[techtalk] Installing Linux on a second hard drive.

[root]

The Russells wrote:

> Hi all.  Long story short, I have decided to install Linux (Mandrake 6.0) on
> a second hard drive, rather than partitioning my current 15GB hard drive
> devoted to Windows 98.  The second hard drive is 10.1 GB and boots to DOS
> only right now.  It's not even installed on my machine yet.
>
> Obviously, I am a Linux newbie.  I have used Lnx4Win a bit, but found it
> fairly unsatisfying.
>
> Anyway.  Currently, according to BIOS, my primary master is my 15GB HD.  I
> don't have a primary slave  or a secondary master.  My secondary slave is my
> CD-ROM.  This seems strange to me, as I don't have a secondary master.
> However, I am a Mac user at heart and don't really get this whole "BIOS"
> thing yet--I have had this PC for about three weeks.
>
> My question is:  Where should I put my second hard drive, for ease of
> installing and booting to Linux?  Suggestions from friends include making my
> CD-ROM the primary slave and then making the second hard drive the secondary
> master.  Alternately, I could leave the CD-ROM where it is.
>
> I just can't seem to find a whole lot of info on installing Linux on its own
> HD.  Any pointers or suggestions?  Sorry if this is a
> dumb/obvious/inappropriate question.  Bear with me here.  I'm trying to
> learn!
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Kathleen (who is also wondering where to post an intro.  Last time I
> belonged to this list, it was grrltalk.  Is that still the correct place?)
>
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I have a similar setup and this is how I configured my system:

Primary Master: 30GB Windows 98/2000
Primary Slave: 13GB Linux
Secondary Master: Castlewood ORB removable drive
Secondary Slave: DVD-ROM Drive

Whether you chain the secondary hard drive as a slave on the primary port or as
a master on the secondary port isn't all that important. I doubt you'll notice
any difference in performance. However, it not recommended to attach hard
drives as slaves of ATAPI devices (tape, CD/DVD, Zip, etc.) due to potentially
serious performance degradation of the hard drive. However, I recommend
attaching the Linux drive as a slave drive on the primary port since this will
be a boot device.

Lothan