Maximum PC

I have a single SSD for Win 7 now. But I wanted to install 2 more hard drives or possibly 1 HDD and put Ubuntu 11.10 and LinuxMint 12 on possibly the same hard drive.

Now if i boot the up the PC will i see a list of 3 OS and which one i want to boot up?

I want to keep them all seperate because the wife uses win 7 and is just comfortable there and files.
The other 2 are just for me to learn on and play around with. I can even install 3 HDD with a OS on each.

Just looking for some advice before starting.

Yes, you can get all three to show up when you first boot up the computer. The Linux installer should detect the currently installed OS's and configure everything (be careful to install the new OS's on the new drives, not over Windows 7); there should be documentation on the Linux OS's website that covers this.

An alternative you may want to check out is virtualization (check out VirtualBox or VMWare, although you'll have to pay for the full version of VMWare). This will allow you to play around with the other OS's without having to install them along-side your current OS.

yea thats why i was going with other HDD. I will not install anything on or along side Win 7 because I dont want to mess with anything.
I just loaded wubi, on a 2nd HDD because i had some space left over from my other files.
So I am playing with Ubuntu right now on a small section of my 2nd HDD. When i boot the computer i do get the option of Win 7 and Ubuntu.

So could i load Ubuntu and LinuxMint on the same HDD?

Yes. When you install one, tell it to only use 50% of the drive (or whatever portion you want). When you install the other one, tell it to use the unused portion of the drive.

Once you've got all of your OS's installed you can use Start Up Manager(GUI) to edit Grub2. You'll have to grab it from software center since it's not preloaded with Mint 12 or Ubuntu 11.10

I'm interested in doing something like this. Can you have all the OS's installed to a ssd, then have all your files and programs and stuff in different HDD's? Or at least different HDD partitions? So basically i want lets say:
ssd: w7, ubuntu, backtrack
HDD: w7 files and programs
HDD#2: 1 partition for ubuntu files and programs, 1 partion for back track files and programs

On top of that, could i have another hdd or partition for just music and movies that ALL of the OS's could use? That way i can have my 100 GB library in one place instead of having it in 3 different places.

That will work. For the music/movies drive, you should use NTFS, because it's one of the few formats Windows can use and Linux can read it too.

Linux can read NTFS?! Wow that's awesome I was wondering what format i would have to put it in. I thought NTFS was windows only for some reason. What format does linux use on its main partition?

It can't do it natively, but there is a package that allows it. ntfs-3g I think. Linux natively uses ext2/ext3 among others. Ntfs is a Microsoft proprietary file system that has been reversing engineered to some extent.

Burn your distros to a Floppy Disk, CD ROM, DVD or USB flash drive. Enter the mobo bios after restarting your computer. Change the boot priority to whatever contains the iso. Save and exit. Now you will enter into the installation process where you can install your preferred OS on an available drive. DO NOT format your NTFS partitions. Choose ext4. It should not affect your Windows install if all is done correctly. Grub will greet you after you have restarted. Test driving different OSs can be done using virtualization. Virtualbox is one. Using more than one OS without purpose is kind of oddball to me. Figure out which one of the two Linux distros you like and then go that route.

The reason to use more than one is simple. backtrack to practice and learn hacking (white hat), ubunutu or another easy distro so i can learn to use linux before spending most time in back track, and windows 7 for games.

I would use BT on a 4+GB thumb drive. Do things the easy way first. I could tie my shoes with my hands. I could use chopsticks too to make it more interesting. lol


A simplified definition of white hat is a person who was hired to find, break and plug security holes within legal boundaries. Knowing the law can be a must for professionals in this field. Grey hats are a cross between both bad and good. The software he or she is hacking/cracking is often times not owned and is copyright restricted. That makes their actions illegal. They might choose to do several good things after finding vulnerabilities and or problems. Black hats are the ones whose actions are purely illegal. These individuals likely never disclose their activities or what they do. Script kiddies and hacktivists are polar opposite. That is quick rundown of them. Unless you have legal rights to the software you are hacking/cracking or are hired by a lawful company, you are not a white hat. This was not meant as a flame bait. Relax.


This is perfectly OK. Ubuntu is nice as an everyday use OS. Windows is great for gamers plus many professionals needing a desktop environment. Back Track is much more a package of tools than anything else. Whatever you choose to do, make sure you know your rights before diving in. Neither Maximum PC nor its members are responsible for your actions.

The Linux kernel does have a built in NTFS driver (read-only). ntfs-3g is a userspace filesystem driver that allows full read-write to NTFS drives.

Well that's awesome i will be able to play my music files off of the NTFS drive while booted in linux.

Anyway i just want to say i'm trying to learn so i can be hired by a company because i do wish to be a white hat one day. I'm not saying i am one now, i am saying i want to learn hacking so i can become a white hat. Why would companies hire someone who didn't know anything about hacking? Surely all white hats started out as grey??

You may want to check out the pentester's guide, the isdpodcast, and the pauldotcom podcast. If you set up your own environment (virtualization is good for this) you don't have to go grey hat.

Thank you mag!