[BBLISA] Re: RHEL and Windows simultaneously?

[Eddy Harvey]

If you don't want to reinstall windows when you switch over to using vmware
-- 

I can't tell you definitively if it's possible or impossible, but I can tell
you a few facts on the matter.

If the virtual computer emulates hardware that's very similar to your
existing hardware, you can probably deal with it pretty easy.  Uninstall and
reinstall a network driver and a sound card driver, and a hundred other
drivers, and everything ends up working.  You might want to look into
Microsoft's "sysprep" tool, which is meant to prepare a windows installation
for transition over to a completely different set of hardware.

If instead, there's a fundamental difference in bootime hardware, then
sysprep is your only hope.  For example, if you have a hyperthreaded cpu or
dualcore cpu, and vmware emulates a single processor - then there's
absolutely no way around it, your windows installation must use a different
HAL, and therefore sysprep or reinstall.  Likewise, if you boot from ata and
your new installation is sata.  Sysprep or reinstall.  You essentially can't
change the type of processor, or hard drive, and if you do, your choices are
sysprep or reinstall.

Remember to double the memory in your system.  *Each* os wants 512.  Your
computer will become a dog if you don't.




-----Original Message-----
From: bblisa-bounces at bblisa.org [mailto:bblisa-bounces at bblisa.org] On Behalf
Of Scott R Ehrlich
Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2006 9:04 AM
To: nmeyers at javalinux.net
Cc: bblisa at bblisa.org; discuss at blu.org
Subject: [BBLISA] Re: RHEL and Windows simultaneously?

Quoting nmeyers at javalinux.net:

> On Wed, Apr 12, 2006 at 06:39:05AM -0400, Scott Ehrlich wrote:
>> I currently have my system booting Windows XP installed on a 40 Gig 
>> IDE drive.  I'm going to add an 80 Gig IDE drive to the system, and plan
to
>> RHEL on it.   I'd ultimately like to make RH the primary OS and be able
to
>> boot the existing installation of XP in a window within RH (not 
>> dual-boot).
>>
>> I presume there is a program within RH or the Linux world to permit this?
>>
>> I initially thought of VMWare, but that is a self-contained software 
>> computer.
>
> Not sure I understand why you're excluding VMWare - what you're 
> describing is exactly what VMWare does. I'm not positive, but VMWare 
> may be the only one of the bunch that will run an OS installed on a 
> partition, without requiring you to create a virtual drive on the host 
> system's filesystem.
>
> Nathan
>

The responses thus far have been great for my inquiry.   I am not at all
dismissing the option of VMWare.   From my experience, I've had to freshly
install an OS within VMWare's virtual computer.   I've never used it to 
produce
a VM of an existing OS under the parent OS.

But remember, XP is configured for my existing hardware.  If VMWare can
simply act as a bridge to bring the XP install as a VM within RH, then it
may be the answer.

Can it?   I'll also double-check VMWAre's web site for more details.

Thanks.

Scott

_______________________________________________
bblisa mailing list
bblisa at bblisa.org
http://www.bblisa.org/mailman/listinfo/bblisa