Resolved Help!!

[TheFireBurger]

Hello everyone. I have quite a bit of an issue. I made a boot camp partition meant for Windows, but installed Linux on it. I must have messed something up while there because it was supposed to work correctly. Now I want to install Windows on that partition instead of Linux, but Boot Camp won't work. Here is what it says:
https://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=300146&stc=1&d=1314111672
https://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=300147&stc=1&d=1314111672

Also, when I try go into Boot Camp, it says I have multiple partitions that I didn't even know about!
https://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=300148&stc=1&d=1314111932
And, they're all un-modifiable.
Please help me!

 

[SlickShoes]

In order for bootcamp to partition your HDD you need it all formatted in one HFS format drive.

You should be able to reformat these using disk utility either from the Utilities folder or from booting into your OS disk.

Once you have done this, run bootcamp and adjust the partition size to whatever you like, then when windows is running from install dvd reformat the drive as NTFS in order to install windows 7.

 

[TheFireBurger]

How?
All of the other Partitions are locked.
I can't reformat them.

 

[speacock]

Looks like a standard set of Linux partitions

Those other 4 partitions look like a standard set of Linux partitions. disk0s5 is most likely the root filesystem and untitled is probably swap, not sure what the other two might have been used for but they look normal enough.

Can you not remove them or manage them through disk utility, seems weird if you can't, no reason why you shouldn't be able to?

If not, then I can think of a couple of options:
Start a windows install, let it partition the disk and then abandon the install. That should leave something that bootcamp recognises and will allow it to manage it.

The other alternative is to use the command line disk partitioning tool fdisk, but I wouldn't try that unless you know what you're doing with it, you're just as likely to destroy you OS X partition if you're not careful

 

[TheFireBurger]

I already tried that, and UNTITLED is around 15 GB, and it is one I tried to install Windows on. I succeeded, but I erased it because it didn't have enough space on it. Now I have empty 50 GB, 15 GB, and smaller partitions.

 

[speacock]

If fdisk won't do it, then I'm not sure what you can do

If fdisk won't do it, then I'm not sure what will other than some specialist tools. Normally fdisk can deal with all kinds of partitions, even foreign ones.

 

[TheFireBurger]

Where do I get fdisk?

 

[speacock]

Built in

Where do I get fdisk?

fdisk is a built in command line tool, so you just run it from a terminal window. There are other tools available too, I seem to remember parted being one of them. I not used UNIX partitioning tools for about 15 years, so I can't advise on actual syntax, your best bet is to use the man pages for fdisk or parted or look things up on the internet.

Sorry I can't be more help, but I'd hate to advise you on fdisk use then have you kill your system.

 

[MJL]

There are two avenues at least under Windows.

1) insert your install DVD, go to "Install" and then you select to do a custom install. On the screen for the custom install you can specify which partition and you - should - be able to delete a partition or format a partition.
2) you can backtrack from there (no need to reboot) go to repair and then once you get out of repair you - should - be getting a menu where you can select different manual selection one of them using the command prompt.
In the command propmt you can use "diskpart".

(I mention - should- since your DVD / USB installation setup may be different from the version we have here in our country - it would not be the first time that's happened with some software)

If you have a windows machine then you can get Paragon Partition Manager and make a rescue disk. Once you have that one then you can manipulate again. Once again I do not know if this will work from USB.

 

[TheFireBurger]

Hey.

I just messed around with fdisk, and low and behold, I could delete them in the Disk Utility. Then Boot Camp started to work.

Thanks for the help everyone. I really appreciate it.