MultiBoot Linux+WinXP+Win2K+WinME+Win98

[M.Hockings]

Bryan White wrote:

> We have a software testing department that tests Windows CDRom 
> software for compatibility with various versions of Windows.  I am 
> trying to create a testing system that would allow all the Windows 
> partitions to be on the same system and include the ability to reload 
> all the partitions from backup images.
>
> I am using Fedora to manage the images.  Currently I have WinMe, 
> Win2k, WinXP and Fedora all installed.  There does not seem to be a 
> way to get WinMe and Win98 to coexist.  Also I am using grub as the 
> boot loader. It chain loads to a secondary WinXP boot loader that lets 
> me choose which windows partition to boot.  I would prefer to just 
> make the various windows partitions appear on the Grub menu.
>
> Has anybody done this sort of thing?  Can you point me at any good 
> how-tos.
>
Hi Bryan,

I am sure that there are people here better versed in this stuff than I 
but here is my $0.02 (CDN) .  You can put WinMe and Win98 on the same 
machine, I have done it using OS/2's boot manager (and a later tool that 
I can't recall the name of) to select between them & Win2K, WinNT.

I think that the disk only has place for 4 primary partitions and that 
Windows must be installed (or at least think it is installed)  in an 
active primary partition.  Windows is particularly unforgiving about 
this and disables any other boot manager other than it's own.  Not that 
I have a lot of experience with various OS's for small systems but it 
seems to be unique in that regard.

As someone else mentioned, the grub manual is full of lots of detail but 
you have to read it carefully and think about it to "get" all the things 
that you can do.

Good luck,

Mike