Ubuntu, Grub, and Windows 7


Recommended Posts

Hello,

So recently I have set up my new computer (craigslist finds many deals for those of you in the US :)). Anyway, I have three hard drives hooked up in this order, My first hard drive has Windows 7 on it (C:, or /dev/sda1), My second hard drive which holds my Ubuntu installation (/dev/sdb1), and then my third drive which is just a backup.

My first drive I have my Windows boot loader on it, with two entries: One for Windows 7 and one for Ubuntu. My second hard drive I installed Grub onto, which has a menu for the various kernels and of course to boot up Windows.

Here is my issue and what I did to try to solve it, but to no avail. Every time I boot into Windows, everything is fine until I restart my computer or shut down. After I exit Windows, and try to boot into Ubuntu, Grub can no longer see my Ubuntu installation (No such device found, no partition found). Of course my second hard drive is fine, I am able to boot into my recovery CD and fix Grub after a few hours, and boot back into my Ubuntu. But the second I launch Windows 7, it screws with my Ubuntu boot partition somehow. Grub is fine, it has the right menu but is Unable to see any hard drive except /dev/sda1 [Windows].

So I want to install Grub to my Windows boot loader, /dev/sda, but to have my boot partition on /dev/sdb3 (I just re-sized my partition for 500 megabytes specifically for /boot). I tried following a tutorial on the internet to install Grub, however I am afraid if I choose to install my Grub onto /dev/sda, that it will somehow corrupt my Windows Partition.

How do I install just the boot loader onto /dev/sda while having the Grub Stage 2 files on my /dev/sdb3 partition? Also, how to I configure Ubuntu to mount /dev/sdb3 as /boot automatically, as that partition was not originally there when I installed it.

Thank you!

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1075093-ubuntu-grub-and-windows-7/
Share on other sites

From what I can remember you need to install grub onto the windows drive, although saying this, it has been a while since I dual booted linux and windows on a machine, but installing it on the windows partition will not screw up the boot sequences and it should fix the problems you are having, Windows will just have to be selected from the grub menu to boot into unless you edit the config file for it to default boot into windows.

Well I ended up switching my Linux drive and Windows drive physically to the opposite slots they were in, and reinstalled Ubuntu. Now I can boot into Ubuntu fine, but for some reason Grub will not boot into Windows now, giving me the error that Ubuntu previously had:

error: no such device

error: no such partition

I recovered the Windows MBR, using bootsect /nt60 all, bootsect /nt60 sys /mbr bootrec /fixmbr, etc, then I reinstalled Grub onto my Linux drive, and reconfigured the menu.lst file. However, I still get the same error when trying to boot into Windows from Grub. Does it sound like a hardware issue, or Grub sucks at seeing the two different hard drives?

Grub needs to be the initial boot sector, then windows, for some reason, the way you have set things up is messing this up.

Computer On --> Grub --> Windows

Computer On --> Grub --> Linux

Either way grub needs to be installed to the 1st device set to boot from.

Going back to your original setup....

sda1 - Windows (Has to be installed 1st)

sdb1 - Linux (Has to be installed last)

Boot partition is to be set on sda1 so as grub manages the boot up and os.

Everything works then as it should.

Other option

Install Windows

Disconnect windows hard drive

Install Linux on other drive

Reconnect Windows drive

Use your computers bios boot device selector to change which os to boot from (Usually F11)

Mostly I use Windows XP on my virtual machine since it's much easier to setup and configure then using it on my host machine. Since i don't use plugins or anything on my host machine that's why.

Same with ubuntu, just use it on a virtual machine since it's much easier to configure and setup without knowing that it will have problems on the host machine.

  • 2 weeks later...
This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Now 8GB of ram looks even worse in the Neo. I'm so happy I purchased 128GB of DDR 4 when I did.... paid $174. Upgraded my parents laptop to 32GB around the same time for $48. Luckily I have a TON of spare laptops. So i'm good on laptops for a while. I also have a lot of desktops too that I could use if i had to. Lets just hope nothing happens to my main 4 monitor couch workstation.
    • I will keep my current devices for several years... no planning in upgrading until these devices stop working. Too pricey.
    • Apple raises MacBook and iPad prices as memory costs surge by Karthik Mudaliar Apple has raised the U.S. prices of several MacBook and iPad models, including the MacBook Neo, which it launched for $599 less than four months ago. The company’s cheapest laptop now starts at $699, while some MacBook Pro configurations have increased by $300. The changes affect the MacBook Neo, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iPad Air, and iPad Pro. Apple has not changed the hardware or storage included with these models, so customers are simply paying more for the same configurations. Here is how the new US pricing compares with the previous starting prices: Product Previous price New price Increase MacBook Neo $599 $699 $100 13-inch MacBook Air, 512GB $1,099 $1,299 $200 14-inch MacBook Pro, 1TB $1,699 $1,999 $300 16-inch MacBook Pro $2,699 $2,999 $300 11-inch iPad Air, 128GB $599 $749 $150 13-inch iPad Air, 128GB $799 $949 $150 11-inch iPad Pro, 256GB $999 $1,199 $200 13-inch iPad Pro, 256GB $1,299 $1,499 $200 The updated prices are already appearing on Apple’s U.S. online store. The MacBook Neo increase will probably attract the most attention. Apple introduced the laptop in March for $599, pitching it as a more affordable Mac for students and buyers considering Windows laptops or Chromebooks. It uses an A18 Pro processor and originally undercut Dell’s new $699 XPS 13 by $100. Following the increase, the two laptops now have the same starting price. The M5 MacBook Air has also lost the price Apple promoted when it launched in March. The 13-inch model arrived with 512GB of storage for $1,099, while Apple’s store now lists the MacBook Air range as starting at $1,299. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip and 1TB of storage has gone from $1,699 to $1,999. Apple has made similar changes to its iPads. The recently released M4 iPad Air, which launched at the same $599 starting price as its predecessor, now starts at $749 for the 11-inch version. The 13-inch version has risen from $799 to $949. The iPad Pro increases are larger in dollar terms. Apple’s 11-inch M5 iPad Pro now starts at $1,199, up from $999, while the 13-inch version has moved from $1,299 to $1,499. Both base models still include 256GB of storage. Apple blamed the increases on the rapidly rising cost of DRAM and NAND flash, which provide system memory and device storage. The company told Reuters that it had tried to shield customers from the increases but could no longer absorb them. “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly,” Apple said. Tim Cook had already warned that price increases were coming. Cook said Apple’s existing component inventory had softened the immediate impact, but that higher memory costs would increasingly affect the company after the June quarter. Much of the pressure comes from the construction of AI data centers. Memory manufacturers are directing more production toward high-margin server products, leaving PC, tablet, and smartphone makers competing for the remaining supply. Apple has not said whether the new prices are temporary or whether further increases are planned. For now, the changes show that even Apple’s purchasing power has not been enough to keep the AI-driven memory shortage away from consumer devices.
    • Ventoy 1.1.16 is out.
    • This is a none story - these low volume Chinese models will always get new experimental features first because Apple and Samsung can't produce them in huge volume to meet demand.
  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      kinowa earned a badge
      First Post
    • Rookie
      krychek57 went up a rank
      Rookie
    • Grand Master
      Jaybonaut went up a rank
      Grand Master
    • One Year In
      Philsl earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Dedicated
      Scoobystu earned a badge
      Dedicated
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      460
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      170
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      135
    4. 4
      Michael Scrip
      77
    5. 5
      Xenon
      77
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!