Re: Paritioning Issue
Baz wrote:
> Hello. This is really basic in regard to all the other mail I've seen so
> far here - but, here goes...
>
> New to Debian. Trying to install Sarge from DVD on my Thinkpad (Z60t). At
> the partitioning prompt - only two options: completely overwrite the HD
> (guided?) or manual configuration. According to Martin Krafft's *The
> Debian System*,
> I should be seeing a "write to free space" option, but I don't.
Well, I guess this applies only, if there is actually free space
available on your system. Is this the case?
I guess you have winXP installed. If you want to keep any of the
existing data and / or preinstalled OS, you should back it up. Don't
rely on IBM's/lenovo's backup tools as those use the same disk for
backup that is already used for the data. If anything goes wrong during
reformatting of the disk or if your disk dies an untimely death (could
happen all the time), you need a reliable backup. (This is independent
of whether you install debian or not, so backup first!)
Don't be wary about doing a 'manual configuration'. There is help
available for all your choices, there are reasonable defaults, the
installer will warn you before commiting any changes, so there is still
a chance to back out, if you feel uncomfortable or want to revert a
previous setting.
> I
> tried it again with the most recent kernel - and, then received
> a warning indicating it couldn't even detect partitionable media. I'm not
> experienced enough to attempt a manual configuration.
> Any constructive advice would be appreciated. Thanks...
Maybe this is an issue with the 2.6 kernel of sarge not supporting your
sata driver. In that case you might consider installing debian 'testing'
or 'sid' instead of 'stable' aka 'sarge'. While you should know that it
is not recommended to use 'testing' on computers connected to the
internet, the current state of testing aka 'etch' is rather close to
release, so you'll have a 'stable' system with security updates, soon.
HTH,
Johannes
PS:
For general information about your particular notebook and linux
(applies to debian and others), have a look at
http://thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:Z60t
where you will find invaluable information.
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