Vakkotaur

For some time now, since at least August, I've been acquiring parts and building up a computer (for scarletcharnel). The hardware was the easy part. I had a bit of a time with a Linux (Xubuntu) install to test things out. I purposely held off on installing Windows (not my choice of OS, but this isn't my machine) until I had all the hardware that it would have to deal with. I did not want to deal with whatever nonsense Windows has about authentication and hardware changes. So, after I confirmed that everything was working, I set out to install Windows (7, 64 bit, Professional). And I cussed and grumbled more than I had in years.

It's actually fairly simple, but only to someone already familiar with Windows quirks. For a confirmed Linux user, it's an exercise in frustration as Windows consistently fails to do the right thing. So, here goes, for my own future reference, as through this I wound up with an extra copy of Windows (7, 64 bit, Home Premium) and might yet go though this again.

Zeroeth, set BIOS and such to use EFI mode, even for the DVD/CD drive. Yes, this is important. At least for the Windows install. If you do not do this, Windows will insist it cannot install to a GPT (bye bye MBR, we're using big disks now) partition. Linux will simply go where you point it. Set up the disk as GPT. I recommend PartedMagic for disk partitioning (gparted is your friend), re-sizing, and all the badgering you'll need to do make Windows co-exist with Linux.

First, be prepared to fully back up everything or lose it. Windows does not play nice with other operating systems and demands to be the first (and "only") thing installed on a fresh disk. Stupid, but it is Windows where stupid is standard. Now install Windows. It will whine that the system that booted many times just fine might not boot do to configuration issues. Windows is an idiot. Ignore the idiot and go on with the install. It will create three partitions: an EFI boot partition, a Windows recovery partition, and a Windows partition.

Next is to shrink the Windows partition to not take up the whole disk (besides the efi/boot and restore partitions). Allegedly Windows can do this itself, but I don't trust it any farther than one could comfortably spit a rat. I used gparted from PartedMagic and shrank the Windows partition. I also created another NTFS partition for the user that is at least somewhat isolated from the main Windows partition. If Windows must be reinstalled, it can do upgrades or repairs with less (though not zero) risk to the user data. Boot into Windows and let it cope with the new size of the world, which it will whine about. Too bad. In a glimmer of hope, Windows will see and mount the new user partition.

Unless you want to deal with the Linux install right away, now is probably the time to hunt down all the boxes the hardware came in and dig out the manufacturer's driver disks. You get to play disk swap for a while installing everything as Microsoft hasn't got a nice easy software repository to make life simple and easy. Also, it might need you to give drivers for drop-dead common networking hardware and stuff like USB ports. Yes, Windows really is an idiot.

Reboot with PartedMagic and use gparted to create the Linux partitions. I kept it fairly minimal with / and /home and swap. /home by itself for the same reason as the separate Windows user partition: keeping OS and user data somewhat isolated just makes sense. I made the Linux partitions (aside from swap, of course) ext4.

Another reboot with the Linux install disk and, if the hardware & software get along (I don't know why, but *buntu 12.04 tends to go black screen on new hardware for me) you simply install. As I wanted Xubuntu 12.04 and it wasn't behaving as it ought, I installed Xubuntu 11.04 and let it update itself to 12.04 when it asked. Yes, that 12.04 is goofy this way shows lack of clue somewhere, but at least I had networking and such right off. (Windows: Durrr, what's a USB port? Linux: Oh, hey, I found this camera on one of the USB ports, want me to take your picture for the login screen?). At the end, install grub2 to the / partition.

Use Parted Magic again, but don't let it boot up by itself. Stop it at the first graphic screen and choose Extras and have it boot with grub. It will find the Linux install and boot from there (just using the hard drive will boot Windows without any choice). Do NOT waste time with EasyBCD to try to cajole Windows into doing the right thing. EasyBCD doesn't (yet?) handle EFI so it will only waste time. In Linux, run the updates as needed, and be sure the correct video driver gets installed - don't want to end up with a blackscreen from Xubuntu 12.04 again.

Find and install BootRepair. Sadly, this is not in the *buntu repository so a bit of command line work and using an alternate repository will be needed. Run it. Decide which operating system should boot by default. In this case, I decided it ought to be Windows. Not what I'd do for myself, but again it's not my machine.

Enjoy dual boot. Set up Windows, set up Linux, installing whatever programs seem to be good to have around. One of them is Ext2Read which will let Windows see (read only, unless you like living dangerously) the Linux ext4 partitions. This is better than leaving Windows to claim they need to be formatted. Windows, by itself, doesn't grok much in the way of filesystems.

Last weekend I got sistaur's computer into a reasonably useful state, but in doing so removed an (outdated) anti-virus program or two. Since it is Windows (XP), I suppose there ought to be some sort of anti-malware program. The problem is, I have no idea about that. I haven't had to deal with keeping Windows secure for some time.

So I am looking for recommendations. The anti-{adware,spyware,virus,whatever} should not drag system performance down noticeably, and would ideally be free. Any recommendations?

I've been using Linux as my primary desktop OS at home for a couple years now and a few days ago when I fired up the Win2K machine for something (which the Linux machine can now do) I looked at the log that the UPS monitor keeps. I'd used the Windows machine in 2002, but only once or twice in 2003 and 2004. If I hadn't had trouble with the CPU fan on the Linux machine, it would have been the first time in 2005 I'd started the Windows machine.

I've also been pondering a Linux distribution that might not be the one I'm currently running (Mandrake) but I'd like to test things on a real full install first - without taking down my primary machine. The only machine I have that would be considered reasonably new enough to test most modern full featured Linux distributions is the Windows machine. I've been trying to think what reason I could have to keep Windows on it, since a re-install of Windows would be an unwelcome task. The UPS monitor logs show that I certainly don't need Windows regularly. The last thing I needed it for was to make mp3 files and Linux can do that. About the only thing I can think of might be playing games but I don't play games. And the only game I do have is on a CD with a Mac version, so if the bug did bite I could play that on the iMac.

I know this. I've thought it over. And yet I keep having this nagging feeling that I'm overlooking something, and it might even be important. But if it was, wouldn't I have used Windows (at home) more than twice a year?

Addendum: jmaynard pointed out that I could swap hard drives and not really lose the Windows install. It would be a bit awkward to put back, but not too big a deal. And we do have a couple "small" 20 G drives that would do for what I want. That seems to be the way to go.

That message is one I expect to see if I made changes to some file and tried to exit the program without having saved the file. That's fine. I like that reminder. It's useful and has saved me headaches and re-work.

What I do not like is using Word, saving the file, printing it, and then being asked if I want to save changes. Huh? I made no changes. I printed the file. Printing is not editing. Or with Excel, I open a spreadsheet, look at it, make no changes - not even moving the highlighted cell or scrollbars! - and when I close the thing I get asked if I want to save changes. There were no changes. Why ask if I want to save changes when there aren't any?

Is it any wonder I prefer to use third party software whenever possible?

Windows XP sucks. That is all.

( Operating systems )