to add your windows operating system into it. the configuration file defines exactly what lilo (linux loader) does when it runs.

For those that can only access their backtrack OS:

Boot into backtrack.
Open a terminal window.

nano /etc/lilo.conf

Change boot to: boot = /dev/hda
Change root to: root = /dev/hda2
Change read-only into read-write

Alter the root = /dev/hda2 line to reflect what partition you have installed backtrack onto, most likely your hda2 partition.

At the bottom of the file, add:

other = /dev/hda1
label = WindowsXp

Save the file ( CTRL-X, yes to save changes, save as lilo.conf)

Execute:

lilo -v

You should see a response indicating that the windows OS has been added.

Now reboot your machine! This time, you should be presented with a LILO menu, select whatever OS you want to boot and press enter.

[saratis]

Some of the notes on troubleshooting were helpful, yes, but you omitted an important step which was to include the 'read-write' line in the linux config section. This is essential to avoiding boot errors.

hmm, worked for me, maybe it was there already, but i still think we should merge the two posts and make it easy to find, sticky like...

ive added the read-write part to my post as wel...

[michelinok]

This tutorial is GREAT! :eek:
Thanks!

This post must be a "sticky"!!!!!

[thenightfly]

Excellent stuff,

Very concise and informative, got it working after 2 gos. Just thought id mention a few things in relation to my installation...

I had left about 10 Gigs on my laptop leftover for backtrack but I couldnt find a working evaluation of partition magic.

Heres how I setup my partition using fdisk on my single 60GB disk.

1. Boot from backtrack
2. login
3. run fdisk on /dev/hda (Your primary hard disk)
4. set up another partition called hda2 (hda1 is your xp partition)
5. write the partition details
6. this partition must be formated for linux so run mke2fs /dev/hda2
7. Reboot backtrack
8. This partition should now be visible to backtrack
9. Run the backrack installer
10. Write backtrack files to /dev/hda2
11. Write LILO to /dev/hda
12. Follow the rest of killnines tutorial

I'm sorry if this might be very obvious to most of you but it might spare some people a lot of hassle !

[Kayrin]

HI all,

what about a swap partition? or does the BT installer take care of all of that?

[CurioCT]

HI all,

what about a swap partition? or does the BT installer take care of all of that?


http://www.remote-exploit.org/index.php/BackTrack_FAQ#Installation

[thejipster]

I must have goofed something up really badly and need some help. I tried following the instructions on this sticky thread and when I ran lilo -v, I get this error message when it gets to the part of the config where I try to refer to the hda1 partition where my windows is installed. Did I goof something up to mess up my boot sector. Can I recover and access my windows partition again?

Let me also add that I used to have this system setup to dual boot the Auditor from /dev/hda2 (I think it also used Lilo or Grub). Did I totally hose it up when I installed Backtrack over /dev/hda2? Please help!

QParted shows /dev/hda1 as "unknown" type Status Active.


Liloconfig looks like this

---------------
boot = /dev/hda
prompt
timeout = 20
bitmap=/boot/splash.bmp
change-rules
reset
vga = 0x317
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = current
label = backtrack
read-write

other=/dev/hda1
label="Mswindows"

- Jimmy

[bmysmy]

I'm kind of new here but have successfully installed back|track.
Does it work if you take the quote symbols off of;

label="Mswindows"

and change it to;

label = Mswindows

[markds]

I'm kind of new here but have successfully installed back|track.
Does it work if you take the quote symbols off of;

label="Mswindows"

and change it to;

label = Mswindows
It should work, but I'd advise to keep it on. Some time back, lilo allowed spaces in the words if you put the whole thing in quotes - like "MS Windows". But apparently now you can't have spaces.

[espolio]

G'Day,

Thanks for the very useful post.
I am new to linux (read two days ago) and found it easy to follow.

One question so far.
How can I change the default LILO boot option time to about 10 seconds?

I dont want to wait 2 minutes to begin loading windows without manually hitting enter.

Thanks in advance,

espolio

[Toolio]

Excellent stuff,

Very concise and informative, got it working after 2 gos. Just thought id mention a few things in relation to my installation...

I had left about 10 Gigs on my laptop leftover for backtrack but I couldnt find a working evaluation of partition magic.

Heres how I setup my partition using fdisk on my single 60GB disk.

1. Boot from backtrack
2. login
3. run fdisk on /dev/hda (Your primary hard disk)
4. set up another partition called hda2 (hda1 is your xp partition)
5. write the partition details
6. this partition must be formated for linux so run mke2fs /dev/hda2
7. Reboot backtrack
8. This partition should now be visible to backtrack
9. Run the backrack installer
10. Write backtrack files to /dev/hda2
11. Write LILO to /dev/hda
12. Follow the rest of killnines tutorial

I'm sorry if this might be very obvious to most of you but it might spare some people a lot of hassle !

This looks pretty cool, but for the sake of all the n00bs out there, could someone please clear up some of the definitions? For example, "Write LILO to /dev/hda" - ok, great, but how? This is exactly the kind of core information I want to clarify and expound upon in a total n00bs guide I'm working on. ANY help is VERY appreciated!

BTW this is an awesome thread, with a lot of different scenarios - belated thanks to all who took the time to share their experiences or expertise.
Peace

[Paton]

You type
lilo

It then says you've added whatever was added in the Lilo config.

[itsme]

Is it also possible to install XP on a laptop where BT is already installed? I have BT installed on my laptop en it works great. But i also want to install Xp on it, next to my BT installation.

Thanks in advance

[markds]

Yes you can, but you need to have the B|T CD handy.

Follow these steps (Step 1 and 2 are only incase you have not already partitioned your hdd) :

1) Boot up your BT hdd install and open a shell and do qtparted which is the linux disk partitioning tool.

2) Partition your hard drive to make space for the WinXP installation. This new partition must be primary partition and can be after your B|T partition. Take note of what B|T assigns to your new partition (eg: /dev/hda2)

3) Create the partition and exit qtparted and reboot the machine with the WinXP installation CD.

4) Install the WinXP to the new partition you created with qtparted.

5) When you reboot after installing XP, you'll notice it will boot up straight to WinXP, because the boot info has been re-written by XP.

6) Reboot your machine with the B|T cd

7) At the boot: prompt type :

/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda1

assuming that your hdd installation of B|T is on hda1. This will load your hdd install of B|T using the CD to call your hdd data.

8) Log in and type nano /etc/lilo.conf and add the following lines before the line read-write :

other = /dev/hda2
label = WinXP

assuming that /dev/hda2 is what B|T assigned to your WinXP partition when you were creating the partition with qtmagic in step 2.

9) Press CTRL-X and answer Y to save the changes

10) Execute /sbin/lilo to reread the boot config and write the changes to the boot sector.

11) Reboot

You should get the B|T boot up with 2 choices in the top left corner, one for Backtrack and one for Windows. Use the arrow keys to toggle between them and hit enter to choose.


Is it also possible to install XP on a laptop where BT is already installed? I have BT installed on my laptop en it works great. But i also want to install Xp on it, next to my BT installation.

Thanks in advance

[bigwilli]

Im grateful for the above guide however (and I apologise for my noob type status in this dept) I have not partitioned before and your guide assumes that people have.

Is is possible for you or someone to guide me through the process of partitioning a Windows XP Professional laptop in preparation for the installation of Backtrack to hard drive for dual boot?

I do not have any partitioning software so if at all possible could you base your guide on free software that is available?

I apologise for the this request. I have the Live CD working but in order to write results to files etc and have certain components work it needs to be properly installed. I am new to Linux and partioning but am keen to learn.

Many thanks in advance.

[Paton]

Bigwilli..... I just did all this too for the 1st time and found saratis post very useful for a noob, click THIS below.

i must say this one looks a lot like my reply i posted yesterday...

being: this (http://forums.remote-exploit.org/showpost.php?p=6362&postcount=26)

Maybe we could merge them to make it even better. I think my post goed in a bit more detail which can be useful for some people....

[Djplayboii]

Man this was a great Tut bro! You get 2 thumbs up from me!:cool:

:cool:Djplayboii:cool:

[bigwilli]

Marvelous. Thanks for that. Is there a free alternative though to Partition Magic 8 that would still let me do the same?

[bigwilli]

Oh **!!£. Ignore the above as I have downloaded P Magic 8 as you said but it did not come up with the option to make a swap partition. Im very confused. i have dopne as it said and made the ext3 part and it rebooted etc but it has not seemed to have completed. It has gone back into wINDOWS and nothing has changed.

I know im probably being stupid but can someone please help me create the part in Magic. To give you an idea my NTFS partition is 38,154.3, used is 11,885.4 and unused is 26,268.9

Thanks in advance b4 I go crazy.

[bigwilli]

Anothing quick question. H9ow come the first chap who posted this thread said to make an ext2 part whereas the link within says to make an ext 3part. Does this make a difference and if so which one should I do?

[FailSafe]

i've successfully booted both windows and bt on my hd but everytime i boot on BT the startx does not start there is a fatal error "startx cannot be found on /root/directory" sumthing but when i use the gui interface my monitor cannot show any output. pls help out

[crustymonkee]

Hello all,

I have been following the tuts on here about dual booting XP with BT. I set up the partition w/ qtparted and install BT on hda2(ext2) with hda3 as the swap. I run liloconfig then lilo. It shows Windows and BT added. But when I reboot, it boots right into windows with no options. Here is my lilo.conf.......

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS
boot = /dev/hda
message = /boot/boot_message.txt
prompt
timeout = 1200
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/hda1
label = Windows
table = /dev/hda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/hda2
label = BackTrack
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends

I know something doesnt look right.....Thanks

[Madster]

Hello all,

I have been following the tuts on here about dual booting XP with BT. I set up the partition w/ qtparted and install BT on hda2(ext2) with hda3 as the swap. I run liloconfig then lilo. It shows Windows and BT added. But when I reboot, it boots right into windows with no options. Here is my lilo.conf.......

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS
boot = /dev/hda
message = /boot/boot_message.txt
prompt
timeout = 1200
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/hda1
label = Windows
table = /dev/hda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/hda2
label = BackTrack
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends

I know something doesnt look right.....Thanks
I have just installed b|t and am very new to all of this, linux, I'll say that I am a noob. However I had the same issue until I realized that the windows boot config is before the linux one and I believe your config needs to look like this


# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/hda2
label = BackTrack
other = /dev/hda1
label = Windows
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends

Edit: I posted this late last night, and I was unable to take the time to fix it for myself, however, I will post what I did as soon as I get home as that I do not want to give the wrong information.

[kdomingue]

I have confired that with BT2 beta that you can do the same and it works. But I did the expert config.
This is what I have:
XP Pro, BackTrack

hda1 - XP NTFS
hda2 - Backtrack ext2

I installed XP first then BackTrack

I ran liloconfig, then selected expert, installed on hda1 MBR, then added linux on dev/hda2 and then added windows dev/hda1

Let it install then ran lilo in shell. Reboot and bam, have XP or BackTrack in lilo menu.
Both booted fine.


http://kdomingue.blogspot.com/

[kdomingue]

Marvelous. Thanks for that. Is there a free alternative though to Partition Magic 8 that would still let me do the same?


BigWilli yeah qparted will let you do the same and it's free. Do a google search for it. It's a live Cd just insert and boot and then you can modify partitions as needed.



http://kdomingue.blogspot.com/

[deeeee]

hey,great tut, thank you for posting it
conf lilo was easier i thought =)

[txt3rob]

how can i get to set the timer to 2 seconds instead of 2 mins i've alterd the time out but its not worked

[Ciph3r]

Hats off, these are great instructions.... I finally decided to go with a dual boot instead of trying to install it on a USD drive. After trying to get the USB drive up and running for a few weeks... These dual boot instructions got me up and running in under an hour.

Thank you

[leedownen12]

ok so I've edited the lilo script.....now how do I save my changes and exit?

[G-Stress]

I would like to know how to config lilo for XP SP2, BT 2 Beta and Vista. I've looked at all the tri-boot tutorials and haven't found a resolution yet. My setup is as follows

4 Primary partitions

1. 40 gig Vista Ultimate
2. 60 gig XP Pro SP2
3. BT 2.0 Beta
4. 1 gig linux swap

I installed in the following order:

BT, XP, Vista

Now vista's boot loader boots XP and Vista just fine and I did find another tutorial here: http://www.hevnikov.com/blog/2006/11/13/triple-boot-xp-vista-ubuntu-with-single-boot-screen/
that didn't work. Well it didn't boot BT. What I did is my XP partition is D:\ and vista is C:\ so I put vmlinuz in the xp boot loader file

C:\vmlinuz="Back|Track 2.0 Beta"

then it was givin me windows system32\hal.dll errors.

I tried all the boot files in the boot loader placing them in C:\ and D:\ of course 1 at a time and i get the same hal.dll windows error and once I got some weird number like 00438900000 and it did nothing then when I hit any key on the keyboard it just rebooted:confused:

[arvee]

I would like to know how to config lilo for XP SP2, BT 2 Beta and Vista. I've looked at all the tri-boot tutorials and haven't found a resolution yet. My setup is as follows

4 Primary partitions

1. 40 gig Vista Ultimate
2. 60 gig XP Pro SP2
3. BT 2.0 Beta
4. 1 gig linux swap

I installed in the following order:

BT, XP, Vista

Now vista's boot loader boots XP and Vista just fine and I did find another tutorial here: http://www.hevnikov.com/blog/2006/11/13/triple-boot-xp-vista-ubuntu-with-single-boot-screen/
that didn't work. Well it didn't boot BT. What I did is my XP partition is D:\ and vista is C:\ so I put vmlinuz in the xp boot loader file

C:\vmlinuz="Back|Track 2.0 Beta"

then it was givin me windows system32\hal.dll errors.

I tried all the boot files in the boot loader placing them in C:\ and D:\ of course 1 at a time and i get the same hal.dll windows error and once I got some weird number like 00438900000 and it did nothing then when I hit any key on the keyboard it just rebooted:confused:


im about to try my vista/BT dual boot...as i understand it lilo is the linux boot selector and should boot BT or XP/vista and will tri boot too?..poss be better than the vist boot selector?..il post back and let you know how it goes........fingers crossed

[Manadar]

how can i get to set the timer to 2 seconds instead of 2 mins i've alterd the time out but its not worked

Timeout should be 20. Run lilo again to apply the changes.

[m-mode]

The first post says that the lilo.conf should changed into ready-write and Ive done this before (BT1) and everything goes.

BUT this time, at start up BT2 mentioned to change it to read-only.

Ive read that must be a mess and a reinstall as a conclusion. Anyway, I changed "read-write" into "read-only", saved my lilo.conf and typed lilo in my shell.

After restart everything was ok. No Probs... Crazy isnt it? Or just a N00b-luck? Can someone explain it?

EDIT: I saved something on my desktop and after a reboot it is still there... *lol*

[lostone]

hi all, i had just installed bt2 final and after configuring lilo the labels and timeout had no effect after reboot but when i open lilo.conf again the changes i made had saved in there. i had done this in bt2 beta and worked fine. any ideas? thank you

[FiRez]

have you done

bt~# lilo

after you made the changes to lilo.conf?

[NoobBiscUiT]

you can check the names of your partitions on your hd "dev or hda/dsa1 or whatever" by using chkdisk in the konsole within BT2 also:)
so that you know for sure what they are before you run the installer or lilo.
qtparted works also;)

[FreshFish]

why do I get this error when I lilo -v

Fatal: open /boot/vmlinuz: No such file or directory



bt ~ # lilo -v
LILO version 22.7.1, Copyright (C) 1992-1998 Werner Almesberger
Development beyond version 21 Copyright (C) 1999-2005 John Coffman
Released 17-Sep-2005 and compiled at 00:33:53 on Aug 8 2006.

Reading boot sector from /dev/sda
Warning: Kernel & BIOS return differing head/sector geometries for device 0x80
Kernel: 12161 cylinders, 255 heads, 63 sectors
BIOS: 1023 cylinders, 240 heads, 63 sectors
Using MENU secondary loader
Calling map_insert_data

Boot other: /dev/sda1, on /dev/sda, loader CHAIN
Added WinXP *

Boot image: /boot/vmlinuz
Fatal: open /boot/vmlinuz: No such file or directory
bt ~ # cd /boot/
bt boot # ls
bt boot #



# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS
boot = /dev/sda
# message = /boot/boot_message.txt
prompt
timeout = 1200
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

[pureh@te]

why do I get this error when I lilo -v


bt ~ # lilo -v
LILO version 22.7.1, Copyright (C) 1992-1998 Werner Almesberger
Development beyond version 21 Copyright (C) 1999-2005 John Coffman
Released 17-Sep-2005 and compiled at 00:33:53 on Aug 8 2006.

Reading boot sector from /dev/sda
Warning: Kernel & BIOS return differing head/sector geometries for device 0x80
Kernel: 12161 cylinders, 255 heads, 63 sectors
BIOS: 1023 cylinders, 240 heads, 63 sectors
Using MENU secondary loader
Calling map_insert_data

Boot other: /dev/sda1, on /dev/sda, loader CHAIN
Added WinXP *

Boot image: /boot/vmlinuz
Fatal: open /boot/vmlinuz: No such file or directory
bt ~ # cd /boot/
bt boot # ls
bt boot #



# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS
boot = /dev/sda
# message = /boot/boot_message.txt
prompt
timeout = 1200
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

the error is telling you the kernal is not present or unreadable by lilo. If you install by command line you will have a much better chance of succes. see the bt wiki for a video and a trans sqript

[FreshFish]

I'm able to log into both xp & BT from lilo and I did follow the vid but was wondering what I can do to fix the Fatal: open /boot/vmlinuz error?

I'm scheduled for the offensive class and want to be sure my setup is ready..

[durana]

thanks guys for this good tut. I have finally installed it yesterday on my harddisk. I took me more time than an hour, but normal becourse I'm a newbie..
thanks for your time to make this one.

[snake eyes]

thanks for the info

[balding_parrot]

I'm able to log into both xp & BT from lilo and I did follow the vid but was wondering what I can do to fix the Fatal: open /boot/vmlinuz error?

I'm scheduled for the offensive class and want to be sure my setup is ready..

Going on the error it would appear that you have done something wrong
you don't appear to have anything in your boot folder
copy the contents of the boot folder on the cd to the boot folder
Just another thought you don't have a folder in the root of any of the other partitions called boot do you, if so if you can rename it
And another one, it appears that you are dual booting from an external USB drive is that correct.

[Virtual_Soldier]

My original lilo config is

# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

I change it to

# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends

but when i type

#~ lilo -v

BT said the directory is read only, how to solve it?

[balding_parrot]

My original lilo config is

# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

I change it to

# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda4
label = BT2
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
read-write
# Linux bootable partition config ends

but when i type

#~ lilo -v

BT said the directory is read only, how to solve it?
Why are you trying to change the lilo.conf ?

What you are trying to change it to is not going to work!

It has to be read-only.

You say that that is your lilo config, where is the rest of it, or do you really mean that that is it?

[Sir_Smoke]

hi,

i have a little or big problem, i use win xp and backtrack on one hdd.

but win xp is safed with "safe guard easy"

so lilo doen's boot or find windows cause of "safe guard easy"

does anyone knows if its possible to boot win xp with "safe guard easy" and lilo?

thx

[linuxbeast]

I have to use the crummy gui installer because I need to do a live cd (compression) for a usb disk. What should be in the "Source (BackTrack CD)" field? I've tried many things and nothing is working. I don't understand this gui. Commands make perfect since to me.

[pureh@te]

I have to use the crummy gui installer because I need to do a live cd (compression) for a usb disk. What should be in the "Source (BackTrack CD)" field? I've tried many things and nothing is working. I don't understand this gui. Commands make perfect since to me.

I believe the source is left blank

[Dr_GrEeN]

Google Splash screens for LILO, theres some really good ones. I have a game on mine lol nice tut ;)

[coder]

I have done as the tutorial. First I installed BT2. Working fine. I had partitioned 10 GB (ntfs) for my XP. Then I booted with XP. But in XP it don't show those partitions. It mearly shows the entire hardisk space and as unknown.What to do??

Next I installed XP first (in 10 GB space) and the in remaining space partitioned with ext3, swap etc (everything went fine)...
Then modified lilo to dual boot Bt and XP.
It shows the boot menu and BT is fine! but when i choose XP it shows the screen- "Windows XP" and suddently a blue screen appears saying windows had shutdown preventing the computer from damage...
Oh! What a kind of problem is this..

But actually I don't intend to install XP if BT2 works fine. I have some problem in configuring network. i.e, all IP, gateway dns server etc were given rightly. But it doesn't connect. Mine is pppoe (broadband) connection which requires username and password to connect. But no options anywhere to enter those. I think thats the main reason for not connecting. My router address is 192.168.1.1 (I need to authenticate the connection)
Please help me with this. If I get my internet connection then I don't bother installing XP. I like BT the most. I have no much problem in runnning BT as a live cd too.. But only one drive,causes some limitations.

Thankyou.

[countryboy]

i have a question when my lilo menu comes up it gives me 3 options

Widows
Back|track
WindowsXp

is there a way to take the first windows off?

Not super important just want to make it look tidy:D

[shamanvirtuel]

nano /etc/lilo.conf (make your changes)

lilo -v

[neginfinite]

For some reason if have read-write in my lilo config file I get a message at boot up saying that I should change it back. Also in all other Linux installs I would use read-only, more specifically Slackware which Bt2 is based off of.

I though that was kinda weird does anyone have an explanation?

[pureh@te]

For some reason if have read-write in my lilo config file I get a message at boot up saying that I should change it back. Also in all other Linux installs I would use read-only, more specifically Slackware which Bt2 is based off of.

I though that was kinda weird does anyone have an explanation?

Yes I have a explination. It is totally unnecessary to use read write. I have done lots of bt installs on all different types of machines and have never had to do this. If fact let this be a perfect example of why you should follow mut's instructions on the wiki. change it back and all will be peachy.

[wldworld]

It seems I have run into a bit of a problem.

My computer uses a FAT32 "recovery" partition (hda1) and then the NTFS XP partition (hda2). I made room after the NTFS partition and installed BT2 there (hda3, formatted as EXT2).

I then followed the instructions exactly, but when I boot and when I select the Windows option, it goes into the Windows XP Recovery console that came with my computer.

Any ideas?

[Eomer]

hello,

i have installed BT2 final on my laptop and followed this tutorial. When i reboot i see the lilo bootloader and i can choose between WindowsXP and Back|Track. When I choose Back|Track it starts up, so no problems there. But when I select Windows it says "GRUB " on the next line after half a second or so and then does nothing anymore. My laptop 'beeps' when pressing (alpha)numeric buttons at that point, but not when i press shift/alt/caps lock etc.

I'm a total noob when it comes to linux, so can anyone please help me?

if it's any use, here is the content of the lilo.conf file:
# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
boot = /dev/sda
message = /boot/boot_message.txt
prompt
timeout = 1200
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WindowsXP
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda5
label = BackTrack
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

[rokrmc]

Edit your lilo.conf

bt ~ # nano /etc/lilo.conf

boot = /dev/hda
prompt
timeout = 150
bitmap=/boot/splash.bmp
change-rules
reset
vga = 0x317
# Linux
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = current
initrd = /boot/splash.initrd
label = bt
read-write
# windows
other=/dev/hda1
label = winxp
table = /dev/hda

bt ~ # lilo -v

Make sure you search in this forum before ask any question...

[Eomer]

hmm, on second thought i just reïnstalled windows xp. not even that installer recognised the partition as a ntfs one, so i pretty much gave up hope and recovered my data afterwards ;)

[Francuz]

I had an XP ,and I install bt3 to other disk...
after installation, when I restart computer,
computer show this:
GRUB Loading stage1.5.


GRUB loading, please wait...
Error 15
_

how to fix this trouble?

[jolenzy]

Can you give us little more informations? Other disc or other partition?

[s1lang]

Error 15 means the loader can't find a file.

You need to give more info mate as to what point the error appears etc.

[rooster]

Hey guys,

I followed the video and corresponding transcript to make a dual boot with Backtrack and WinXP. Everything works fine and I got it running in under the hour.

The Lilo bootmenu that pops up also works fine. The only thing is that i cant apply any additional changes in the lilo.conf
I succesfully made changes in the lilo.conf (such as default choice and timout times). But when I want to run lilo -v it gives an error.

/boot/vmlinuz: no such file or directory..

The lilo.conf file is saved correctly and my applied changes remain even after reboot.


When i boot from the CD and I run 'nano /etc/lilo.conf' I get a different lilo.conf
When I change this lilo.conf to my desire, save it and run lilo -v I can a new error:

Fatal: creat /boot/map~: Read-only file system

Clearly, I am doing something wrong.I think im forgetting a command or something.
anyone an idea what?

Thanks

[chucknorrislad]

how do i create a swap file in bt2?

[satvic]

Guys, smbdy plz help. I can't find the answer to my problem anywhere.

I've reinstalled XP after BT2, can't dual boot anymore.

when I boot from Live CD and try to exec lilo but I get an error:

FATAL: create /boot/map~: read-only file system

- I think it's because it's trying to write to the CD's /boot and not to my drive (since it's running from a CD, right?)

My setup is this:

/dev/sda1* win xp
/dev/sda3 bt2
/dev/sda4 fat32 partition for data

How to I make bt2 and lilo think that /dev/sda is the default root dir and not the CD's /dev/fd0 ??

Unfortunately all these HOWTO's are useless unless you've installed BT2 after WinXP .... but I've added so many progs and configs to the sys, I hate to reistall BT2 just so it would run LILO again .....

well, new ideas come at funny times.

If you reinstall XP after BT you can repair LILO this way:

boot with LiveCD

1. make sure your bt partition mounted properly:
- ls /mnt/sda3 (sda3 - being your partition, could be hda#)
2. If not, unmount it and mount again
umount /mnt/sda3
mount /dev/sda3 /mnt/sda3

3. set new default root path

chroot /mnt/sda3

4. run liloconfig or since I already had a good lilo.conf on that partition I just run: lilo

5. * or you can run your already created lilo.conf (while u're booted form LiveCD) to install directly to the drive:

lilo -M /dev/sda mbr

[Niborx]

When i installed it, and restart it's starting Windows?

I want:

I can choose to start backtrack yes or no.

Fatal: creat /boot/map~: Read-only file system

[babeuf]

Hello,

I'm getting trouble installing a dual boot XP/Backtrack2

Got 1 400Go Sata Drive split in 2 partitions :

/mnt/sda1 = my xp partition
/mnt/sda5 = a 10Go EXT2 partition created with partition magic.

The Full Install of Backtrack2 freezes at 45% on copying /opt

The install config is the following :

Source ( backtrack CD ) : nothing
Install Backtrack to : /mnt/sda5
Write MRB to : /dev/sda

with full install ticked.

As written on " Howto:Install_GUI "

" Freezes on 45% coping the /opt file onto a usb hard drive"

but my destination drive isn't USB.


So what am i doing wrong and how can i fix this ?

Thx for your attention :)

[Soulless]

So what am i doing wrong and how can i fix this?

What are you doing wrong? You're using the GUI installer. It's somewhat broken when it comes to installing to a SATA HDD...or just any HDD for that matter. Do a manual install by followinf one of the millions of "how to" guides on the forums. I'd link ya to one specifically, but I don't have hyperlinking priviliges yet.

[babeuf]

Ok so the problem comes from the auto-install !

Thx for the reply !

[babeuf]

Problem solved : reformat my EXT2 drive and install BT3 with installer

[kwagga]

This works like a charm! Great Tutorial!

I had no hiccups.... :)

[snake eyes]

After going through the process 3 times, I can say , If you are unable to boot properly into any operating system, first boot using BT3 DVD. On HDD install option uncheck that restore MBR option.
Then reboot to check
If it still doesnt work, run liloconfig. One LILO is intalled, its all smooth sailing ;)

[=Tron=]

It is a great idea for anyone attempting changes to the MBR to have a few boot discs lying around to be able to boot the installed operating systems if the upgrade happens to go south. I have a couple myself that have saved me countless of times after some not-so-thought-through (stupid) attempts to modify the MBR.

[cleanwithit2008]

[QUOTE=killnine;6390]
Step 3: Load the BT CD and install to hard drive. MAKE SURE TO INSTALL TO YOUR PARTITION FOR BT! DONT OVERWRITE YOUR XP PARTITION! As for where to write LILO, just let it write to /dev/hda1 or your master drive.

Step 4: Once you have written BT to your hard drive, you pretty much cannot access your XP partition anymore. But fret not! We will soon have it back. Just go back into your newly installed BT, get to a command prompt and type this in:



So, when I put in the backtrack cd, do I install it to my partition with XP on it, or the new ext partition I made with PartitionMagic?

[Eomer]

a new one of course. you would lose ALL your data if you installed it to the windows partition!

[cleanwithit2008]

a new one of course. you would lose ALL your data if you installed it to the windows partition!


Thank you sir.