Date: Fri, 11 Jun 1999 08:54:43 -0400 (EDT) From: alan17@his.com To: freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Detailed explanation of problem<g> Message-ID: <19990611125443.757.qmail@alan17.his.com>
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Before I get into the nitty-gritty, let me thank the kind and knowledgeable people -- from all parts of the world, I am interested to note! -- who have posted responses and suggestions to me. It makes me hope even more that I will be able to install FreeBSD. However . . . ! I need reassurance about the installation procedure. So let me explain as precisely as I can my problem/concern(the impatient can bail out right here<g>) I am a Linuxer with a vanilla Pentium, with a first HD(bought in Nairobi BTW) that is now 90% full. So a week ago I bought a 6.3gig HD and partitioned it as follows: /dev/hdc1 944 meg b7 BSDI fs /dev/hdc2 75 meg b8 BSDI swap /dev/hdc3 1247 meg b7 BSDI fs /dev/hdc4 3982 meg 5 Extended /dev/hdc5 1039 meg 83 Linux native /dev/hdc6 1228 meg 83 Linux native /dev/hdc7 1714 meg 83 Linux native Since I detect some ambiguity/ambivalence in the various terminologies, let me say a few words about my understanding of the above. 1. The above data are "pre-OS"; they are written into the master boot record(I believe) of my disk(which is called /dev/hdc because it is the Master on my IDE1(second half of IDE). 2. It can be seen that I have three primary partitions, /dev/hdc1, /dev/hdc2, /dev/hdc3, which are intended for FreeBSD, plus a fourth primary which is Extended(this is some sort of Kludge) and which is subdivided into three Linux partitions. These three Linux partitions are already in use, contain data, and I am extremely unwilling to do, or allow to happen, anything which will compromise their integrity. 3. As a consequence of 2., I am willing to change the partition types of /dev/hdc1, /dev/hdc2, /dev/hdc3, but not to delete them or to change their size(I note that my Linux fdisk program mentions a partition type 'a5', named BSD/383; I could change the 'b7' or BSDI partitions to that) 4. I thought I was being clever in putting the prospective BSDI partitions first, since Linux, at any rate, requires BIOS right at the beginning, and BIOSes sometimes have difficulty finding locations way out on a big hard drive. OK, I hope that any of you who have read so far have understood this. My question: can I install FreeBSD _without_ the above data being changed? I am certainly willing to consider a "dd-type" installation, where I get a minimal system from somewhere, put it on, say, a Zip disk, and 'dd' it to e.g. my /dev/hdc1. It is my intention to put all the directories of the BSD _system_(e.g. /, /usr, /bin, /dev, etc etc) onto /dev/hdc1, and reserve /dev/hdc3 for user accounts, and possibly sym-linked overflow from /dev/hdc1. I am very much hoping that someone will a) have read as far as this<g>, and b) give me a definitive solution to this difficulty. Again thanks to all responders! Best wishes, Alan -- Alan McConnell The beauty of an object, a song, or a dance can Pixel Analysis never be altogether intrinsic, independent of old alan17@his.com associations and acquired understanding. (L.J.Halle) To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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