XP Pro/Linux Machine

[RWild]

Recently a co-worker gave me a copy of Red Hat(Linux). I've always wanted to experiement with it. I just don't want to format my Harddrive and lose all my data. I think I have 22 Gigs of free space left.

What would I need to make a dual boot system?
How much space should I allocate to the Linux partition?
Any rules I should follow?
Did I post this on the right forum?

 

[wolluf]

You might be better off in the Linux forum.

You say you have 22GB free space - is this unpartitioned or just free in the partition XP is using? (Because, if the latter, you will need something like Partition Magic to shrink existing partition to make room for Linux partitions)

 

[RWild]

It's free partition that XP is using. Thanks for a step in the right direction wolluf! Off to the linux forum I go!

 

[yostyid]

If it is a current release of red hat (or fedora) there should be an option to install into free space on the xp drive. If not a tool like partition magic makes it easy to create new partitions for Linux.

I think a lot of people do it differently, but I would try something like:

1.) a root partition named / where most all will be installed. Mine is about 4 gig and I have space left over and all the apps I need and many I dont.

2.) Swap partition, usually about twice the size of your physical memory.

3.) a home directory named /home. This will keep all of the users accounts. Keeping it away from "/" is nice if you reinstall or install a new distro. Usually when you install it wants to format and if everything is on /, all of your customization, playlists, documents... are gone.

This is how I split, and there are probably other ways to handle it. Red Hat is pretty gently on the install, so is Mandrake. Both are pretty clear in dealing with partitions.

Good Luck
justin