“ Linux rocks ! ” “ No , it ’s halting – stick by with Windows ! ” see any Web situation or online forum where impassioned computer users contend the proportional merits of operating system , and you ’ll obtain endless dissension . The only manner to find out which operating organization fits your penury is to run both on the same personal computer , configure for dual - booting . You also postulate to be capable to get at your datum file from either OS , which is the tricky part of the process .
produce a threefold - the boot setup on a Windows machine is as easy as choose that option when you install Ubuntu . As you flip between the two operating systems in your day - to - sidereal day body of work , you ’ll be able to assess for yourself the killer features , incompatibilities , and showstopping defect that make one a better choice than the other .
On a dual - boot system , Linux and Windows reside on separate disk partitions , each of which is initialise differently . Even though the file systems are incompatible , most recent versions of Linux can at least read file cabinet on Windows XP ’s NTFS partitions , though this may not be enabled by default option . Few Linux distribution can write files to an NTFS partition powerful out of the loge , and the reliability of this function has n’t yet been proven , so trust it at your data ’s jeopardy . In addition , the software system required to spell data file from Linux to NTFS drive is difficult to download and install .
Windows , conversely , lacks the aboriginal power to take and write files on any of the several Linux Indian file system . The nifty and freeExt2 Installable File System for Windowspermits Windows XP to read and write in the Ext2 and Ext3 data file system many Linux dispersion expend ( it does n’t work with the ReiserFS file cabinet organization , however ) . While this is handy , particularly if you pass most of your clock time using Linux and you keep your filing cabinet there , I urge another pick : creating a separate partition for your information that utilize the older FAT32 file organisation , which both Linux and Windows XP can read from and drop a line to . In fact , FAT32 has been included with every interlingual rendition of Windows since 95 ’s Service Release 2 .
FAT32 lacks the exploiter - access security characteristic of Linux ’s Ext2/3 and Windows ’ NTFS , but creating a separate FAT32 partitioning for your information allow you to install or upgrade your operating system without feature to back up or restore your information file cabinet . It also permit you learn and drop a line that datum with minimal MBD - on downloading and constellation . If you need some aid in resize your existing partitions to create a newfangled FAT32 division , look no further than the freePartition Logicutility .
Mount That Drive
After you make your FAT32 information partitioning , you ’ll be capable to write to it in Windows XP directly . When you boot into Ubuntu Linux ( I use Ubuntu 6.06 ) , the partition appears in the Computer window ( Places , Computer ) , but any try you make to open it will go wrong . That ’s because Ubuntu has n’t yet mounted the drive ( seeFIGURE 1Figure 1 : Ubuntu see your data , but it ca n’t get on the partition for reading and writing until you take additional steps . ) . To instruct it to do so , get through theShow more detailslink in the error substance window , and jot down the division ’s name – usually it ’s ‘ /dev / hdxy ‘ , wherexis the hard magnetic disk ( the first one put in on your system of rules is ‘ a ’ , the second is ‘ type B ’ , and so on ) andyis the partition telephone number . For example , if your FAT32 division is the 2nd one make on a PC containing a unmarried hard disk , it would be ‘ /dev / hda2 ’ . small computer system interface and SATA drive appear in the format ‘ /dev / sdxy ‘ .
Next , clickApplications , Accessories , Terminalto open up a command - line window , and participate the commandgksudo gedit /etc / pmount.allowto launch the file pmount.allow for editing . typewrite the divider name on the last bloodline , click theSaveicon , and exit the editor program . Now return to the Computer window , decent - click the FAT32 partition , and chooseMount Volume . near all exposed electronic computer window , and then reopen one ; your sectionalization will now be accessible . you’re able to use the same method acting to rise NTFS partitions , but in read - only way . For more detail on these steps , as well as other strategies for reading and writing to Windows partitions in Ubuntu Linux , see theUbuntu residential district documentation .