Dual Booting Windows And Linux

[friedice]

i wana dual boot my laptop with both os on it

i already have windows7 ultimate on it..

im not too sure whether which one to install tho linux cinnamon or ubuntu 12.04

im gona use the linux os for web programing purposes -> github and cmd

just wana ask a few questions..

 

which do u think is most recommended linux or ubuntu?

should i just install the os on top of windows after partitioning my hdd?

do i need a program like a boot loader

 

p.s

i tried dual bootin it after win7 with ubuntu but it just goes to blank screen when i boot the iso from usb

[ManiacDan]

which do u think is most recommended linux or ubuntu?

Ubuntu is a type of linux, like cinnamon, redhat, gentoo, and dozens of others. I'm using Ubuntu 12.04 right now.

 

should i just install the os on top of windows after partitioning my hdd?

Boot to the Ubuntu CD and it will walk you through the process of partitioning your drive and installing GRUB bootloader. Note that you need half your hard drive free, if you have a lot of music or something on the drive it won't work.

 

 

i tried dual bootin it after win7 with ubuntu but it just goes to blank screen when i boot the iso from usb

So you have a bootable USB copy of Ubuntu but it's not booting? Try a CD/DVD. Are you sure you're booting it right?

 

[Mahngiel]

should i just install the os on top of windows after partitioning my hdd?

do i need a program like a boot loader

Make sure you install your chosen distribution AFTER windows, as Windows has a greedy bootloader that will not pick up your other OS's. (Most) All distros come with a bootloader (commonly GRUB2 or LILO) and will install it for you (in case you have multiple disks, you'll typically want it in the root of the disk that has your OSes [commonly sda]).

 

i tried dual bootin it after win7 with ubuntu but it just goes to blank screen when i boot the iso from usb

This doesn't make sense. If you installed Ubuntu onto a USB, you'll need to boot from the USB after your BIOS posts. You will not have a GRUB entry in your hard disk for a USB distro because it's OS PROBER will not locate it on a USB.

 

Note that you need half your hard drive free, if you have a lot of music or something on the drive it won't work.

You only really need 15gb or so for a linux install. Having 100mb of empty space before the partition is very helpful and some *nix versions (BSD) will not install without it.

[friedice]

thanks for your suggestions and input... I will try and boot Ubuntu from a CD when i get the chance.

. i've been just using Ubuntu on VM for now. on my laptop

[pantu]

Make sure you install your chosen distribution AFTER windows, as Windows has a greedy bootloader that will not pick up your other OS's.

 

It does work, not automatically though.

I also have a dual setup. Windows and FreeBSD and installed Windows first.

I copied the bootfile from FreeBSD to the C partition of windows and adjusted C:/boot.ini (only added the last line)

[boot loader]
timeout=5
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect
c:\boot1="FreeBSD"

 

With this, you will see the normal windows bootloader showing two options.

You might need to go for a research what exactly this boot1 file is for linux.