Laptop hard drive install - with no cd drive (Solved)

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onecrazydriver · #1 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Sun 24 Sep 2006, 20:40

My itronix laptop does not have cd or floppy drive built in. I have an external cd drive but it will not mount. (pcmcia to usb adapter to acer cdrw)
Can I do the hard drive install without the cd drive?

Thanks
Mark

(puppy109ce booted with pup4dos) the install to hard drive wizard asks for cd during process

onecrazydriver · #2 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Sun 24 Sep 2006, 20:56

More information for my previous post.

I have partitoned the hard drive: hd01 with win98, extended with hda5(linux), swap(linux),and another empy fat32, each about 5 gig. I intend to put puppy in hda5 with grub in the partition boot area, and use xosl to choose which partition to boot.

Mark

#3 Post by **Flash** » Sun 24 Sep 2006, 21:50

I'm sure it can be done, though I haven't installed Puppy to a hdd. I don't even have a hdd in this computer.

How were you able to partition the hard drive?

Basically what you want to wind up with is the files that are contained in the Puppy iso, plus GRUB, on your hard drive. See also this thread in the forum.

jason.b.c · #4 Post by **jason.b.c** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 04:02

I have an external cd drive but it will not mount.

Then how did you boot into puppy...???

onecrazydriver · #5 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 05:03

I took the hard drive out of the laptop and used gparted in my desktop (puppy202) to partition.

It is booted with pup4dos.

Mark

Trobin · #6 Post by **Trobin** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 05:24

If I were doing it, I would copy the relevant files to the win 98 drive of the laptop, and use pup4dos to boot it there. Then it would be an easy job to run start>setup>universal-installer.

sml · #7 Post by **sml** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 06:20

If I were you, then I would prepare your PC hard-drive as per the following to use GRUB for booting.

http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/art ... page=0%2C0

It is easy and simple.

onecrazydriver · #8 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 14:37

I added a couple of lines to my first post to clarify.

Mark

#9 Post by **Flash** » Mon 25 Sep 2006, 14:55

onecrazydriver wrote:I took the hard drive out of the laptop and used gparted in my desktop (puppy202) to partition.

It is booted with pup4dos.

Mark

I'm pretty sure if you had gone ahead and installed Puppy to the hd while you had it connected to the desktop it would boot just fine in the laptop, if you correctly configured GRUB. It might take a few tries to get it right.

onecrazydriver · #10 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 05:00

I tried to install grub while laptop hard drive was in desktop but could'nt get it to boot. (no operating system was the message.) I didn't disconnect the desktop hard drive though. If I disconect my desktop hard drive, install laptop drive in its place (hda instead of hdb), boot from cd and do hard drive install it should boot and run when reinstalled to laptop? hmmm...

However, I think I figured out my external cd problem. I'll know tomorrow when I have time to mess with it.

To Do List:
1 install to hard drive
2 get wireless working
3 touch screen
4 battery maintenance

That is enough to keep me busy for about six months:)

Thanks
Mark

Dougal · #11 Post by **Dougal** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 13:25

onecrazydriver wrote:I tried to install grub while laptop hard drive was in desktop but could'nt get it to boot. (no operating system was the message.) I didn't disconnect the desktop hard drive though. If I disconect my desktop hard drive, install laptop drive in its place (hda instead of hdb), boot from cd and do hard drive install it should boot and run when reinstalled to laptop?

Maybe your desktop HD is configured as primary so the laptop HD was seen as slave? You should do the installation with only the laptop HD connected.

onecrazydriver · #12 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 14:30

Is this correct??

For a laptop with no cd or floppy I could:
1. remove laptop harddrive and install in desktop(with appropriate adapter) as only hard drive
2. boot puppy off cd and do hard drive install (with grub to boot as needed)
3. reinstall back into laptop and boot
Sould I delete the PUP4 file to get rid of desktop settings before reinstalling?

Mark

marksouth2000 · #13 Post by **marksouth2000** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 16:08

It appears (to me at least, but I'm only a deluded keyboard junkie) that you could do a frugal install by downloading the Puppy ISO and cracking it open, extracting the usual suspects (search forum) to a VFAT partition, and setting up GRUB on the root of that partition (search forum).

Also, is it possible for you to install Puppy to a USB key, boot the portable off the USB key, and do an install from there? I ask because while this is possible in principle, there are ways fo this to fall into holes with specific hardware - liek not getting USB booting to work.

Cheers,
Mark

#14 Post by **Flash** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 16:24

onecrazydriver wrote:Is this correct??

For a laptop with no cd or floppy I could:
1. remove laptop harddrive and install in desktop(with appropriate adapter) as only hard drive
2. boot puppy off cd and do hard drive install (with grub to boot as needed)
3. reinstall back into laptop and boot
Sould I delete the PUP4 file to get rid of desktop settings before reinstalling?

Mark

Yes, try that. After making sure it will boot from the hd while it's in the desktop you could delete the file by mounting the hd while running from the live CD, but that may be more complicated than necessary.

onecrazydriver · #15 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Wed 27 Sep 2006, 21:26

I'll try that.

Mark

onecrazydriver · #16 Post by **onecrazydriver** » Thu 28 Sep 2006, 13:41

Flash wrote:
onecrazydriver wrote:Is this correct??

For a laptop with no cd or floppy I could:
1. remove laptop harddrive and install in desktop(with appropriate adapter) as only hard drive
2. boot puppy off cd and do hard drive install (with grub to boot as needed)
3. reinstall back into laptop and boot
Sould I delete the PUP4 file to get rid of desktop settings before reinstalling?

Mark
Yes, try that. After making sure it will boot from the hd while it's in the desktop you could delete the file by mounting the hd while running from the live CD, but that may be more complicated than necessary.

Worked like a charm. I chose the "run totally in ramdisk" option when I booted the cd.

Thanks for the help

Mark

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Laptop hard drive install - with no cd drive (Solved)

Laptop hard drive install - with no cd drive (Solved)