Removing Linux boot loader

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Tessu

Junior Member
Feb 9, 2004
6
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Hey,

Im trying to install Xp home upgrade edition after removing Linux. The problem is that it keeps giving me: error loading operating system when i boot up after a certain point in the installation. I think this is because there is still the linux boot loader left over even though i deleted the partinon with linux on it.

My question is how do i remove the linux boot loader. FDISK was mentioned to me but i have no idea what or how to do this.

Anyhelp would be appreciated thanks

 
K

Klixxer

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2004
6,149
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Originally posted by: kd7fhd
A DOS boot CD boots faster than the XP CD.
Click to expand...

How often do you use a DOS boot CD?

I prefer the Linux and BSD tools but sometimes, a DOS floppy is a saviour. When i need to do something like this for a customer, i simply send him a DOS boot floppy, a simple one, with an Autoexec.bat containing just one line "fdisk /mbr" you would be surprised if i told you how many i have sent such a disk to.

It's simple, it's fast and it works.

 
H

htne

Platinum Member
Dec 31, 2001
2,360
0
76
If the above solutions ("FDISK /MBR" and "fixmbr") don't work (and sometimes they don't), then download the diagnostic utilities from your drive manufacturer (Western Digital, Maxtor, Seagate, ...). There will be an option in there to zero out your drive. In most cases there will be a "quick" option, which only zeros out the first part of the hard drive. This will work when other remedies fail.
 
K

Klixxer

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2004
6,149
0
0
Originally posted by: htne
If the above solutions ("FDISK /MBR" and "fixmbr") don't work (and sometimes they don't), then download the diagnostic utilities from your drive manufacturer (Western Digital, Maxtor, Seagate, ...). There will be an option in there to zero out your drive. In most cases there will be a "quick" option, which only zeros out the first part of the hard drive. This will work when other remedies fail.
Click to expand...

There are other ways to do it, zeroing out your entire drive is like blowing up a forrest to kill a deer.

If fdisk /mbr won't work, boot up with a dos floppy, invoke fdisk and make sure your first primary is your active partition, some utilities change that to boot other partitions, if that won't work, try to sys it if you are using W95- -ME or use the utils in the recovery console for XP.

There is no need to wipe your drive.
 
kd7fhd

kd7fhd

Senior member
Dec 5, 2000
339
0
76
How can we not use DOS when windows very beginnings come from DOS? Remember that the early versions of windows (up to and including W95) were just a GUI which you loaded AFTER YOU STARTED DOS!

Even using the XP CD to boot from when you attempt to repair windows, it takes you to a DOS prompt and you have to know the proper command line commands to run. How is that NOT DOS?

Linux is no better. It's basically a command line driven OS which anyone can use with the GUI's that are available. But if you have problems, you have to boot to the command line and fix it, right?

The only thing I've seen that comes close to a true GUI environment for repairing windows is if you spring the cash for ERD Commander from Winternals (and that's kind of pricey!)
 
N

n0cmonkey

Elite Member
Jun 10, 2001
42,936
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Originally posted by: kd7fhd
How can we not use DOS when windows very beginnings come from DOS? Remember that the early versions of windows (up to and including W95) were just a GUI which you loaded AFTER YOU STARTED DOS!
Click to expand...

I could setup Win98 to not boot into Windows and stay in just plain old DOS.

Even using the XP CD to boot from when you attempt to repair windows, it takes you to a DOS prompt and you have to know the proper command line commands to run. How is that NOT DOS?
Click to expand...

AFAIK, that's not DOS.

Linux is no better. It's basically a command line driven OS which anyone can use with the GUI's that are available. But if you have problems, you have to boot to the command line and fix it, right?
Click to expand...

That's not DOS.

The only thing I've seen that comes close to a true GUI environment for repairing windows is if you spring the cash for ERD Commander from Winternals (and that's kind of pricey!)
Click to expand...

We aren't debating GUI vs CLI, just the fact that DOS is garbage.
 
kd7fhd

kd7fhd

Senior member
Dec 5, 2000
339
0
76

We aren't debating GUI vs CLI, just the fact that DOS is garbage.
Click to expand...

OK, so if I remember the beginning of this thread, we weren't actually debating that DOS is garbage.... someone was wanting help:

Hey,

Im trying to install Xp home upgrade edition after removing Linux. The problem is that it keeps giving me: error loading operating system when i boot up after a certain point in the installation. I think this is because there is still the linux boot loader left over even though i deleted the partinon with linux on it.

My question is how do i remove the linux boot loader. FDISK was mentioned to me but i have no idea what or how to do this.

Anyhelp would be appreciated thanks
Click to expand...

and in this instance DOS is the fastest/easiest way to fix the problem.
 
A

Abzstrak

Platinum Member
Mar 11, 2000
2,450
0
0
Originally posted by: kd7fhd
How can we not use DOS when windows very beginnings come from DOS? Remember that the early versions of windows (up to and including W95) were just a GUI which you loaded AFTER YOU STARTED DOS!

Even using the XP CD to boot from when you attempt to repair windows, it takes you to a DOS prompt and you have to know the proper command line commands to run. How is that NOT DOS?

Linux is no better. It's basically a command line driven OS which anyone can use with the GUI's that are available. But if you have problems, you have to boot to the command line and fix it, right?

The only thing I've seen that comes close to a true GUI environment for repairing windows is if you spring the cash for ERD Commander from Winternals (and that's kind of pricey!)
Click to expand...

no no no , I didn't say GUIs only and CLI sucks... linux is great, and the recovery console is ok for its purpose, but DOS sucks... learn a unix shell and you'll understand how limiting DOS is. Fact is booting off of his XP CD is the easiest, I doubt he has a DOS boot disk, in which case he'll have to make one and wait for the damn floppy to FINALLY boot....
 
Jeff7

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
41,596
20
81
Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
Help was provided, in abundance with little fuss.

DOS is garbage and absolutely useless.
Click to expand...

With NTFS, yes, it's almost useless. With a FAT hard drive, then it can be useful. That said, once FAT16/32 are dead, DOS can die completely as well. And as far as I'm concerned, FAT16/32 can die any time now.


Also, might I add something - it seems like some people here are equating DOS and "command line." DOS uses a command line interface. All CLI's are not DOS though. DOS is Microsoft's. Command lines interfaces can be used in Windows XP, Linux, Unix, etc. But those aren't DOS.
 
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