System partitions and upgrading to Windows 7 from Linux

StephenZ · ‎10-14-2009

Yesterday I bought my first HP - model ProBook 4515s with SLED 11 Linux preinstaled. Since I'm not familiar with Linux systems first thing I did was to install Windows 7.

My notebook came with 4 partitions all of which formated in the file system that Windows doesn't recognize. I guess one partition is for the Linux installation, two of them are system partitions (HP_TOOLS and HP_RECOVERY) and the fourth one was just an empty drive. So I've formated the fourth partition and installed Windows 7.

The problem now is that I'm missing system partitions, hence can't access QuickLook and other preinstaled software. I've tried formating one partition and renaming it to HP_TOOLS and then tried to install QuickLook v. 3 but installation reported that my system wasn't supported? I don't want to mess with other partitions in fear that I might delete BIOS, but would like to sort this mess up and would definitely love to have some of the options that came installed with the system.

Any suggestions?

Message Edited by StephenZ on 10-14-2009 02:07 PM

DexterM · ‎10-14-2009

I think that the HP_TOOLS and HP_RECOVERY partitions are formatted as an ext2 or ext3 file system, which Windows cannot read. It can only read NTFS and FAT32. There is no way I can think of to convert ext2\3 to NTFS without retaining system integrity. Besides, the files are all meant for linux, and not for Windows. So there is no point of doing that. That said, I'm not quite sure if your notebook has Windows 7 drivers right now.

I am an ex-HP Employee. Currently inactive on the forum.

DexterM · ‎10-14-2009

Also, the BIOS is not stored on the hard disk. So there's no way you can mess that up by formatting the hard drives.

And linux is really a great OS. With a bit of patience and willingness to learn, you'll have a great, robust and stable OS. It's a pity you removed it.

I am an ex-HP Employee. Currently inactive on the forum.

StephenZ · ‎10-15-2009

Thanks for the info... Any ideas why I can't install QuickLook even though it says that Windows 7 is supported?

As for the Linux I totally agree that once you get familiar with it you get an excellent operating system way more reliable then Windows, the thing is I just don't have nor the time nor patience to mess around with it - as is the case with most casual users.

LincNeb · ‎06-30-2010

I would suggest that you look at the http://www.pendrivelinux.com/ site, download the universal installer and get an iso of a Linux you might want to try out, e.g.. Mint 9, and put it on a USB drive, there's no reason to get a flash drive over 8 gigabytes, and you can fit 3 gigabytes of Linux on a 4 gig flash drive.

Yes, Linux will have some idiosyncrasies, this particular distribution takes about 20 minutes to download the true type fonts, it like most Linux distributions does not like NVIDIA graphics, such as that on my Compaq Presario CQ5320F. I will have to see if I can find a driver that handles streaming video for it as well as the Windows 7 does. One other thing, I sometimes have to put the flash drive into a different USB slot since it will not consistently recognize the flash drive remaining in a particular slot. I don't know why. The USB installer program seemed to work only with the 32 bit version of Mint, the 32 bit one runs find on the Presario. You don't have to install anything on your computer and it is better than a "live" DVD because you can upgrade and change programs, a definite plus.

This way, you can have your email on Linux and be free of spy and malware too. Nothing is installed on your computer, so that should keep the folks at Hewlett Packard happy with any warranty service, and you get a chance to try out a different operating system.

LincNeb · ‎08-10-2010

One thing that should be emphasized, if you have Nvidia video as my Compaq has, you may wish trying to skip Linux, especially if you have an Envision monitor. It recognized the monitor quite well on Windows 7 and even downloaded some extra software for it. I didn't pay close enough attention on Linux, and it didn't have a proper driver for it. The Envision monitor seemed to have burned up, though it still could be a monitor problem. I would suggest be careful using Linux and Nvidia video!