Linux Install Problems

[DJ]

Here's the deal, I first tried to partition my HD (40G) and install Linux, 25 for windows 15 for linux. That didn't work, kept getting <kernel panic: no init found> errors, this was with both Mandrake 9.0 and RH 8.0.

Then I tried to install Linux on a secondary HD I have (4G) and keep windows which was already installed on my main HD, same thing. In either case it would not allow me to boot to either windows or Linux. I read a thread over at linuxnewbie.com stating that you needed a boot disk to be able to boot back up for the first time and set the bootloader information, but for Mandrake it didn't give me the option during the install (can it be done simply from windows using the install disk)? and RH the disk didn't work.

Even after taking advice from everyone here and some peopole from linuxnewbie.com to partition the HD first for /boot, /, swap, etc I still had problems. It is possible to install it in the unused portion of my current windows install correct, I believe I was given that option while installing RH? All it is is just one big NTFS partition for windows. I am  very eager to begin learning Linux, but this is holding me up (save the install of Lycoris I have on my 4G on my old 266-SLOW) any help would be appreciated everyone.

Dj

EDIT: It doesn't really matter to me which I am able to do, either dual on my main HD or simply add it with my 2nd drive

p.s. is there an adapter/kit one could buy to be able to mount a HD in a cd-rom bay or not?

[ December 03, 2002: Message edited by: Engineer ]

[Ice-9]

No you can't.
Linux can resize a Windows partition but not with NTFS.
If partitioning your drive before installation gave you so many headaches why didn't you try to let it autopartition?

Edit :
Boot from cd and let RH format your entire 2nd drive (remove all partitions), leave it on autopartition.
Create a boot disk during the install and when it's done you should be able to boot from either Windows or RH.

2nd edit :
Also, check your jumpers on the hard drives, SuSE didn't like the Cable select settings,I had to actually set them to master and slave.
(I always thought of the Cable Select setting to be the deliverance of the master/slave mistakes, apparently not)
[ December 03, 2002: Message edited by: Ice9 ] on

[ December 03, 2002: Message edited by: Ice9 ]

[voidmain]

Another thing that has bitten me before is the BIOS settings. On large drives with many-o-cylinder (1024+) you need to have it set to LBA mode, at least that was the trick I had to use on my 40GB drive.

[pkd_lives]

If I recall correctly LBA is in practical terms a requirement on 32GB or larger drives. CSH starts to fail at around this value.

[DJ]

I was going to set it up this way:

40G -Primary Master
DVD Drive -primary slave
4G - Secondary Master
CDRW - Secondary Slave

Could there have been a problem with that?

[Ice-9]

Put both your hard drives on IDE1 as Master/Slave, then on IDE2 put your DVD as master and your cd-rw as slave.

With the current generation of motherboard chipsets there is no reason anymore to have to put your dvd and cd-rw on a separate IDE bus and some distros make a problem of your hard drives being on two different IDE controllers, SuSE did, Red Hat I don't know.

[DJ]

quote:Originally posted by Ice9:
Put both your hard drives on IDE1 as Master/Slave, then on IDE2 put your DVD as master and your cd-rw as slave.

With the current generation of motherboard chipsets there is no reason anymore to have to put your dvd and cd-rw on a separate IDE bus and some distros make a problem of your hard drives being on two different IDE controllers, SuSE did, Red Hat I don't know.

The guy I bought the computer from, told me when I purchased my burner that it needed to be set up that way in order for it to recognize it and work properly so that's what I did.

But I set it up the above mentioned way and it picked up on all drives so I just need to start that install. Quick question, if I go ahead and install RH as opposed to Mandrake will it ask me about where to put the boot information or does it automatically do that? Will I have to boot from disk once it is done and change the boot information?

Dj

[ December 03, 2002: Message edited by: Engineer ]

[Ice-9]

Yo don't need to worry about that, accept the default choices.
RH is gonna place the bootloader in your mbr, you won't have to boot from floppy, but make a bootdisk in case you screw something up after the install.

[emh]

quote:
kernel panic: no init found

This page on the Mandrake forum discusses the error and how to fix it.  Although it was for Mandrake 8.1, it might still apply for other distros.

http://www.mandrakeforum.com/article.php?sid=1398&lang=en