44 replies to this topic

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

Okay, I want to partition my hard drive from Knoppix using GParted so that I can install a non-live Linux distro. Here's what I want to do:

1. Delete the Windows recovery partition.
2. Divide the hard drive into two partitions.
3. Install Debian on one of the partitions.

Here are the problems:
1. There is no help menu for GParted. I typed F1 and nothing came up.
2. The volume for the hard drive (/media/sda2) is locked and I can't access it. Whenever I select it, all of the options, such as Add Partition and Delete, are grey.
3. Add Partition is grey at all times. I can't add a partition to anything at all.
4. I don't know where to get a copy of Debian that I don't have to compile from source.

So, yeah. Until I'm proven otherwise, I think GParted is a useless piece of $hit. How the hell do I get this to work?

[Alexander]

Refer to my other post in linux/games. To put it shortly, You need to unmount sda2 (if it's within /media/ it's mounted), best to do it from the GParted live CD I mentioned.

Also: If you misunderstand something why do you call it something bad? You need to understand how an operating system works, you're jumping into complex things without knowing what you're doing really, it's natural many things won't work.

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

Okay, now I have yet another problem. GParted will not let me resize the Windows partition. I followed the instructions in the tutorial at GParted partitioning software - Full tutorial and it didn't work. And yes, I did unmount the partition. It said the filesystem check failed and told me to reboot into Windows and run chkdsk. WTF?

[Milyardo]

Then reboot into Windows and run chckdisk, mostly like that partition is marked as "unclean" because you did not perform a proper shutdown procedure when you last exited Windows.

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

I'm booting into Windows now, and it's running a disk check. I thought I shut it down properly last time, but whenever I boot into Windows 7 after booting into Knoppix, it says it wasn't shut down properly. If clicking on the Windows button and then selecting "Shut Down" isn't shutting down properly, I don't know what is.

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

Okay, it looks like I've completely destroyed the Windows partition. It finished the disk check and now it has an error message that says:

Quote

Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. To fix the problem:

2. Insert your Windows installation disc and restart your computer.
2. Choose your language settings, and then click "Next".
3. Click "Repair your computer."

If you do not have this disc, contact your system administrator or computer manufacturer for assistance.

Status: 0x000000f

Info: The boot selection failed because a required device is inaccessible.

So Windows isn't there, and yet it's using the partition. Strange.

[Alexander]

Heh, Windows 7 inherited Vista's BCD issues. Follow the MSDN article and get your 7 dvd ready:
http://support.micro...kb/927392/en-us

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

This is so fu¢king frustrating. My hard drive is completely messed up now, and I don't know any way to fix it other than reinstalling Windows, and I don't feel like going out and buying a Windows 7 install disk or having to pay someone to reinstall Windows every time something like this happens. I know the NTFS filesystem is unmounted right now, so it's inaccessible, but I don't even know how mounting works. Is it a software thing, a hardware thing, what?

I'm in the BIOS right now, looking for possible ways to fix the problem, though I doubt I can do it from there. Right now I'm running a hard disk self test from the BIOS, and it's 51% complete. It's going to take a while to finish, and even when it does, I don't know what I can actually do with it. In the meantime, I'm going to do some research on computer maintenance topics like partitioning and mounting, because I've realized this is a subject I know very little about.

[jpconleyiv]

My thoughts:

Since you lost everything then re-install Windows (What version are you installing?) and I would run Linux through a VM. Here is the reason why: Since Linux is genuinely epic it will run just as smooth as dual booting your machine. I have noticed through multiple times dual booting Windows it does not like to share. I don't know why but I always have problems in regards to the Windows side while being dual booted. I will say though not that many problems with Windows XP and Ubuntu. They play nice together. The biggest problems I ran into is when dual booting OS X and Windows.

Also, as much as it would be funny to bash Windows and blame everything on the OS its just not fair. You could be running into problems with Debian. Even installing Debian through VM is somewhat difficult. It gave me the hardest time out of any Linux distro. I still recommend running Linux through a VM. I have experience with Suns Virtual Box, and I will say that it runs nicely on Windows.

Give this a try before you go through all the other trouble, its easier to TRY this than to TRY a dual boot. Contact me if you have any troubles.
I would be glad to help! (If i can..)

[jpconleyiv]

DarkLordofthePenguins said:

This is so fu¢king frustrating. My hard drive is completely messed up now, and I don't know any way to fix it other than reinstalling Windows, and I don't feel like going out and buying a Windows 7 install disk or having to pay someone to reinstall Windows every time something like this happens. I know the NTFS filesystem is unmounted right now, so it's inaccessible, but I don't even know how mounting works. Is it a software thing, a hardware thing, what?

I'm in the BIOS right now, looking for possible ways to fix the problem, though I doubt I can do it from there. Right now I'm running a hard disk self test from the BIOS, and it's 51% complete. It's going to take a while to finish, and even when it does, I don't know what I can actually do with it. In the meantime, I'm going to do some research on computer maintenance topics like partitioning and mounting, because I've realized this is a subject I know very little about.

You must have been typing this as I was replying. Ok, there are ways around this. I WOULD NOT pay anyone to re-install Windows. Have you never installed Windows before(Not being a d*$k just asking)? There will be no NTFS if Windows is not installed. You will not see any option for this. BIOS is BIOS and is there because of the BIOS chip and chipset. It has nothing to really do with Windows per say, but the OS that is on the machine. For example, I wiped Windows on my nephews lappy, I installed Ubuntu and it still contains the same Dell BIOS. This is because I have not changed the BIOS chip or chipset nor would I ever do so.

If you have the original Windows disk, or a copy, or a bootable flash w/Windows than install from either of those. I will go out on a limb and tell you that even a cracked copy can be bootable. Whatever it is that you have install it normally with the entire disk as its partition. Once you install and you would like to dual boot configure all of your Windows settings and then insert your Linux distro (disk,cd-rom,flash,whatev's) and use the partitioning tool in LINUX to set your partition on the machine. Do not partition in Windows and then install Linux because you could end up with 3 partitions with one of them over riding the original, which is what could have happened to you. It is possible that the original Windows partition was written over with either a Linux distro or a blank partition.

Give this a shot, keep me informed with your progress. I have plenty of contact info here feel free to use them.

P.S. Here is a link with info regarding disk management: How to create and use NTFS mounted drives in Windows XP and in Windows Server 2003 This has info regarding NTFS mounting. I would save for a later date.

[Alexander]

Mounting is a software term, it prepares the filesystem for use in the operating system. The historical term was to physically "mount" a tape drive medium to the system to be read, thus it can't be used by another process (system).

What I can recommend if you're down on money or want of spend:
A) hadn't tried this, but it seems there is a more officially wrapped recovery disk for Windows 7 here (heed: it's a (legal) file, .torrent though)
B) Create a DOS bootable disk and download the boot recovery tool from there (that's all 7 recovery mode is)

[DarkLordofthePenguins]

I don't want to run a virtual operating system. I want to run actual Linux, pure Debian with nothing underneath it. I haven't even downloaded Debian, yet, so it has nothing to do with that. And it's not Windows's fault either. It's my fault for trying to do something I don't know much about.