windows embedded install

[suare]

Which versions of windows are supported for embedded installation of TC?
Which .iso have the installer included?
Are there standalone installer? I mean some .exe which I can run directly on windows?

[Zendrael]

Hi suare!

We recommend you to read the book ( http://www.tinycorelinux.net/book.html ) for a more detailed explanation on how core works and how it can be configured/installed.

Good reading!

[suare]

Thanks but there is nothing about embedded install in this book. Does it mean that this option is not supported anymore?

[gerald_clark]

It is not clear what what you want to do.

[Misalf]

Hi suare,
It seems it's about the same subject you posted here:
http://forum.tinycorelinux.net/index.php/topic,16966.msg101709.html#msg101709

I don't think it's necessary to create another topic.

If you want to install Core on a Windows partition, you will need to replace the Windows boot loader (on your hard disks MBR) with Grub4DOS or GRUB2.
As far as I know, syslinux (extlinux) is not able to run from FAT or NTFS partitions (?). (thanks, tinypoodle)

Also, for NTFS, I think you would have to remaster core.gz to include ntfs-utils.tcz so Core can access some important files (onboot.lst, mydata.tgz and extensions) at boot.
http://wiki.tinycorelinux.net/wiki:remastering

[Misalf]

This might be helpful in case of installing Core on a NTFS partition:
http://yalis.fr/cms/index.php/post/2013/05/12/NTFS-and-modular-boot-for-TinyCore-Linux

This might convince you (or not) to use the 'simpler' attempt of creating a dedicated linux partition for Core:
http://forum.tinycorelinux.net/index.php/topic,16020.msg94631.html#msg94631

[tinypoodle]

As far as I know, syslinux (extlinux) is not able to run from FAT or NTFS partitions (?).

syslinux proper is meant to be used with FAT filesystems.

[cast-fish]

hi

is it possible that you are talking about a "Co-linux" version of tinycore?

this is possible to create, and results in an exe file which you execute to run
tinycore ontop of win32...however, i never quite got it working at the graphical
user interface level.

It's very surprising indeed that nobody has made a co-linux build more accessible
and "one click".  People who have built other examples have left the explanations
an tutorials sparce and only pertaining to more experienced computer people.

There is also another script which is mentione in the forums here which is an EXE file which
you simply execute on windows The script will install tinycore onto a windows computer.
You must then change your windows boot loader to reflect "two choices" for booting up
"win32" or "tinycore"

The script is mentioned below in the "off topic section". It's free and there are
links on where to fetch it


Vin

[suare]

Thanks, but installing via some off-topic unsupported script is just not worth it. Maybe I'll give it a try in few years - if there will be some officially supported option out there.

It seems like an interesting idea to run Linux installed as yet another "windows" option loadable by windows bootloader: as far as I recall no other distro offers that - that's what makes TC unique. Or at least might make it one day.

Installing into separate partition is boring - there are tons of GNU/Linux distros out there which are way better than TC in every single aspect.

[tinypoodle]

It seems like an interesting idea to run Linux installed as yet another "windows" option loadable by windows bootloader: as far as I recall no other distro offers that - that's what makes TC unique. Or at least might make it one day.

Windows bootloader is not capable of booting Linux, but chainloading some capable bootloader has been possible since a long time.
That's a subject about Windows bootloader and Linux, there couldn't be anything unique to Core or any other distro about it.

Installing into separate partition is boring - there are tons of GNU/Linux distros out there which are way better than TC in every single aspect.

Installing to FAT32 filesystem is well supported out of the box (with exception of scattered /home and /opt options).

[suare]

Windows bootloader is not capable of booting Linux, but chainloading some capable bootloader has been possible since a long time.

Yes, it's called grub4dos.

That's a subject about Windows bootloader and Linux, there couldn't be anything unique to Core or any other distro about it.

No. The TC support (although through some 3rd-party hacks) embedded installation.

If this would be integrated into mainline than TC could use grub4dos to install it into NTFS partition and boot in using win bootloader as yet another version of windows without the need to fiddle with partitions at all.

[tinypoodle]

Windows bootloader is not capable of booting Linux, but chainloading some capable bootloader has been possible since a long time.

Yes, it's called grub4dos.

I wouldn't know about grub4dos, but a lilo bootsector file could be added to windows boot.ini [disclaimer: last windows version I've seen is XP, in case anything changed since].


In a similar way, if besides from windows FreeDOS is installed, then a bootsector file could easily by sys'ed, its path added to windows boot.ini, and after booting FreeDOS, one of the various Linux loader executables could be run.


Also, recent versions of extlinux support NTFS.

No. The TC support (although through some 3rd-party hacks) embedded installation.

You have already been asked what exactly you want to do in Reply #3, and it is still not clear at all what you have in mind as "embedded install". Various suggestions have been made, including co-linux which is about as embedded as it could get.


ntfs write support is provided by the ntfs-3g extension, but to access a PPR on ntfs remastering is required to include the extension in rootfs.

If this would be integrated into mainline than TC could use grub4dos to install it into NTFS partition and boot in using win bootloader as yet another version of windows without the need to fiddle with partitions at all.

As far as I understand, decision of devs is that only ext*fs and FAT* are supported in base, and further block devices fs support is provided per extensions which does not just concern ntfs which can only safely be written to with the  third party driver from tuxera, but also all other native linux block device fs's.


A FAT* partition can easily serve for common use by linux and windows, as it is reliably supported by both. 

[Juanito]

If your version of windows and your hardware support uefi boot, it can be used for both linux and windows.

A reliable ext2/3/4 driver for windows has existed for years if you need to share data.

[Lee]

I have had setups where the Windows XP boot loader chainloaded grub4dos and where grub4dos chainloaded the Windows XP bootloader.  In fact, I once forgot what I was doing and had both of the above - it didn't hurt anything, but every time I saw it, it confused me so I eventually started over from scratch.    :|

Like tinypoodle, I haven't tried it on anything more recent than XP.

[suare]

You have already been asked what exactly you want to do in Reply #3, and it is still not clear at all what you have in mind as "embedded install".

Pardon, I thought I've posted links but was in other thread:
http://wiki.tinycorelinux.net/wiki:install_with_windows - I'm interested in option 3 described in there.

This way TC is installed as yet another variant bootable via windows loader (with chainloading to grub4dos or whatever) and rootfs stored as an image file on existing windows ntfs partition (this removes 4Gb limit imposed by FAT).