Arch Linux

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

[SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Hey all

I would really like to experiment with arch on my laptop as a dual boot setup along side Ubuntu.  Only problem is that I am not very confident in my skills in editing partition schemes.  I have my important files backed up but Id rather not have to spend a day reinstalling Ubuntu and configuring the dozen or so programs I use on a daily basis. 

So anyways, cutting to the chase, the beginners guide didnt really cover dual booting and, to be honest, I have no idea how to use cfdisk.  I know that I need to shrink my Ubuntu partition to make room for Arch but I dont know the difference between cylinders, heads, or sectors or how to manipulate them. 

Can anyone help me out or give me a good link to check out?

Last edited by semitone36 (2009-03-08 20:31:08)

SkonesMickLoud

Arch Linux f@h Team Member

From: The D of C

Registered: 2008-09-20

Posts: 178

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Boot to GParted:

http://gparted.sourceforge.net/

It's got a gui, and is pretty easy and somewhat self-explanatory to use.  Just remember to make backups.

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Ah god how did I not think to use GParted!

lol thanks dude.

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Worked like a charm.  Only problem is that grub no longer recognizes my ubuntu partition after arch install....

Last edited by semitone36 (2009-03-08 08:05:01)

Inxsible

Forum Fellow

From: Chicago

Registered: 2008-06-09

Posts: 9,183

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Worked like a charm.  Only problem is that grub no longer recognizes my ubuntu partition after arch install....

Arch grub doesnt scan for other OSes like Ubuntu's grub does. You will have to manually add the entry for your Ubuntu partition.

Last edited by Inxsible (2009-03-08 08:07:16)

---

Forum Rules

There's no such thing as a stupid question, but there sure are a lot of inquisitive idiots !

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Arch grub doesnt scan for other OSes like Ubuntu's grub does. You will have to manually add the entry for your Ubuntu partition.

Gotcha.
Would you happen to know the syntax for doing that?

Inxsible

Forum Fellow

From: Chicago

Registered: 2008-06-09

Posts: 9,183

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Arch grub doesnt scan for other OSes like Ubuntu's grub does. You will have to manually add the entry for your Ubuntu partition.

Gotcha.
Would you happen to know the syntax for doing that?

Simply mount your ubuntu boot partition and copy paste the entry from ubuntu's menu.lst to the one in Arch

---

Forum Rules

There's no such thing as a stupid question, but there sure are a lot of inquisitive idiots !

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Simply mount your ubuntu boot partition and copy paste the entry from ubuntu's menu.lst to the one in Arch

Hmmm... So I copied the menu.lst entry word for word but if I select it in grub I get an error 15, file not found.

semitone36

Member

Registered: 2009-03-02

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED]How can I shrink my ubuntu partition so I can dual boot?

Im actually going to start a new thread for this new problem.  Thanks for the help everyone!