[Qemu-devel] Re: Using Qemu to install Linux in a Windows XP

[Ronald]

Le Mon, 15 Nov 2004 13:04:10 -0500, Brett Bonfield a écrit :

> I think my situation is (or will be) the situation in which many people
> find themselves:
> I have a computer that runs Windows (in my case, XP Pro) and I want to be
> able to run Linux on it *while* I'm running Windows. I don't want to have
> to reboot to swith from OS to OS, I don't want to partition my hard drive,
> I want to be able to save my work and install Linux software, but I don't
> want to damage my current Windows XP install.
> 
> What do I do?
> 

Think about qemu like a nested computer, you can't access your host's
devices directly from guest, that's true for windows hosts, proof is you
can't access your real cdrom or hard drive within guest,right?. You have
to use files as guest devices.Everything you write on qemu hard disk is
written inside an only file on your host, the one you pass as -hd?. 
This way you can become familiar with linux or another OS, when you will
be confident enough (when you will run qemu as soon as windows started and
quit windows as soon as qemu shutdown), you'll find you don't need windows
anymore :) 

> There are dozens (hundreds?) of Linux distros. I chose SimplyMEPIS because
> it's the simplest to install and use, at least in my experience.
> 
> Between Qemu and Cooperative Linux, I like Qemu because it's easier to
> install and use.
> 

IMHO, Qemu is a better way to learn linux powered OSes, the reason is
CoLinux don't use standard device like hd, but have his own devices and
drivers (AFAIK).

> But now that I''ve made this decision, I still don't know the best way to
> proceed. It seems I could use dd for Win32, but those who know Qemu best
> seem to think this is a bad idea. I could use mkqemuimage.exe or
> qemu-img.exe or Make-a-file.exe, some of them through QemuMenu.bat, but I
> don't know which one makes the most sense for my needs and I can't find
> documentation on any of them. Plus, I still don't know how to make sure
> that when I install Linux I can be sure it's not damaging my host OS (I
> realize this is addressed in the FreeOSZoo FAQ, but the answer doesn't
> seem to be about disk images that allow program like apt-get to install
> software on a virtual image).
>

The best way to proceed is the one you understand most easily, there are
many way to do, if you feel dd for windows is perfect for your needs, just
use it, just make sure the tool you use produce image that qemu can read.
 
> If I can get all this straightened out in my head I'd be happy to help
> with documentation... I just need to be able to test first.
> 
> Brett