Dell + Ubuntu ==> Disaster
Dell pre-installs two hidden partitions on the harddisk; the idea behind them is sound as it eliminates the need to remember your XP’s product code and automate the activation process and when something goes really wrong, the option to restore the computer to its original factory state is always there.
Hidden in small prints under one of Dell’s FAQ, which no one will read until after disaster strikes, is a warning not to use FIXBOOT or FIXMBR (two of the most powerful tools under the XP’s Recovery Console). Now comes the most popular Linux distro – Ubuntu. Ubuntu6.06 LiveCD is perhaps the only distro on earth which doesn’t give you a chance to specify where to install its Grub Loader – it installs itself on the default boot disk’s MBR – something that will nicely mess up Dell’s special MBR.
Ubuntu will run fine after the installation. Windows XP will run too but not for long. And the useful Dell Utility Partition is gone (because the MBR has changed). You think you can fix it by FIXMBR and get the Windows NT Bootloader back. Great. You just mess up your harddisk further.
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So...
...<insert anti-Ubuntu comment here>...
I wonder if it includes the kernel patch that keeps it from exploding?
Dell + recovery Media + Ubuntu ==> no problem at all
When you buy a dell, pay 25 € extra for the recovery media. And if you really want to, 10€ for a driver cd. It is just stupid not to buy the recovery media. There are to many things that can go wrong with a harddisk. A recovery partition is a bad idea on a laptop because it uses space on the always to little laptop hard-disk, and it is a bad idea in a desktop, because you can't upgrade your harddrive.
People who think this recovery partition is usefull, should not install ubuntu i guess.
The first thing i did when i recieved my dell, was erasing this waste of harddisk space.
Why pay extra for a window box if you want to run linux?
Why pay for a Window$ Box and a DELL if you want to run linux?