I have external 320GB HDD. This is what I want to do: I created 3 partitions (Storage, Windows 7 Installation Boot, LiveCD Boot). What happens when I set Windows 7 and LiveCD partitions to Active and then I try to boot. Is it gonna work?
First off, LiveCD does NOT need a partition. Live CD's boot directly off a CD/USB stick and doesn't touch the hard drive, unless otherwise instructed.
Second, depends on both the format of the partitions and the bootloader. The Windows bootloader will NOT read any other OS, and Windows doesn't recognize many formats outside of FAT and NTFS. GRUB2, on the other hand, will recognize and boot just about anything under the sun.
since when does windows bootloader not support other os's? every multiboot computer i've worked with begs to differ
Most mutli-boot computers don't use the Windows Bootloader. Though I'm partially mistaken: The Windows bootloader doesn't boot any other [b][u]non-Windows[/u][/b] OS. When most people do multi-boot computers, Windows is installed first, and then the other OS (say Ubuntu). When the other OS is installed, it overwrites the Windows Bootloader. So in the case of installing Ubuntu after Windows, Ubuntu will install GRUB2 over the Windows Booltoader. It's a very common problem for people trying to set up a dual-boot when installing Windows last to loose their first system (unable to boot the other system). The solution is to live boot and re-install GRUB.
obviously what i've done and what i've worked with isn't everything or most people but whenever i install ubuntu (with a preexisting windows instalation) the win bootloader stays intact (doesn't show other os yet) then in windows i run Easy BCD to recognise other os to win boot loader, then when i choose ubuntu in win bootloader it takes me to grub, then i disable grub (so i'm only using 1 bootlader)
that's how it's worked everytime i've done it
Well, I find that work around both interesting, and puzzling at the same time... GRUB is infinitely better than the Windows bootloader. With GRUB2 you can customize the appearance, from background, colors, fonts, etc., menu entries, custom boot parameters, no need to re-install when installing another OS (just run update-grub) and of course, it boots Windows just fine. I don't see why you'd want to the Windows Bootloader.
why? used to it, works just fine, least likely to freak out another user who doesn't know anything other than windows
Fair point. I know a few people who freaked when they first saw GRUB2. I wonder if there is a GUI program that allows for easy customization of GRUB2... If there was a stupidly easy way of dressing up GRUB2, it would be a lot less intimidating for new users. I'm too lazy to edit config files.
Thanks for all the answers. The thing is I am not very experianced with Boot Loaders. I'll check the web for some info on that.
either that or use wubi.