Syslinux - Feb 2005 - extlinux to boot linux from the second drive

Hi!

Can extlinux boot Linux kernel from the second drive?  I want to leave
Windows XP on the first IDE drive and put Linux to the first partition
(ext2/ext3) on the second IDE drive. I am allowed to change MBR on the
first drive. Will the following configuration work?

	/dev/hda1 - Windows
	/dev/hdb1 - Linux root (/, /boot, ...)
	/dev/hda  - extlinux in MBR
	/boot/vmlinuz

	extlinux /boot

/boot/extlinux.conf:

	LABEL win
		KERNEL chain.c32
		APPEND hd0 1
	LABEL lin
		KERNEL vmlinuz
		APPEND hd1 1

Thank you,
Alex.

On Wed, Feb 16, 2005 at 08:58:03AM +0100, akozlov at nada.kth.se
wrote:
> Hi!
> 
> Can extlinux boot Linux kernel from the second drive?  I want to leave
> Windows XP on the first IDE drive and put Linux to the first partition
> (ext2/ext3) on the second IDE drive. I am allowed to change MBR on the
> first drive. Will the following configuration work?
> 
> 	/dev/hda1 - Windows
> 	/dev/hdb1 - Linux root (/, /boot, ...)
> 	/dev/hda  - extlinux in MBR
> 	/boot/vmlinuz
> 
> 	extlinux /boot
> 
> /boot/extlinux.conf:
> 
> 	LABEL win
> 		KERNEL chain.c32
> 		APPEND hd0 1
> 	LABEL lin
> 		KERNEL vmlinuz
> 		APPEND hd1 1
> 
No, that won't work.

What I understand from {sys|ext|iso}linux is that it handles 1
filesystem very well.
But you are asking multiple filesystems on multiple disks.

Use a (bloated) bootloader for such purposes.

> Thank you,
> Alex.
Cheers
Geert Stappers

P.S.
What caused the ML hick up?
(and who to warn the next time?)

> *Geert Stappers* stappers at stappers.nl wrote:
> 
> No, that won't work.
> 
> What I understand from {sys|ext|iso}linux is that it handles 1
> filesystem very well.
> But you are asking multiple filesystems on multiple disks.
> 
> Use a (bloated) bootloader for such purposes.
I see.. But the chainloading is implemented! Can I load a ce/me/nt system
from the second drive then?

/boot/extlinux.conf:

	LABEL lin
 		KERNEL /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.27-2-686-smp

	LABEL win
		KERNEL chain.c32
 		APPEND hd1 1

I'm asking because I appreciate syslinux very much and use it since
early slackware releases, I think. If extlinux were that good I'd avoid
happily other loaders in favor of a fast, compact and reliable one.
I don't mind it is not documented since people are replying anyway.

Thank you,
Alex.

akozlov at nada.kth.se wrote:
> 
> I see.. But the chainloading is implemented! Can I load a ce/me/nt system
> from the second drive then?
> 
Yes, that should work (assuming CE/ME/NT can handle it), as should 
chainloading extlinux on the second drive.

	-hpa