Just got free laptop w/FreeBSD. Won't boot from CD, only boots into FreeBsd. I need to install Windows, what do I do?
I'd ask "Why?" but the resulting discussion would probably lead to an infraction for breaking Rule 8.
Also, this isn't really a Windows or UNIX question but OS independent.
When booting the Laptop (before even starting the OS), get into the BIOS setup. How depends on the BIOS, but it's usually a key like Del, F1, F10, or F12. Look for something called "Boot order" or "Boot Disk order" and change that to try booting from the CD instead of the HDD. I can't give you exact steps as this depends on your BIOS.
Alternatively, some BIOS' allow for dynamic boot order. On the POST screen look for something called "Boot menu" (or similar), press the associated key & then select your CD/DVD drive. Again, this is dependent on your BIOS.
Don't forget depending on the gae of the laptop might have a restore partition with Windows already on it which would mean no need for a CD.
But as already said it'll be in the boot options there will be a button to press for this option.
First, I appreciate your comments. I'm sorry, but I just don't have the time or inclination to learn all those new commands. I'm sure you all see a lot of benefits to UNIX, but it's just not for me. I'm not really a big Windows guy either, I'm a Mac user, but...the laptop was free. Anyway, I went into BIOS, and set boot to CDROM, but that isn't doing anything. I don't know the commands to see the contents of the hard drive. To tell the truth, I don't know any of the commands at all. I did manage to get it to see the freebsd install disk. I don't mean to intrude on this forum, but where else can I turn? You guys are the experts.
It's not really a *BSD/UNIX/Windows problem. Are you sure the CD you're using is bootable? Have you tried it with another PC? If that works it might be the drive.
That did it. Hey, thanks for the patience and understanding. I know this isn't what most of you want in this forum, but you showed great forebearance and I appreciate it. Yes, I'm ignorant of UNIX, and will probably stay that way, but I'm not afraid to ask help of the experts. You guys were great!
Thanks again!
You're welcome. But you aren't as ignorant of UNIX as you might think, as OS X is based on Darwin, which is POSIX and SUSv3 compatible