can I do a dual boot ?

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michaelj2
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Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2012 12:21 pm

can I do a dual boot ?

Post by michaelj2 »

Can I do :) a dual boot :) with React OS added onto my current windows xp machine ?

I would like to Install react OS operating system, and then when I reboot my system I am given a choice of booting into windows Xp, or into React OS. That makes sense to me, but is that supported ? can I do that ? does that work?


thank you :D


(I am new to the React-OS Operating System)

I am now using windows xp. 780 megs ram. about 50 gig internal drive (c drive)

I like the way they say that react os will be supported even when windows xp is no longer supported, and I like the way they say that react OS can run windows applications.
DOSGuy
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Re: can I do a dual boot ?

Post by DOSGuy »

Not if you care about your Windows XP machine. ReactOS is in alpha stage and it is highly recommended not to run it on a hard drive that has data that you care about. If you have a test machine that has a copy of Windows XP on it that you're willing to reinstall, the best answer is "maybe". ROS seems to have some issues with partitions. It might work, it might not work, and it might destroy the other partition and corrupt all of the data.
Today entirely the maniac there is no excuse with the article. Get free BeOS, DOS, OS/2, and Windows games at RGB Classic Games.
SomeGuy
Posts: 586
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2004 9:48 am
Location: Marietta, GA

Re: can I do a dual boot ?

Post by SomeGuy »

michaelj2 wrote:Can I do :) a dual boot :) with React OS added onto my current windows xp machine ?
That is not recommended. Currently ReactOS is unstable enough it may destroy information on your drive. The best way to try it out is inside VirtualBox. If you really want to see if it can do anything on your hardware try a LiveCD.
milon
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Joined: Sat Sep 05, 2009 9:26 pm

Re: can I do a dual boot ?

Post by milon »

SomeGuy wrote:The best way to try it out is inside VirtualBox.
This. Get a virtaul machine (like VirtualBox) and download a recent build of ReactOS. That will let you test it out without risking your XP setup. If you need help with that, there's lots of info posted on the forum (check the tutorials section) and on the ReactOS wiki. Failing that, ask us! We'll get you going.
DOSGuy
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Re: can I do a dual boot ?

Post by DOSGuy »

None of that is bad advice, but I don't think we should discourage anyone from testing ROS on real hardware. We just need to responsibly point out that ROS shouldn't be installed on a computer with any valuable data on it for safety reasons.

@michaelj2: By all means, give ReactOS a try in VirtualBox so that you can see what it looks like when it's working. That said, everyone is using ReactOS in VirtualBox, which means that we're all testing ROS on the same (virtual) hardware. The project definitely benefits from real hardware testing, so if you have a spare computer that you can use to test unstable stuff, please feel free to try installing ReactOS on it. Just be aware that you are much less likely to get ReactOS running on a real computer, which is precisely why we need people to tell us what kind of setups don't allow ReactOS to install/work properly and submit bug reports. ROS will never leave alpha/beta stage until it works on a variety of hardware (i.e. can be installed on a real computer).
Today entirely the maniac there is no excuse with the article. Get free BeOS, DOS, OS/2, and Windows games at RGB Classic Games.
steveh
Posts: 271
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2004 10:02 pm

Re: can I do a dual boot ?

Post by steveh »

Yes.

Reactos can be booted from grub. See here http://www.reactos.org/wiki/Boot_FreeLoader_from_GRUB

1. i have grub in MBR and Linux in a partition other than the first.
2. reactos installed on /dev/sda1

- Possibly reactos can also boot on a not-first partition now but it had to be the first when i installed it.

- caution in first stage installer:
do only install freeldr in "volume boot record" and do NOT write it into the MBR where is grub!
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