Fwd: Converting Fedora 19 machine to dual-boot with pre-installed Windows 7

[Greg Woods]

On Fri, 2013-10-18 at 17:09 -0700, Rick Stevens wrote:
> On 10/18/2013 09:50 AM, Oliver Ruebenacker issued this missive:

> >    I have a Lenovo T430 that had Windows 7 Pro pre-installed, but I
> > wiped out Windows and installed Fedora 19 instead (actually, I first
> > installed Ubuntu and then Fedora).
> >
> >    Now I want to turn it into a dual-boot machine with Fedora and
> > Windows


> <soap>
> I _detest_ Microsoft's business practices, but that's a topic that is
> not apropos to this list or thread.
> </soap>

Not totally irrelevant actually, because due to the licensing software,
Windows 7 has to be "activated", and that can be a tricky business if
you want to do something like using a license that was for an original
installation on a VM. The hardware seen by Windows is all different. I
just went through this a couple of days ago when I moved a VM from my
old laptop to my new one. My (legitimate) product key failed to work to
activate. In that case, I had to go through the Windows activation
center (on the phone) and give them a code that Windows gave me, then
type in a 30-digit activation code they gave me. It was a hassle, but it
eventually worked. I am not sure what would happen if you tried this
with a copy of Windows that was for an original install;  it may well be
locked in to some of the hardware.

For that reason, you might be better off installing Windows natively. I
just did that yesterday on a brand new system. First, I used a Gparted
Live CD (gparted.org) to partition the disk. I created some Linux
partitions, and an NTFS partition for Windows. When I installed Windows
7, it was quite happy to install itself into the NTFS partition and
leave everything else alone. So you may well be able to use a partition
editor (perhaps fdisk) to create an NTFS partition, then install Windows
7. Obviously you want to make sure your existing Linux system is backed
up first.

The only drawback to this approach is that Windows will, in all
likelihood, overwrite your master boot sector so that only Windows will
boot. That will require booting from a Linux rescue disc (the Fedora
install DVD works just fine) and reinstalling grub2 into the master boot
sector. I personally think this is easier than having to re-install
Linux again after installing Windows and then restoring your stuff, but
you may see it differently.

> 
> That being said, in the past Windows assumed it owned the whole machine
> and would take over the entire hard disk.

I think it is much better now, at least it is in Windows 7.

--Greg