Partitioning and Boot Information for Triple Boot

A Loyal Reader asked me about partitioning information for the triple boot I'd previously setup on my Acer Ferrari laptop. Rather than hide it away in a comment, I'll post an entry here so Google can walk all over it, and others can therefore hopefully find it.

I have to thank Geoff Arnold for the basis of these steps:

1. Use Ubuntu install to partition the disk 20/20/40 for XP/Linux/Solaris.
2. Install XP from the recovery CD.
3. Install Ubuntu. Verify dual boot is OK; save the Grub menu data.
4. Install latest Solaris build (with newboot and the GRUB loader). This makes the Solaris partition active, and only Solaris is bootable.
5. Update the Solaris Grub settings using the data saved from step three. You should now have triple-boot available.

In more detail:

1. I used the Ubuntu CD to start the Ubuntu install, and got to the point where it asks "Partition disks", I selected "Manually edit partition table".

   I created three "Primary" partitions (ext3); 20Gb, 20Gb and 40Gb, (40Gb foir Solartis), got the Ubuntu installer to write the partition information to disk, and then exitted the Ubuntu Installer.

2. I then installed Xp from the recovery CD(s). This automatically restores it into the first partition (one of the 20Gb ones).
3. After I'd verified that I had a nicely working single boot of Windows XP, I then reinserted the Ubuntu CD, and this time fully installed it into the other 20Gb partition. I let it recognize that there was already a Windows XP install on the disk as well, and it setup the GRUB loader to allow me to boot from either OS. I then verified that that all worked nicely.

   Important: I remembered what Ubuntu wrote to /boot/grub/menu.lst
   I actually copied it to another machine. You are going to need this information after you install Solaris.

4. I then installed the latest Solaris build. I told it to use the 40Gb partition. I had to ask it to set it to "unused" first and the same for the 4th small partition. With both of these set to "unused", I was then able to reset the 40Gb one to be of type "Solaris".
5. After you've finished installing Solaris, it just makes the Solaris partition active and the GRUB loader only recognizes that one OS. Not a problem. Boot up Solaris, then add in the details of the other two O/S'es to the end of the file /boot/grub/menu.lst.

   In my case, I added in the lines:

         title           Microsoft Windows XP Professional
         root            (hd0,0)
         chainloader     +1
         #----------------------------------------------------
         title           Ubuntu, kernel 2.6.10-5-amd64-generic Default
         root            (hd0,4)
         kernel          /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 ro vga=771 console=tty0 quiet splash
         initrd          /boot/initrd.img
         

   Reboot, and when it starts up again, the GRUB loader should also show the Windows XP and Linux boot choices. Select the one you want and away you go.

[Technorati Tag: solaris]

( Jun 10 2005, 11:15:15 AM PDT ) [Listen] Permalink Comments [2]