Installing and configuring a dual boot Fedora 16 with Windows XP using a bootable USB

Here the steps to create a  dual boot of Fedora 16 with Windows XP using a bootable USB. I was forced to install from a USB as my DVD/CD drive had other ideas and wouldn’t read my Fedora 16 DVD.

Anyway creating a dual boot option with a USB was fairly straightforward.  I have outlined the steps below

1)       Download an image of Fedora 16 based on your hardware architecture. I downloaded Fedora 16 (Fedora-16-i686-Live-Desktop .iso) from this site http://fedoraproject.org/get-fedora

2)       Next download and install the LiveUSB creator from https://fedorahosted.org/liveusb-creator/

3)       Insert your USB stick into a USB slot.

4)       Run the LiveUSB creator. This will detect your USB stick. (It is possible to skip step 1 and have the LiveUSB creator download the Fedora 16 image but I was getting a SHA error. So it is better to go through Step 1)

5)       In the LiveUSB Creator window, click browse and open your downloaded ISO image, Fedora-16-i686-Live-Desktop .iso. Set the persistent storage to around 750 MB and then click create USB

6)       This will verify your download and create a bootable USB stick for you.

7)       At this point you would have to do the following. For a dual boot option you need to create free space on your disk on which you can install your Fedora 16.So I did the following. I had a primary partition C drive with 70GB and an extended partition with the logical drive D. Fortunately my PC had no data. So I deleted the D drive and then created an extended partition with 35 GB and left around 35 GB of free space.

8)       Now restart your PC. Before it boots hit F2 so that you get the BIOS setting.

9)       Go to the “boot” tab and choose Boot from USB and click Enable. Save your settings with F10.

10)   With your USB still in the USB slot the PC will continue to boot but will do so from the USB stick

11)   The system will continue to Boot. Select Start Fedora 16. The right corner should show LiveCD

12)   Click Applications. You should see “Install to hard drive”

13)   Click this. At this point please see these 2 links as they have many screen shots for configuring Fedora 17

http://www.howtoforge.com/the-perfect-desktop-fedora-16-i686-gnome

http://www.if-not-true-then-false.com/2011/fedora-16-verne-install-guide-with-screenshots/

14)   I followed these links except the step “Installation Type”. Here I chose the 4^th Option “Use Free space” which I had created for 35 GB. This does not touch your data & files.

15)   In the Select Storage devices make sure you choose the “Data Storage device” (your free space) and move it right to “Install target devices”

16)   You will get a Confirm changes to disk popup. Choose write changes to disk.

17)   The installation will start and will install your Fedora 16.

18)   You can then set system time, create users etc.

19)   Your Fedora 16 installation is now ready.

20)   You might want to restart the system. You will see now options to either boot from Fedora 16 or Windows XP.

I would suggest that you select F2, go to the boot tab and disable the boot from USB first option. Now you have a dual boot option Fedora 16 or Windows XP.

Note: I personally did not like the default desktop which Fedora 16 provides. For one the terminal window does not have a minimize, maximize and close icons on the title bar. Also the Window/Application is pain. If you want the default desktop interface this is what you have to do.

Click the username on the top right corner of the Fedora 16 Click System Settings, scroll down to System Info. Select Graphics and set Forced Fallback Mode to “On”. Log out and log in and hey presto , all terminal windows have the the icons properly and the desktop has the older menu style.

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