Booting From USB - Windows 8 Not seeing PCLOS

[Snapafun]

I have a Tri-booting system - basically to assist my mates and their families with their computer problems.

Currently - Dual boot with (C)-Windows8CP & (D)-Windows7

Notice that PCLOS is missing! From what I can observe, Windows8 has changed how the bootloader works and bitches about it if you try to change it in anyway.

So I resorted to EasyBCD and got very close. I have all three OS's listed in EasyBCD but there is no drive letter for PCLOS. (Within Win7 its L).

I suspect that this is because there is nothing out there that Windows8 will use to mount these partitions with - and believe me, I've tried them all. (Ext2 - Ext3 - Ext4 = all need to be seen before Windows8 bootloader can be used I fear.)

Then I had a thought - is there a way to put PCLOS bootloader onto a USB and whenever I want PCLOS I only need to fire up the system - choose which device to boot from - and I'm in??? - bypassing the Windows bootloader for the present.

Once Windows comes out in full release there might be cause to re-visit this problem and look for a suitable workaround then. For now, well who knows what the Windows Gang are going to end up doing.

Suggestions anyone? And NO.... I do the Windy thing for Juniors I train at Rock'n'Roll Dancing who need to get their homework sorted along their way - so using Windows and the like are necessary.

[Just17]

All I can suggest is to try to separate Win 8 from the others ....  maybe separate HDDs or separate boot drive as you suggest ...

http://www.pclinuxos.com/forum/index.php/topic,104128.0.html

Yes, if your PC will boot from USB flash stick, USB HDD, optical disk or floppy etc ....  then Grub can be used to boot PCLOS and at least Win 7 .......  don't know about Win 8 as I have never seen it installed.

[DeBaas]

Boot PCLinuxOS LiveCD
insert (formatted, not NTFS) USB
Mount USB by viewing it's files
Look in PCC partition manager for the correct sd(x) name of the USB.
goto More Programs Configuration Redo MBR
Put Grub on the sd(x) from the usb
Ready

[Snapafun]

Thanks DeBaas.... Great reply and greatly appreciated. Have the weekend to sort it and will reply back with results.

Just a thought. Are you referring to the PCC on the LiveCD or do I look for it within my HDD installation of PCLOS? In other words, can I be sure of rebooting PCLOS from the USB if I do so from The HDD Install or is that not necessary? If so, how do I boot into the install from the LiveCD?

Thanks Just18 for your effort. I need this unit to be portable so another HDD is not an option at present. Elsewhere here http://www.pclinuxos.com/forum/index.php/topic,104128.0.html is a good breakdown of just what the new Win8 boot up does.

[Snapafun]

A little bit of an update. After reading heaps elsewhere I now know that getting Windows8 to even see ext4 partitions is not on at present. (Has anyone seen anything that will allow windows8 to read/write to such?)

Using EasyBCD in Windows8 allows me to boot to either Win8 or Win7 so that is resolved for now.

Now to re-install PCLinuxOS but this time create a boot partition on my SD Card ( So that it stays physically out of the way ) to allow me to boot exclusively into PCLOS.

Any 'gotcha's' to watch out for?

What is to best resource here to assist me in getting this done right? (I'm not insulted should it be raw newbie stuff. That's usually the best to be sure it's done right anyway. And I get to remember stuff I've forgotten about.)

For now I believe my objective will be to partition a suitable amount ( what would that be? ) on the first part of the SD Card and name it '/boot' and then install grub there? ( Got a free 1GB SD Card to commit to this.)

Any other suggestions also very welcomed.

[rubentje1991]

Now to re-install PCLinuxOS but this time create a boot partition on my SD Card ( So that it stays physically out of the way ) to allow me to boot exclusively into PCLOS.

Reinstalling is not needed with the redo-mbr thing on the live-cd.... it will do just what you want (keeping the PCLinuxOS install on the HDD, but only boot when USB (with bootloader) is inserted - I hope I interpreted that correctly)...
=> if that's the case, please follow the good advice of DeBaas:

Boot PCLinuxOS LiveCD
insert (formatted, not NTFS) USB
Mount USB by viewing it's files
Look in PCC partition manager for the correct sd(x) name of the USB.
goto More Programs Configuration Redo MBR
Put Grub on the sd(x) from the usb
Ready

[Just17]

The required space for Grub (if you want to put it someplace) is much less than 1MB ......  it fits easily on a floppy. On this install it is taking about 320KB

BUT ......  if you have the Grub files on the install, then all you need do is 'install' Grub to the MBR of the boot device ......  there should be no need to put any Grub files on it.

Of course if you do this, it can only be used on the one PC as a bootable device.

[Snapafun]

Oooo Kkkkk..... Here's what happened.. hope it make life easier for someone.

I booted up the LiveCD after having checked that my SD Card was NOT  formatted as NTFS!

Found out with PCC that it was sdc and using PCC made a 250MB partition up front - left the remaining 700MB till later.

Went to <quote> goto More Programs Configuration Redo MBR </quote> and up popped an Editor Component. Great, but I had no way of knowing what to do with it so after reading the menu.lst file and seeing that it would be OK for now I ended up simply clicking on save. I then used dolphin to copy the grub folder onto the SD Card partition.

Upon exiting the editor I got an option to accept 'Reset' and clicked on that.

Went for the reboot and after selecting to boot from my SD Card only got a flashing cursor. HoHum... been here way back and have forgotten what to do.

So rebooted the system normally and low and behold - there is my old PCLOS boot menu - no SD Card ( had taken that out on the reboot ) just the same menu options I had before installing Windows8 so I knew it to be the original.

OK! So what happens now :

Tried to boot into PCLOS - OK... Cool

Tried to boot into Windows7 - Gave me my new boot options for windows menu and booting on into the default - Windows7 - OK... Cool again

Now for the biggy - Rebooted and at the windows menu boot option selected my Windows8 install.... the system did NOT reboot as it usually does for switching to Windows8 - it just booted straight into Windows8 - OK... Cool yet once more!

And I'm being cheeky here because I'm replying using Windows8.

Still leaves me not knowing how to do the SD Card thing yet... hope someone here can enlighten me a bit more. Just not an urgent issue at present.

Any suggestions anyone?

[Just17]

Maybe if you restate your present requirements for the SD card it would help ......  because I don't know what you want from it now, or what limitations you may be willing to accept in its booting functionality .........  do you want to use it on only one machine for instance?
Do you need it at all now?

[Snapafun]

The SD Card option for booting directly into my HDD install of PCLOS would be great to have handy because Windows8 is a CustomerPreview only so as they update, upgrade that OS things will more than likely change to a point where seeing my present boot menus may become a thing of the past.

Would be great to have PCLOS lurking in the background, fire jacket and all.

So booting directly into PCLOS would be preferred.

AND I get to have a rest from windows when I want to do my own stuff and for that I use PCLOS.

Hope that helps Just18.

So I need to do the boot on SD Card correctly and can, of course, do so from within my HDD install of PCLOS this time. A great little step by step Howto would be great - just pointing me in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.

Oh.... If the SD Card can be set up to boot any PCLOS HDD Install, as opposed to just this install, then that would be a bonus. I don't mind either way. ( I install PCLOS onto my friends computers after re-partitioning them so as to save their personal data - as a backup if you will. These installs sometimes get my friends interested, so I get to leave PCLOS there and each time I visit I get to remind them - and show them - of an alternative that just works!.)

[Just17]

Probably the easiest way ..........  I would try copying the /boot/grub directory from the PCLOS install to the SD card, install Grub to the MBR of the SD card using the files on the SD card, and then edit the menu.lst file on the SD card to boot the PCLOS install.

Of course the PC must be capable of booting from the SD card .......