[plug] dual boot - Windows reinstall

[Craig Ringer]

>>| If the Windows installer is an OEM version, it is likely to blow away all 
>>| unrecognised partitions and redo everything from scratch. Polite. So back up 
>>| anything you treasure first, including hard-won config files or whatever.

It /does/ warn you first, or at least 9x's does. Though it could be 
clearer that it will kill ALL data not just create a new windoze 
partition in a free bit of the disk...

>>| If there's nothing you treasure on there, safest approach is to install 
>>| Windows first, then (re)install Linux, FreeBSD, whatever afterwards.
>>
>>Yes.  I'm not sure whether all versions of Windows allow you to choose the
>>size of the partitions it creates, though... urgh.

All the 9x variants make the decision for you, you have to run DOS FDISK 
instead. This can be done from the dos prompt available by booting the 
cd. I've found it OK (well, much much safer) to use fdisk/cfdisk under 
linux then do a "fdisk /mbr" under dos, install windoze (again), then 
reinstall grub to the boot sector once its all over. DO NOT FORMAT A 
WINDOWS BOOT PARTITON WITH mkdosfs, it doesn't write the ms boot code to 
the partition header bits, and the only way to fix it seems to be 
another reinstall.

Ideal solution: if you /must/ use windows, use win2k - it's least likely 
to make you feel like gnawing off your own face, especially once you 
install cygwin, putty, mozilla, etc.

> If you want to re-install Windows after Linux is installed on the system :

Scream in frustration.

Oh, and NEVER EVER EVER run DOS FDISK once you have linux partitons, at 
least if you use ext'd partitions. Same goes for the win9x setup.exe 
format tool. I once let it create a "new primary partition" at hda1 ... 
unfortunately it overlapped all the contents of the ext'd partition and 
took up the entire disk. It then began formatting - hence my first 
Debian reinstall in 3 1/2 years. *sigh*. If only I could afford two 
high-power computers....