I am trying to install Mandrake Linux 8.1 on my PC on getting an error every time where it fails trying to create the bootloader. My System is an AMD 1600+, Win XP with 768 MB DDR Ram. I have two hard drives. The main (C) drive is 40 GB and I have a second hard drive (also 40 GB) that is partitioned 50/50 (drives E and F). When I run through installation it is creating a Linux partition on the F drive partition, but only giving me about 270 MB of space for installs - meaning there is only room for the very basic packages that come with Mandrake. It does not give me the option to install on the main C drive. In any event it passes this point no problem but fails three steps later trying to install the bootloader. Could this be an XP issue or is it a partitioning problem? Where should the bootloader be installing? Does it have to be on the same drive as XP? Any help muchly appreciated. :-) I get no error message it simply sa

Try "lilo -L" ...and you might get lucky. I had problem with XP with ntfs partition. However I changed C: WinME (Fat32) D: WinXP (Fat32) and Linux (remaining partition). Once I installed lilo in my MBR I converted D: to NTFS partition.

Thanks for the feedback - excuse my ignorance but what is Lilo and where can i get it?! Thx again

LILO (Linux LOader) is the small prog that boots the linux kernel. (poor example) but you could view lilo as command.com that loads win95/98 (better example) is the ntldr.com on nt4/5 which loads the nt kernel. You shold get lilo with every distro. One thing reading prev note you state that on istallation bootloader fails. can you install lilo on hdb (your second hard-drive) if so can you make a bookdisk (during your lnx instalation and can you boot off of it, if so - big question here (since I don't intend to ever use MS XP) does it have ntldr.com (or similar) in c:\ ???, if so you should be able to make an entry in boot.ini for second harddisk /disk(1)..... etc or use boot disk to rip boot sector of of your second HD 'dd if=/dev/hdb of=/mnt/win/bootsect.lnx count=1 bs=512' and use that file in c:\boot.ini to boot. Don't nkow if that will work never had prob u discribe, trying thing I know...