New user install info

It should be perfectly possible to install Linux on your second hdd without it needing a partition on the master. The only change that Linux will make to your master drive is that it will write over the Master Boot Record when you install LILO (which I presume you will be using to dual boot your system). When you run the Red Hat install are you getting up to the bit where you need to partition your hdd? Does it give you the option of using fdisk or disk druid as your partitioning tool? When you run either of these does it see your second hdd? If not then is the hdd being recognised by your bios when you boot your system?
What is the actual error that you are getting from the install program? I can't see any reason why setup would need a partition on drive one, one of the great things about Linux is that it will install just about anywhere - there's no point unistalling Windows because that has to be on your primary master as far as I know.
As to your graphics card, the ATI 3D Rage Pro is supported by XFree86 3.3.4 (the newest version) but I did hear someone say that they had a card that had a new 3D Rage Pro Turbo chipset that wasn't supported. If your card is not the latter then you should be able to run X, it's most likely that you didn't do the setup quite right.

If you still can't get Linux to install on drive 2 then post back here with some more info about the problem.

I get to disk druid. Setup asks me to choose a mount point?
I can't choose the second drive from there. Yes, linux sees the drive hda shows 4 partitions (as there should be) hdb shows 3.2GB of free space. I just can't choose hdb as a mount point, and what should I name this mount point I tried naming it / and apparently that's illegal. I'm really new at this, I know NOTHING about unix. Problem is I got no money for books( right now anyway)so, I was going to install linux and just read the manuals but, whoever said Linux is easy to install now lied to me.....anyway, I'm not giving up and anymore ideas/suggestions/charity/pity you could give me would be greatly appreciated. I'm off to work for a couple of hours, when I get back I'm gonna check here again and then run install again. Cheers and thank you.


J

Hi,
Does the Red Hat install give you a choice of disk druid or the Linux
fdisk?  If so try to use the Linux fdisk as you have somewhat more control
with this option.  You will need to partition hdb into at least two slices, one as
a Linux native and one as swap.   Make your swap partition at least 64Mb or as
large as 128Mb.  You should be able to choose / as your mount point on
/dev/hdb1 with this configuration.  You really don't need to worry about other partitions at this point .  As you become more familiar with the OS you will better
be able to determine disk slices for future installs.  Once you have the new partitions made reboot and start the install again.  The setup program should see the new partitions and let you begin the install.   You should be able to install
on your second drive since Linux is not restricted to the 1024 cylinder limit as other OS's are.
Hope this helps

Jatcan
You don't need money for books with Linux! Some of the best books there are on the subject are available for free! Go to sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/ and you can download all the books and HOWTOs to your hearts content. They may already be on the cd (if you're installing off cd) that you have, look for a sub directory called doc.

And lepton, how about just adding comments until someone asks you to give an answer.

I will reject all answers unless I specifically ask someone to post his/her comment as an answer. Sorry lepton but, I do appreciate the advice and I will try it. I am not familiar with linux fdisk and don't feel comfortable using it but, since I thought I would have to re-install windows anyway.....may as well give it a shot.Thank you mrc97 for the url and yes I have the RH6 disk and yes it has docs and something called rpms?

Can't run install until much, much latter, my wife is working on the vax and needs my computer. So I will let you'all know tommorow how it goes. Thanks again.


J

I think the partition you are trying to install Linux may still recognize as DOS partition. Please try this. Boot up Windows or DOS, usr fdisk to delete the logical partition you want to make available to Linux. Then install REDHAT again, at the point where you are ask to choose a mount point, move to the partition you have in mind, and then tab to choose the [edit] button, and you should be able to select that partition as Linux or SWAP partition,a nd name the mount point. I encountered the similar problem when I installed REDHAT, and that was what I did to be able to proceed.

I apologize for my slip with the answers.  I am new to this site and will
post comments first as suggested.  Good luck with your install.
lepton

gansl:

 I have two harddrives. drive1(primary master) is totally partitioned with no free space left as a dos partition. Drive2 is unpartitioned and therefore unformatted. I want to use drive2 for linux. How do I go about doing this?

J

lepton:thank you very much. All the help I get is very much appreciated and hopefully some day it will be me helping someone else to install/setup Linux.

mrc197: I am using disk druid and linux "sees" both harddrives. The problem is when linux asks for a "mount point" I cannot guide it to drive2( or maybe I just don't know how since I am trying to use my knowledge of windows and dos partitions to install linux!!!!-it's all I got:-).
Should I partition/format drive2 and then install linux. I thought I could do this during linux install.Can I not?

J

Well I've answered my own question. The install is done. It was one of those stupid user mistakes. I didn't see the option to choose hda or hdb as the mount point. Anyway Linux is install AND x is running just fine. Although, it will be nice when I find out how to change the refresh rate on the video card. Three more things please. #1Who do I give the points to? You were all nice enough to reply with help.#2 where(what tool or directory) do I configure my sound card.....music would be soooooo nice to read all those mans to and #3lepton said to give linux a swap partition of up to 128mb....I gave it 200mb....is this o.k.? And thank you all very much.


J

Well, since no-one has responded about the points and I personally think that mrc197's advice has helped me the most I ask mrc197 to repost his suggestions as an answer and I will give the points to him. Again, thanks very much to all who replied.


J

My sound card is working fine and the modules worked. Just discovered that I have a winmodem though.


J

Are you sure that it's a winmodem? Some modems that are just standard modems can be labelled as "Winmodems", to increase sales to windows users I presume. The trouble with true winmodems is that they do some of the processing that orrdinary modems do in hardware, in software. That sort of modem will probably never be supported in Linux, but if you have a cheap ordinary modem it will probably work in Linux as long as it is reasonably Hayes compatible. My modem is a cheap ($30) ISA 33.6 and it works fine under Linux, so if you have a small amount of spare cash and your modem really is a winmodem (try it out, don't just go with the packaging), then I would recommend getting hold of a new one. Once you start networking with Linux then the fun really starts; it's head and shoulders above the rest.

Mark

Hey thanks Mark,

Linux sees the modem but it just isn't doing anything. I looked and a compatibility list and apparently it is a winmodem its a: Aopen FM56-p. The comparable model that is Linux compatible is the Aopen FM56-ru. Which also cost $25.00 more. Anyway my buddy's gonna give me his external 28.8 to use until I can get something a little faster. Around the end of Sept. Maybe gonna be Adsl service in my area, hope it's linux ready.28.8 is all I need to read the info on linux anyway and , as I'm discovering, all the info I really need is right on the RH disk:-) I've been on linux for about a grand total of 6hours and already it's blowing me away. Everything I discover about it is better than WIndows could ever dream of being, 4 desktops???? wow, and my buddy says to try something called KDE gonna go read up on that right now, thanks for everything and I'm sure we'll be talking again....


J