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#1 2009-11-04 05:26:49

JawsThemeSwimming428
Member
From: USA
Registered: 2008-03-09
Posts: 149

Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

I am reconfiguring my laptop because I got a new 320GB HDD for it. I would like 4 OS's on it (Windows 7, Windows XP, Ubuntu 9.10, and Arch). I use Windows for work and mostly boot either Ubuntu or Arch for normal use. I'm trying to think of the best way to partition for this. Here are my initial thoughts:

Windows 7 = 75GB
Windows XP = 25GB
Ubuntu = 30GB
Arch = 30GB
Swap = 1GB
DATA = 159GB

A few questions about this:

1. I have heard with Ubuntu 9.10 they started using Grub 2 which can potentially cause problems booting other OS's. I would rather use the Windows 7 boot loader if this is the case. My other thought is to create a small install of something by itself to only use for booting? Anyone have any good suggestions for this? I would like the best and simplest way to set this up for all OS's to use.
2. Does Arch or Ubuntu need separate /home partitions? I don't keep any data in the actual OS partition, everything goes on the standalone data partition which I keep backed up regularly. Suggestions?

Appreciate everyone's suggestions!

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#2 2009-11-05 17:41:57

MadTux
Member
Registered: 2009-09-20
Posts: 553

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

1. I don't think that Windows 7 is able to boot Linux. I am not even sure if it can boot Windows XP. But if you don't trust the Ubuntu boot loader, you could use the Arch boot loader.

2.Linux does not need separate /home partitions. If you don't create separate partitions, /home will be created in the root partition as a normal directory.

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#3 2009-11-06 00:47:51

JawsThemeSwimming428
Member
From: USA
Registered: 2008-03-09
Posts: 149

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

MadTux wrote:

1. I don't think that Windows 7 is able to boot Linux. I am not even sure if it can boot Windows XP. But if you don't trust the Ubuntu boot loader, you could use the Arch boot loader.

2.Linux does not need separate /home partitions. If you don't create separate partitions, /home will be created in the root partition as a normal directory.

First off, thanks and I appreciate your response. The Windows 7 boot loader can definitely boot Windows XP (because I'm doing it) and I'm pretty sure it can do Linux (I think it's almost the same as Vista and I could boot Ubuntu and Arch in Vista, not by choice). Will GRUB, if installed from Arch, be able to boot Ubuntu 9.10 since Ubuntu uses GRUB2? Also, I understand if not specified different /home will be created in root. What I was trying to get at is there any performance different in having a separate /home versus just keeping it in root? I have a separate partition only for DATA so that isn't a consideration.


Thanks!

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#4 2009-11-06 15:41:50

otisranson
Member
Registered: 2008-01-31
Posts: 33

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

JawsThemeSwimming428 wrote:

Will GRUB, if installed from Arch, be able to boot Ubuntu 9.10 since Ubuntu uses GRUB2? Also, I understand if not specified different /home will be created in root. What I was trying to get at is there any performance different in having a separate /home versus just keeping it in root? I have a separate partition only for DATA so that isn't a consideration.
Thanks!

Grub installed from Arch WILL boot Ubuntu.  My understanding of what the MBR (Master Boot Record) is, it's the first segment of the hard drive with the boot loader installed.  You can only have one, otherwise, how is the computer suppose to know which bootloader to choose?

Install Grub from Arch, since you aren't comfortable with Grub2, and the Windows bootloader won't boot Linux I'm pretty sure.  It looked like they used Grub in Vista though, so I'm not 100% sure.

Having your /home on a seperate partition could be useful in your case since you have 2 linux installes.  BUT mainly, it's to set a hard drive space cap on how much you can store in your /home folder. Not performance.  You could use the same /home folder for both linux distros (assuming you don't have any distro dependant binaries in your home folder and run them on the wrong distro).

The seperate partition for your data would be REALLY handy.  Make it an NTFS so you can mount it in Linux or Windows. big_smile  It's what I do with my music.

Btw,  why are you running Ubuntu & Arch?  Why not just Arch or Ubuntu?

Last edited by otisranson (2009-11-06 15:42:15)

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#5 2009-11-06 16:37:01

MadTux
Member
Registered: 2009-09-20
Posts: 553

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

Using Grub2 in Ubuntu is optional, if you do an upgrade from 9.04. The installer will then not replace your existing Grub but will rather use the installed one. So Ubuntu can live without Grub2.
The only important thing is, that the version of Grub you are using should be able to boot from ext4 partitions (if you are going to use ext4 in Ubuntu), and thats the case for the Arch version.

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#6 2009-11-06 23:47:12

JawsThemeSwimming428
Member
From: USA
Registered: 2008-03-09
Posts: 149

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

@otisranson

  Thanks for the info. I was able to boot Ubuntu 9.04 using the XP and/or Vista boot loader and EasyBCD. I would prefer to use this because my Windows 7 installation will be permanent on this machine and that is the boot loader I am currently using. If there isn't a performance benefit from having a separate /home partition I will likely keep it in root. I don't want to share the /home between Ubuntu and Arch. I'm running Arch and Ubuntu because I like them both. I can choose which one I want to use!

@MadTux
   Thanks!

Once again, I would like to use the Windows 7 boot loader and EasyBCD to boot Ubuntu 9.10 and Arch. Does anyone know if this is possible and how to accomplish it?

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#7 2009-11-07 03:17:47

llcawthorne
Member
From: Columbia, SC
Registered: 2009-10-16
Posts: 142

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

Sounds like your laptop is setup about like mine.  I wanted to see what the new ubuntu looked like for myself, so installed it to my laptop while I was out of town the other weekend.  I am still getting used to the GRUB2 that came with the Ubuntu install.  I keep wanting to overwrite it with GRUB, since I know it well, and either one boots the machines, but I am trying to take this as a fine opportunity to get accustomed to the changes.

Personally, I opted for separate home paritionsWhile they aren't required by any stretch of the imagination, I find them to be especially handy with ubuntu.  Home tends to keep alot of config files, and with ubuntu there is a tendency to wipe your root and do a clean install of the new version every six months.  A separate home parition not only gives me a separate place to have my personal config files; I tend to backup important changes to my /etc files and what not there also.  So while there isn't a difference in performance, for some there can be a difference in convenience.

At least that is what has worked well on my laptop.  It is just a laptop, and I don't know how much 'custom configuring' of the thing I am going to do, and why I wouldn't just back up on to my tower now that I think of it, but it isn't very hard to reorganize without the multiple partitions if I feel cramped and want to, I suppose.

A good argument can be said for it being easier to just backup anything in home you think you will need when the time comes instead of locking yourself into a strict paritioning scheme.  With a separate home parition, you can just cp -a stuff or tar it...  If you wanted to backup to your data parition; you'ld have to tar things up so you wouldn't lose permissions, since I imagine you are going with a multi-OS accessible format like FAT32 or NTFS for you data.

I imagine you already know this, but keep in mind that you probably want to create your Linux partitions as logical partitions within an extended partition.  You can only have four primaries, and your extended parition eats up one primary slot.  Each windows will need a primary of its own.  You can make the data parition logical or primary with little difference.  The Linuxes don't tend to care what type of partition they are on, and neither does swap; so setting them up as logical paritions tends to work out well.


To understand recursion, you must understand recursion.

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#8 2009-11-07 03:23:57

llcawthorne
Member
From: Columbia, SC
Registered: 2009-10-16
Posts: 142

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

JawsThemeSwimming428 wrote:

@otisranson

Once again, I would like to use the Windows 7 boot loader and EasyBCD to boot Ubuntu 9.10 and Arch. Does anyone know if this is possible and how to accomplish it?

Oh - didn't mean to ignore your question. 

Sorry, I've never used BCD.  I always use GRUB.  It's easy enough to work with once you know its tricks, and I only have to see the thing for a few seconds when I occassionally reboot, so don't give my selection of boot loader much thought, to tell the truth.  I primarily like GRUB, because I can setup it up by editing a text file, and that I can easily reinstall it from a CD from practically any Linux distribution.

Good luck though!

Lewis


To understand recursion, you must understand recursion.

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#9 2009-11-13 20:21:57

JawsThemeSwimming428
Member
From: USA
Registered: 2008-03-09
Posts: 149

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

Appreciate everyones input. I am currently running Arch on my laptop (as well as Windows 7, XP, and Ubuntu 9.10). I am booting them off EasyBCD 2 beta in Windows 7. Thanks!

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#10 2009-11-17 19:28:42

l'pc
Member
Registered: 2009-10-05
Posts: 22

Re: Partitioning scheme for Multiboot Laptop

For the /home thing, it is generally easier to have one directory for all your Linux installs because your personal settings are saved there (you'll have the same personal settings in all Linuxes), but it can sometimes be messy when you upgrade apps in one system and not the other.

Also, as you're not going to use the /home for storage, it is probably a bit stupid to have a separate partition for it, but you can install it in one system and then link it or even mount it from the other.

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