Firstly, for a completely safe way of doing what you want you can use mint4win (just search the forums), which installs mint as an application within windows, which you can then remove as an application within windows. Secondly, you can restore the windows bootloader fairly easily in XP, though you need a disc for vista - either way googling for restore windows MBR will work.Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
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emorrp1
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
Hello, and welcome to Linux Mint Firstly, for a completely safe way of doing what you want you can use mint4win (just search the forums), which installs mint as an application within windows, which you can then remove as an application within windows. Secondly, you can restore the windows bootloader fairly easily in XP, though you need a disc for vista - either way googling for restore windows MBR will work.
Firstly, for a completely safe way of doing what you want you can use mint4win (just search the forums), which installs mint as an application within windows, which you can then remove as an application within windows. Secondly, you can restore the windows bootloader fairly easily in XP, though you need a disc for vista - either way googling for restore windows MBR will work.
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
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markcynt
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
AFAIK you must use Grub to boot Mint, but like emorrp said it's very easy to get the Windows XP bootloader back if you get rid of Mint/Ubuntu.
Edit: And if your data is really important you should invest in an external hardrive.
Edit: And if your data is really important you should invest in an external hardrive.
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
You never said what version of Windows you're trying to dual boot with.
If it's WinXP, you could use a 3rd party bootloader: http://www.multibooters.co.uk/managers.html
I use BootITNG ( not free and butt ugly ) and it is installed into a small partition ( 8MB ). Once installed it takes over the Master Boot Record ( MBR ) and becomes the traffic cop directing you to whatever OS you want to use that day. You will have to change the way you install linux from that point on however because in a default install linux will install grub into the MBR and wipe out your 3rd party bootloader. When you install Mint for example you will have to install Mint's grub into the partition that Mint is installed in. Here's an example:
Let's say you partition your hard drive as follows:
sda1- WinXP
sda2- GAG ( a popular free 3rd party bootloader )
sda3- Linux Swap
sda5- Mint
sda6- Ubuntu
sda7- SuSE
sda8- Data ( a common partition that will hold your stuff regardless of what OS you're using )
When you install Mint the very last step ( Step 7 - click on the "Advanced" Button ) it will ask you where you want to install grub. Your answer is sda5. Then go to GAG, point it to sda5 and label it Mint.
If it's Vista, you could have exactly what you described with EasyBCD ( http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1 ).
EasyBCD isn't a bootloader, it's an editor for the Vista bootloader and as such it's installed within Vista and not into it's own partition. You would have to install Linux in the way I described above, putting Mint's grub in sda5 for example, but Vista itself becomes the bootmanager.
The advantage of this approach ( especially if you plan on trying out many distros ) is that each OS becomes a self contained entity. In the future if you no longer want SuSE or Ubuntu you simply format the partition or install another linux over it. Linux distros will come and go but your booloader ( 3rd party or Vista's ) will always be there.
If it's WinXP, you could use a 3rd party bootloader: http://www.multibooters.co.uk/managers.html
I use BootITNG ( not free and butt ugly ) and it is installed into a small partition ( 8MB ). Once installed it takes over the Master Boot Record ( MBR ) and becomes the traffic cop directing you to whatever OS you want to use that day. You will have to change the way you install linux from that point on however because in a default install linux will install grub into the MBR and wipe out your 3rd party bootloader. When you install Mint for example you will have to install Mint's grub into the partition that Mint is installed in. Here's an example:
Let's say you partition your hard drive as follows:
sda1- WinXP
sda2- GAG ( a popular free 3rd party bootloader )
sda3- Linux Swap
sda5- Mint
sda6- Ubuntu
sda7- SuSE
sda8- Data ( a common partition that will hold your stuff regardless of what OS you're using )
When you install Mint the very last step ( Step 7 - click on the "Advanced" Button ) it will ask you where you want to install grub. Your answer is sda5. Then go to GAG, point it to sda5 and label it Mint.
If it's Vista, you could have exactly what you described with EasyBCD ( http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1 ).
EasyBCD isn't a bootloader, it's an editor for the Vista bootloader and as such it's installed within Vista and not into it's own partition. You would have to install Linux in the way I described above, putting Mint's grub in sda5 for example, but Vista itself becomes the bootmanager.
The advantage of this approach ( especially if you plan on trying out many distros ) is that each OS becomes a self contained entity. In the future if you no longer want SuSE or Ubuntu you simply format the partition or install another linux over it. Linux distros will come and go but your booloader ( 3rd party or Vista's ) will always be there.
Please add a [SOLVED] at the end of your original subject header if your question has been answered and solved.
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emorrp1
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
Yeah, I use a dedicated grub partition for exactly the same reasons altair mentioned for 3rd party bootloaders: you could change your installed system every day and it would still work.
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Fred
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
I do the same thing altair4 does except I use grub as the master boot loader and chainload all the other installs I have at any given moment.
That makes it easy for me and holds down on the confusion.
Fred
That makes it easy for me and holds down on the confusion.
Fred
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emorrp1
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
Yeah, that's what I meant, but you phrased it better.Fred wrote:I do the same thing altair4 does except I use grub as the master boot loader and chainload all the other installs I have at any given moment.
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
Not that you asked, but I'm going to offer you some advice on dual booting with Vista. I don't have Vista myself but I have set up dual boots for others using EasyBCD among others. Based solely on my limited experience with Vista and the amount of questions on all the linux forums I've viewed I recommend you consider the following:
Use Vista's tools ( not the Mint install CD or GParted ) to shrink the Vista partition to make room for Mint. It's usually a 2-step process with Vista:
Defragement the Vista partition - twice.
Use Vista's tool to shrink the partition. If I remember correctly it's : Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Computer Management > Disk Management.
Select your Windows hard drive with a right click and select "Shrink Volume" from the sub menu. Leave the rest of the disk as unallocated and then start your Mint install and have Mint use that unallocated space.
Vista , in some admittedly rare cases, really doesn't take kindly to having its system partition altered by "foreign" applications.
Others who currently run a Vista dual boot every day might want to comment as I have a tendency to be rather cautious about these sorts of things. Over time I've developed an opinion that one should use Windows tools for Windows and Linux tools for Linux.
Use Vista's tools ( not the Mint install CD or GParted ) to shrink the Vista partition to make room for Mint. It's usually a 2-step process with Vista:
Defragement the Vista partition - twice.
Use Vista's tool to shrink the partition. If I remember correctly it's : Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Computer Management > Disk Management.
Select your Windows hard drive with a right click and select "Shrink Volume" from the sub menu. Leave the rest of the disk as unallocated and then start your Mint install and have Mint use that unallocated space.Vista , in some admittedly rare cases, really doesn't take kindly to having its system partition altered by "foreign" applications.
Others who currently run a Vista dual boot every day might want to comment as I have a tendency to be rather cautious about these sorts of things. Over time I've developed an opinion that one should use Windows tools for Windows and Linux tools for Linux.
Please add a [SOLVED] at the end of your original subject header if your question has been answered and solved.
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markcynt
Re: Using Windows boot manager instead of Grub
+1 for this advice.altair4 wrote:Use Vista's tools ( not the Mint install CD or GParted ) to shrink the Vista partition to make room for Mint. It's usually a 2-step process with Vista:
Defragement the Vista partition - twice.
Use Vista's tool to shrink the partition. If I remember correctly it's : Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Computer Management > Disk Management.
Over time I've developed an opinion that one should use Windows tools for Windows and Linux tools for Linux.