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Triple Boot Installation Guide

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Contents

Triple Boot (XP, OSX, Ubuntu) Installation Guide for the MSI Wind/Advent 4211

Overview:

The Wind/Advent 4211 is capable of simultaneously supporting a variety of desktop operating systems. This guide provides a framework for installing XP, OSX Leopard and Ubuntu 8.04.1 as a triple boot system on Windows versions of the Wind/Advent 4211. To support a multiboot environment, this install utilizes the "free" GNU Grub MultiBoot Loader.

Be sure to read through all of the instructions carefully before getting started. Please note that you will need access to a wired Internet connection (in order to download the Windows and Ubuntu drivers for the new wireless card). You will also ideally need a second online computer throughout the triple boot installation process in order to access these instructions and links (and to troubleshoot if needed).

Functionality:
Ubuntu 8.04.1 works "out of the box" on the Wind/Advent 4211 with the one exception being "Suspend" and "Hibernate" (there is a confirmed workaround for suspend - see the Ubuntu 8.04 Post-Installation Guide) for more info. OSX Leopard (installed using the "MSIWindosx86" Custom Installer Disc) also works "out of the box" with the exceptions being the microphone and headphone jacks (a USB headphone/microphone adapter serves as a hardware workaround) and trackpad scrolling.

Wireless:
The supplied wireless card chipset (RTL8187SE) does not have native support in OSX or Ubuntu though replacing it with the Gigabyte Aircruiser GN-W101GT or Dell 1390 or 1490 wireless card (see instructions below) will fix this issue.

Wind/Advent 4211 Warranty Note:
Replacing the wireless card and hard drive (optional) “may” void your warranty. While it's assumed that anyone willing to install three operating systems on their machine is probably not overly concerned by this, user discretion is still advised.

Software Note:
According to Apple, installing OSX on non-Apple equipment contravenes their End User License Agreement. While some may dispute the legality of Apple's EULA, installing software without paying for it is definitely illegal. Anyone following this guide is thus strongly urged to purchase a legal copy of Leopard.

Materials needed:

  1. External Optical CD-ROM DVD Drive (for reinstalling XP and installing OSX – can also be used for installing Ubuntu though it's not required). If you don't already have one, the Targus Slim External DVD CD-ROM can be found on eBay starting at around $20.
  2. Windows XP Recovery DVD that came with your Wind/Advent 4211
  3. An installation copy of Ubuntu 8.04.1. You can download an .iso directly from Ubuntu to burn to CD. Note: For info about burning a live CD, visit this Burning ISO images How To. If you prefer, you can also install Ubuntu on the Wind/Advent 4211 using a USB Pen Drive. To create a bootable live USB Pen Drive, use UNetbootin - The Universal Netbbot Installer OR follow the instructions for creating a Persistent Ubuntu 8.04 USB Pen Drive at PenDriveLinux.com.
  4. A burned DVD copy of the “MSIWindosx86” Custom Installer Disc (image available on TPB) and a legal copy of OSX Leopard (recommended). Note: For info about burning a live CD, visit this Burning ISO images How To.
  5. Dell 1390 or Dell 1490 Wireless Card (to ensure wifi compatibility across all 3 OSs).
    1. UPDATE: A Mac OS X driver is now available for the factory-installed wireless card on the U100, which means that wireless should work on all 3 OSs and the purchase of a separate wireless card should no longer be necessary (as discussed in this thread).
  6. Optional: Larger HDD Hard Drive (e.g . the hard drive from a Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 portable hard drive - see details below).
  7. Optional: Extra 1GB SODIMM of RAM.

Installation Instructions:

Update the BIOS (if required)

You should start by checking what version of the BIOS you're running. Press DEL during bootup and check the "System Information." Updating the BIOS (to at least version 1.05) will fix a number of potential problems and is a good idea even if you're not planning to install a triple boot system.

The following forum posts provide detailed instructions for updating from 1.04 to 1.05 using a USB Pen Drive:

Replace Wireless Card

Note: for those replacing their hard drive (see below), this procedure can be done at the same time.

  • The Gigabyte Aircruiser GN-W101GT is reported to be the best wireless card across all three Operating Systems.
  • The Dell 1390 Wireless Card will work and is available new for around $30.
  • The Dell 1490 Wireless Card is also reported to work and is available new for around $40.

Instructions:
You might want to start by watching this video tutorial which covers replacing the Wireless Card, Hard Drive (HDD) and RAM.

Note: There is an unused mounting standoff on the board inside the Wind/Advent 4211 that can potentially touch a resistor on the bottom of the 1390 and 1490 wifi cards. To remedy this, you should first remove the standoff with a pair of pliers (see instructions below). Photos of the standoff are available on Paul's Complete Guide to Installing OSX.

  1. Shutdown your system, disconnect the power cord and remove the battery.
  2. Remove all the exposed screws on the bottom of the case (including the one under the warranty void sticker), and use a fingernail around the perimeter to release the plastic clips. Note: You may find it easier to unlatch the rear portion first, lift up the left side, and wiggling the right side free. To clear the VGA port on the right side you need to slide the bottom half in that direction, instead of lifting directly up. Once the plastic shell is removed you have full access to any component that could be swapped out.
  3. Disconnect the antenna cables and remove the supplied Realtek card.
  4. Optional but Recommended Step: Remove the unused standoff (see note above) with a pair of pliers by gently rocking it back and forth until it comes out - don't panic, it will come off pretty easily. Afterward, use the sticky side of a piece of masking tape to pick up any stray bits of metal sitting on the board that may have loosened during this procedure.
  5. Insert your new 1390 or 1490 card and plug in the antenna cables. Be careful when routing the cables as the battery release switch is close by and could potentially damage the wifi cables.
  6. Replace the plastic shell and battery or (optional) continue with replacing the Hard Drive (see instructions below).

Install Larger HDD Hard Drive (Optional)

While the supplied 80GB hard drive is certainly large enough to accommodate a triple boot setup, adding additional hard drive space is relatively cheap and easy. One option is to swap out the supplied 80GB drive with the drive from Western Digital's My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 portable hard drive. The advantage of this approach is that you end up with a huge drive on your Wind/Advent 4211 and a portable enclosure for your original 80GB drive (AKA a bonus 80GB portable USB 2.0 hard drive). Also, according to MSIWind.net user Ben in in this forum thread, the 320GB drive runs faster than the original 80GB drive.Current versions of the Western Digital My Passport Essential contain hard disks with special PCBs where the USB connection sits directly on the PCB instead of a standard SATA connector. These disks can not be used as a replacement anymore!

Note: This drive will reduce the battery time for your wind. With a 3 cell battery, battery time could drop 15-30 minutes per charge cycle. Note: This drive is also marginally louder and produces a little bit of extra vibration.

Instructions:

  1. If you are using the My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0, carefully remove the drive from its plastic enclosure. Note: As Ben explains: The plastic case is made of two parts: a big U-shaped plastic that looks like the the front and back covers of a small book, and a (also U-shaped) narrow stripe that closes the gap between the two leaves. First, pry open the seals (I used a slotted screwdriver, but covered it with scotch tape so it won't scratch the case) until you can to some extent "open" the book slightly; then hold the narrow U-shaped piece and pull - right, just pull it out from the side. After that everything should be fairly easy to figure out."
  2. Swap out your supplied 80GB hard drive and insert your new drive following naturaldisasta's instructions at cubicleofdoom.com.

Add Extra 1GB of RAM (Optional)

Note: This procedure can be done at the same time that you replace the Wireless Card and/or hard drive. The Windows version of the MSI Wind/Advent 4211 are shipped with 1GB of RAM soldered to the board (1GB SODIMM). An additional slot is available and waiting for another 1GB of RAM and the installation procedure is very simple. You can find an easy step-by-step manual at Laptop Magazine.

Reinstall Windows XP

In order to install XP onto a single partition, you will need to reinstall the OS using the supplied Windows XP Recovery DVD.

  1. Insert the Windows XP Recovery DVD into your External Optical CD-ROM DVD Drive.
  2. Boot your machine holding down the F11 key. Select your optical drive from the boot list
  3. Press any key to boot from the CD.
  4. During the MSI Recovery Setup, select "Single Partition."
  5. When prompted, insert the supplied Drivers CD and install the drivers (the drivers are also available from the MSI U100 Drivers page).

Wireless Note: After installing XP and the supplied MSI drivers, you will need to connect your computer to a wired Internet connection in order to download a driver for the 1390 or 1490 wireless card.

Here are instructions for getting the 1390 wlan minicard working.

  1. Connect your Wind to an ethernet cable with a live Internet Connection
  2. Start your Wind and choose Windows XP from the grub boot menu
  3. Open Internet Explorer and go to http://google.com
  4. Search for (use these exact words in quotations): "dell wireless 1390 wlan minicard"
  5. Click on the first Google search result (Drivers and Downloads)
  6. Click on the green "Download Now" button
  7. Select "Run"
  8. The file will download (takes a minute or two depending on your connection speed)
  9. When the file finishes downloading, choose "Run"
  10. Click continue
  11. Select the folder C:\dell\drivers\R140747
  12. Click ok
  13. Folder does not exist create it? Click yes
  14. All files were successfully unzipped - Press ok
  15. The Installation Wizard will now  take you through the installation. NOTE: It will fail to work - don't panic this is to be expected No compatible hardware found.
  16. Click ok
  17. Now, go to: Start => Control Panel
  18. Click on "Switch to Classic View"
  19. Double click on "Add Hardware"
  20. At the first screen (Welcome to the Add Hardware Wizard) click "Next"
  21. At the next screen, the wizard will ask: Is the hardware Connected? Select "Yes, I have already connected the hardware"
  22. Can windows connect to windows update...? Select No, not this time.
  23. Select "Network Controller" (from the top of the list)
  24. Click next
  25. Click finish
  26. Can windows connect to windows update...No, not this time
  27. Click next
  28. Install from a list or specific location
  29. On the next screen check the "include this location in the search box and browse to: C:\dell drivers\R140747 \Driver
  30. Click ok
  31. Click next
  32. Click finish
  33. Voila - it should be working.

Here's the direct link to the driver file.

Create Partitions on your Hard Drive

In order to create additional partitions on your hard drive for installing Mac OSX and Ubuntu (and for creating a shared data partition), you can partition/reformat your Wind/Advent 4211's drive with GParted (Gnome Partition Editor) which is included as part of the Ubuntu 8.04.1 installation disc.

Instructions:

  1. Boot from the Ubuntu 8.04.1 installation disc and select the "Try Ubuntu without any change to your computer" option.
  2. Once Ubuntu finishes booting (it can take a few minutes from the live CD), open the Partition Editor (System => Administration => Partition Editor). Note: You can refer to the HowToForge tutorial for instructions and information about modifying your hard drive partitions using GParted.
  3. Shrink the Windows XP partition to 10 GiB (or more depending on your needs and the size of your hard drive).
  4. Right click on the "unallocated" line and select "New."
  5. Create a new partition using the following parameters:
    1. New Size: 40000 MiB (15 GB or more depending on your needs and the size of your drive).
    2. Free Space Preceding (MiB): 0
    3. Free Space Following (MiB): (whatever it creates)
    4. Create as: Primary Partition
    5. Filesystem: ntfs
    6. Round to cylinders: checked
  6. Press "Add."
  7. Click "Apply."
  8. Follow the same steps to create a primary partition (ext3) for installing Ubuntu (15 GiB or more depending on your needs and the size of your drive) and a primary data partition (ntfs) for sharing data across all three OSs (use the remaining disk space).
  9. Exit the Partition Editor and shutdown your machine.

Install OSX Leopard

Follow instructions on this forum thread and be sure to pay special attention to the first "updated" post by Stellarola.

Installation Notes:

  1. Be sure to carefully watch this video walk through.
  2. Insert the MSIWindOSX86 installer disc into your external USB DVD drive and boot your machine while pressing Fn+F11 (select the DVD drive from the boot menu).
  3. Don't forget to press the spacebar at the first screen (as per the instructions from the video walk through above).
  4. At the "Welcome" screen, select: Utilities => Disk Utility
  5. Highlight the "ntfs" partition on the left and click on the "Erase" tab.
  6. Change the Volume Format to: "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)"
  7. Name the Volume something like: MacOSX
  8. Click the "Erase" button.
  9. Once the disk is reformatted, close Disk Utility and you will return to the Installer (click "Continue").
  10. When you get to the "Select a Destination" screen, be sure to select your new Mac OS Extended (Journaled) partition.
  11. When you get to the "Install Summary" screen, click on the "Customize" button and then click the "Patches" triangle to open more options. Uncheck "kernel" and click "Done."
  12. Click "Install."

Wireless Note: When finished installing, wireless should work out of the box.

Install Ubuntu

Note: For additional information about installing Ubuntu on the Wind/Advent 4211, check out the Ubuntu 8.04 Installation Guide.

Installation Notes:

  1. Boot from the Ubuntu Installation Disc (see instructions above).
  2. Click on the "Install" icon on the Live Desktop.
  3. Follow the on screen instructions and when prompted, choose "Manually Partition Hard Drive."
  4. Create a root partition: "/" (ext3) 15GiB or more depending on your needs and the size of your drive.

Note: After installing Ubuntu, you will need to connect your machine to a wired Internet connection as wireless will not yet be working. When the restricted driver notification pops up (you may need to click on the icon on the top panel bar for this to happen), check "enable." If the restricted driver notification (bcm43xx) doesn't pop up right away, go to System => Administration => Hardware Drivers and check all of the restricted drivers boxes. Then try rebooting and/or doing an update via the terminal: 

sudo apt-get update

Note: For more info about getting the 1390 up and running, check out this site.

Configure Grub Boot Loader

You will need to edit your menu.lst file in order add an option in the Grub Boot Loader for booting into OSX. To do this, boot into Ubuntu, open a terminal (Applications => Accessories => Terminal) and type: 

sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst

Add the following lines to the menu.lst file and save: 

title Mac OSX 10.5 Leopard
root (hd0,1)
savedefault
makeactive
chainloader +1

Note: Linux numbering starts at zero. In the partition table we've set up, Windows XP will be found on the 1st partition (hd0,0), Mac OSX will be found on the 2nd (hd0,1), and Ubuntu will be found on the third (hd0,2). To view your partition table and confirm all of this, boot into Ubuntu, open a terminal (Applications => Accessories => Terminal) and type: 

sudo fdisk -l

Changing the Grub Boot Loader default timeout:

  1. Look for a line starting with "timeout" and change it from "10" to "5"

Changing the Default Boot Order in Grub: You can easily change the default boot order by editing the boot menu of your menu.lst file. If, for instance, you would like Windows XP to be the OS that boots first by default, simply ensure that the Windows XP section is at the top of the boot list.

Open a terminal in Ubuntu and type: 

sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst

The menu.lst file will open in the Gedit text editor. Find the heading "## End Default Options ##" (bottom part of the page) and ensure that the Windows XP section is at the top of the list of OSs. Save and quit.

Reformatting the Shared Data Partition

Note about File Systems:
Mac OSX uses the HFS+ file system and Ubuntu/Linux supports HFS+, though it has read/write support only for NON-journaled HFS+ partitions. Windows doesn't have native support for HFS+ though it can read to HFS+ using hfsexplorer (free) and can read/write to HFS+ with the help of MacDrive ($49.99).

Thus, for the Data Partition (AKA the partition that will be used to store and share user data across OSX, Linux and Windows), a good option is to use non-journaled HFS+ (case sensitive).

  1. Boot into Mac OSX and open Disk Utility (Applications => Utilities => Disk Utility).
  2. Highlight "discOs4" (this should be the bottom entry on the list) on the left and click on the "Erase" button.
  3. Change the Volume Format to: "Mac OS Extended (case-sensitive)" (this format is also known as HFS+).
  4. Name the Volume something like: SharedData
  5. Click the "Erase" button.
  6. Once the disk is reformatted, close Disk Utility. You should now see the SharedData drive on your OSX desktop.
  7. Right Click on the new SharedData icon on your desktop and select “Get Info” from the dropdown menu.
  8. Scroll down to “Sharing & Permissions” and click on the little gray triangle to open the Sharing & Permissions options.
  9. Click on the yellow padlock icon at the bottom of the SharedData window.
  10. Enter your password when prompted.
  11. Change “Privilege” to “Read & Write” for all 3 users (you, staff, everyone). Leave "Ignore ownership on this volume" unchecked.
  12. Close the window and reboot into Ubuntu.
  13. Open a terminal and type: sudo su (enter password when prompted and hit enter).
  14. In order to share read & write permissions with OSX, we will need to change your Ubuntu UID (User ID) to 501 (this is the default UID for OSX).
  15. You can change your Ubuntu UID with the command: usermod -u 501 your_login_name
  16. Note: "your_login_name" must be your actual Ubuntu login name. For example, my login name is mediamind so I would type: usermod -u 501 mediamind
  17. Once you've run this command, you can check your new UID by typing:id your_login_name
  18. Close the Terminal Window, restart the computer and boot back into Ubuntu (Note: You "may" have to hold the power button for 10 seconds or so to force the shut down).
  19. Once Ubuntu restarts, go to Places => SharedData (this will mount the drive and a SharedData icon will appear on your desktop).
  20. Double click on the SharedData icon on your desktop to open a file window.
  21. Right click inside the file window and select “Properties”
  22. Click on the “Permissions” tab and make all three “Folder Access entries “Create and delete files”
  23. Close the file window.
  24. Congratulations, you should now have read & write access across Ubuntu and Mac OSX.
  25. You can test it out by placing files in the SharedData partition and then rebooting into the other OS - the files should be there waiting for you.

Configure and Customize Windows XP

You can rename your Windows partition by right clicking on the "C:" drive and selecting "Properties." Type the new name for the partition (e.g. WindowsXP) in the text box at the top of the Properties window.

Configure and Customize Mac OSX

DoubleCommand is a free kernel extension that lets you change the way your keyboard works by remapping the keys (e.g. swapping the Alt (Option) and Windows (Command or Apple) keys.

For some great open source applications that will run in OSX, check out Open Source Mac.

For a usb audio adapter, the Logitech Premium Notebook Headset has been confirmed to work well.

Note: some users have experienced problems obtaining the correct screen resolution when cold booting (the default resolution becomes 800x600). One solution is to install SwitchResX. You can find more info in this forum thread.

Configure and Customize Ubuntu

Use the Ubuntu 8.04 Post Installation Guide to configure and customize your Ubuntu install.

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