One tip for installing any second (2nd) third (3rd)...operating system, Virtually install them and then run them natively without going through a native install using WMWorkstation.
This is acually a very easy way to install virtually any operating system to your physical hard drive while you are running your current operating system. For some operating systems such as Windows, you can easily choose to install your OS with a GUI (Graphical User Interface). For others such as Linux you must restart your computer and boot with the CD or DVD inside. For those who are not very comfortable with doing this and fear they might install to the wrong hard drive or partition and erase the wrong stuff I would try this alternative I discovered. What is even better is that you can always go back and use VMWare to access files from the new OS, while you are using the old OS.
This is acually a very easy way to install virtually any operating system to your physical hard drive while you are running your current operating system. For some operating systems such as Windows, you can easily choose to install your OS with a GUI (Graphical User Interface). For others such as Linux you must restart your computer and boot with the CD or DVD inside. For those who are not very comfortable with doing this and fear they might install to the wrong hard drive or partition and erase the wrong stuff I would try this alternative I discovered. What is even better is that you can always go back and use VMWare to access files from the new OS, while you are using the old OS.
READ EVERYTHING BEFORE STARTING
If you don't have or plan on buying VMWare Workstation just dowload the trial. You can actually just download the trial and set up your OS as the trial is full featured, but time limited.
How To:
Locate the .VMX file for this VM and remove:
Save, close and now open VMWare, and put begin the installation. Once you are done, you can close VMWare and natively boot into your new OS as if it were installed natively.
How To:
- File>New>Virtual Machine>
- Custom
- Hardware Compatibility Workstation6 (Or the newest version that is listed.)
- Choose the type of OS you will be installing.
- Name the virtual machine anything you would like. Save it on the same drive or partition you are currently using for your primary OS, or the OS you will be using when you install the new OS.
- Most likely wou will want to choose One Processor so your computer will not give to much processing power to the VM. (the option for two processors is only made available when you have either a Dual-Core Processor, or a Dual Processor).
- Choose the amount of memory you would like your VM to use. I used just over half of what I had in my physical memory.
- Use Bridged Networking
- Use Bus Logic
- Use a Physical Disk
- Very carefully choose which hard drive and partition you would like to install the new OS to.
- Name and, make sure the .vkmd Disk Descriptor File is stored in the same place as your Virtual Machine Settings (by default it is stored in the same place). Note where it is stored, you will need to edit those files in just a minute.
- Then press CTRL+D>Under Floppy uncheck the Connect at power on box.> Click Okay, and then close VMWare. Here is the hard part, you are going to need to right click>open with>notepad.
Locate the .VMX file for this VM and remove:
scsi0.present = "TRUE"Add the following lines:
scsi0.virtualDev = "lsilogic"
scsi0:0.present = "TRUE"
scsi0:0.fileName = "FreeBSD.vmdk"
scsi0:0.deviceType = "rawDisk"
scsi0.present = "FALSE"Replace "FreeBSD.vmdk with the name of your .vkmd Disk descriptor file.
ide0:0.present = "TRUE"
ide0:0.fileName = "FreeBSD.vmdk"
ide0:0.redo = ""
ide0:0.mode = "independent-persistent"
Now open the .vkmd file and change:
ddb.adapterType = "lsilogic"
to ddb.adapterType = "ide"
Save, close and now open VMWare, and put begin the installation. Once you are done, you can close VMWare and natively boot into your new OS as if it were installed natively.
If possible, when you are installing that extra OS, save the new boot entry to the hard drive which the operating system is being installed on rather than to the MBR (Master Boot Record) as you will most likely will able to configure your dual boot using EasyBCD in the current OS rather than having to mess with the new boot screen. This is how I avoided GRUB. You will want to add the boot entries for you new OS before you install, add entries for all the places you think the OS may be installed. This is a great way to test to see where everything is installed, and it also ensures you will be able to access everything without any worries.
Troubleshooting:
Drivers
What is great is that VMWare will run any OS even if some hardware drivers are missing becasue you can choose which hardware to include. In my case, I installed Ubuntu only to find it would not boot on my notebook because I did not have the bcm43xx wireless drivers. What I did is went into VMWare and installed the drivers as I had no wireless card in VMWare, just a virtual ethernet connection that was bridged to my real connection.
Install Location
The other problem I ran into was that once I try to natively boot linux, it was searching for an install on disk 0, not disk 1. I just had to go into Ubuntu from VMWare and change this and everything was okay. The alternative is to edit your boot entry during the boot process by pressing eand then changing the install location to the appropriate place. I think linux is the only type of OS that has this problem. Windows and OS X86 worked fine for me without having to change the install location.
Troubleshooting:
Drivers
What is great is that VMWare will run any OS even if some hardware drivers are missing becasue you can choose which hardware to include. In my case, I installed Ubuntu only to find it would not boot on my notebook because I did not have the bcm43xx wireless drivers. What I did is went into VMWare and installed the drivers as I had no wireless card in VMWare, just a virtual ethernet connection that was bridged to my real connection.
Install Location
The other problem I ran into was that once I try to natively boot linux, it was searching for an install on disk 0, not disk 1. I just had to go into Ubuntu from VMWare and change this and everything was okay. The alternative is to edit your boot entry during the boot process by pressing eand then changing the install location to the appropriate place. I think linux is the only type of OS that has this problem. Windows and OS X86 worked fine for me without having to change the install location.
