Re-install MintGRUB?

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Kerrick

Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by Kerrick »

I have my hard drive partitioned with an empty partition that I'd been considering condensing into my Mint partition. I was wondering, if I install Windows XP on that, if I can re-install the MintGRUB without reinstalling Linux Mint. I can install GRUB, but I've got no clue how to get the Linux Mint version back. Any ideas?
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Fred

Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by Fred »

Kerrick,

Yes you can re-install grub to the mbr pretty easily. Download and burn a live cd iso called SuperGrub. The link is below. You can use this to boot into your Linux install after you install Windows. Don't try to fix anything with it, just use it to boot into the Linux install.

After you have Windows installed and working use Supergrub to boot into your Linux install. Let's say the Linux install is on sda5 and you have only one drive. Open a terminal and type:

sudo grub

root (hd0,4)

setup (hd0)

quit

Close the terminal. The boot is back on Mint.

You won't be able to boot Windows however. You will have to edit /boot/grub/menu.lst and put the Windows chainload stanza in at the end of that file.

A word of caution. You can't put Windows just anywhere like you can Linux and expect it to boot. Windows must be on a primary partition and wants to be on the first partition. If it isn't on the first primary partition it can get a little tricky to get it to boot.

Fred
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merlwiz79
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Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by merlwiz79 »

Load the Linux Mint live cd and install Grub from it.
This will give you the graphical grub back.
http://www.linuxmint.com/wiki/index.php ... _your_grub
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Fred

Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by Fred »

merlwiz79 wrote:
This will give you the graphical grub back.
So does what I just told him. In fact it is an abbreviated version of those instructions. :-)

Fred
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merlwiz79
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Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by merlwiz79 »

Fred wrote:merlwiz79 wrote:
This will give you the graphical grub back.
So does what I just told him. In fact it is an abbreviated version of those instructions. :-)

Fred
Does SuperGrub use grub-gfxboot 0.97-29 like Linux Mint 5?
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Fred

Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by Fred »

merlwiz79,

No, SuperGrub doesn't use gfx. That is why I told him to only use SuperGrub to boot into the Mint install, then use the the native Mint grub commands to re-install the kernel to the mbr.

It is nice to have a copy of SuperGrub around. It will boot almost anything. It also can restore the Windows mbr file. That is why I usually tell people to use SuperGrub. They will then have it if/when they need it again.

Also in this case he is going to have to edit his menu.lst to get Windows to boot and that is easier to do from the native install, especially with Mint 5 which doesn't mount partitions by default.

Different strokes for different folks I guess. :-)

Fred
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merlwiz79
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Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by merlwiz79 »

Sorry been up all night working and didn't read far enough to realize what you where saying.
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Kerrick

Re: Re-install MintGRUB?

Post by Kerrick »

Thanks for your help everybody, it worked wonders!
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