1. 40 GB NTFS (pri )
2. 40 GB FAT (logical drive on ext )
I am currently using this PC to watch TV. The specs aren't too great, Celeron 1 Ghz Coppermine, 256 MB SDRAM (133 Mhz ) Vintron Intel 810e board, and 80 GB IDE HDD.
Windows XP used to run quite slow on the PC, it was managable, if no multiple windows were open. The only problem in mind was a doubt as to whether the tv tuner card would work in linux. This was the reason I had postponed installation.
However, one day while browsing the net I found that the chipset used in TV tuner card Bt 878 was supported in debain, I decided to upgrade to linux. Now, I had another dilemma..how to keep the existing windows and make a dual boot system.
Dual Boot to Windows
I googled and found this page http://www.nishants.net/articles/ntfsresize.htm . He has neatly mentioned the process. I must say google is a real help. hats off to the people who perfected the search algorithm! My Plan was to install Ubuntu Linux which is a debain based distro. The idea as described in nishant's site was to first 'shrink' the existing windows NTFS partition and then carve out free space for the linux installation. To shrink the partition, and carve out maximum space, i literally emptied my C:\ drive and degragmented it. The idea was to use UBUNTU live CD to do this task. However, ubuntu does not have support for NTFS filesystem. So, two debain packages called libntfs5_1.9.0-1_i386.deb and ntfstools_1.9.0-1_i386.deb were required, once again I googled and found the files, these two files, I copied to the C:\ drive.
Next, I booted using the UBuntu live CD and followed the instructions as given in nishant's site. I could shrink my windows installation to 25 GB as I had desired. This had earmarked around 17 GB of free space for Linux install.
Realizing the Free Space
One more step was necessary however, before this free space was realized. For this I reguired a partition tool. I choose sfdisk. downloaded it (again using google) and made a bootable CD. I booted using this CD and the partition manager launched automatically. The parition manager warned me that there was some error regarding the number of sectors and the space allocated to the volume and whether I wanted to correct it. I clicked yes and immediately, the partition manager showed the free space along with the resized primary partition. The existing logical drive in extended FAT32 partition was also shown. I saved changes, inserted the Ubuntu setup CD and rebooted.
Setting Up UBuntu
I followed the instructions contained in http://ca.geocities.com/zachandloricox@rogers.com/ubuntu/windowsxp.html . Another nice site with all screenshots. The main steps involved were:-
1. select the free space to install ubuntu
2. Select the Automatically Partition the space option
3. Install grub boot loader ( this will show up the boot menu during boot to select between windows and ubuntu OS)
As the installation progressed, I was asked whether I wanted to download the latest packages from ubuntu, i did that, and my installation was being updated online. This is a cool feature.
Now, my next step would be to make my tv tuner card work. This would be dealt in a seperate post! I welcome myself to the Linux World!
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