[GTALUG] Advice -- Building Debian 8 PC To Replace Win XP PC;

[Steve Petrie, P.Eng.]

Hello Dee,

Thanks for your message.

My comments are inline below.

Steve

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "o1bigtenor" <o1bigtenor at gmail.com>
To: "Steve Petrie, P.Eng." <apetrie at aspetrie.net>; "GTALUG Talk" 
<talk at gtalug.org>
Sent: Saturday, July 30, 2016 8:03 AM
Subject: Re: [GTALUG] Advice -- Building Debian 8 PC To Replace Win XP 
PC;


> On Sat, Jul 30, 2016 at 12:24 AM, Steve Petrie, P.Eng. via talk
> <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
> snip

<snip>

> I cannot speak to whether or not it is actually supported but I can 
> tell you
> that you can install Linux (Debian in my case) on a system with both
> secure boot and UEFI.
>

You are correct -- according to the debian 8 docs, there is (improved) 
UEFI support in debian 8. It is the secure boot that is not supported.

> (My system was in for warranty repair and when I got it back the main
> system disc had been replaced. As well the windows boot manager had
> been enabled (and used), all this even though I had had Debian 
> (testing)
> installed previously.

(Shudder.)

So, is it a correct presumption that, when you got the system back from 
warranty repair, the new main system disk had been configured with a PC 
seller's "standard" Microsoft Windows installation, setup to secure boot 
only windows, through the windows boot manager?

I am hoping that it will be feasible for me to specify to the PC system 
builder, both: 1. HDD partitioning configuration (there's only one HDD), 
and 2. multi-boot setup (ready for a drop-in debian 8 installation). So 
the debian installation I will do myself, requires minimal messing with 
the boot setup.

>This were not straightforward but I was able to get
> things to where I wanted them. Had to disable the windows boot manager
> and use the UEFI disc configuration (gpart/gparted is your friend 
> here!)
> and then determine how to work through the secure boot malaise.
> What I did I don't remember

Too bad you don't remember.

But, do you now have your PC configured with multi-boot, so you can boot 
on bare metal, either: 1. Microsoft Windows or 2. debian Linux?

If you do have such a multi-boot setup operational, may I come back and 
pick your brain on your multi-boot setup? (After I have updated my 
proposed PC hardware configuration per GTALUG advice, and also 
established revised benchmark pricing through PCPartPicker.)

> just remember that it was quite an odessey and
> more than somewhat frustrating but I was successful - - - and I'm not
> at all competent as a programmer nor any kind of 'under the hood' 
> person
> when it comes to computers. I'm just a tool user when it comes to
> computers at this point and wishing I could keep it there!)
>

The "odessey" part I can relate to. I like to refer to those kinds of 
struggles as "character building".

I'm a computer-tool user also, but I do have programming skills, and a 
certain comfort level getting under the hood. However, I would like to 
minimize the dirty hands, by researching ahead and developing an 
understanding of the multi-boot setup (windows + debian).

My preferred scenario has the PC system builder delivering the new PC, 
with Microsoft Windows 7 (OEM) installed to boot onto bare metal, but 
with a pre-agreed HDD partitioning and multi-boot setup, so it's a 
straightforward drop-in installation task, for me to add a debian 8 
Linux, that also boots onto bare metal. The idea is to avoid wiping the 
windows installation and boot setup, as delivered by the PC system 
builder, so as to keep the system builder committed to my mental health 
:)

Once the new Linux PC is settled in and working, as a windows + debian 
multi-boot system, I'd be happy to document in detail, the whole 
partition configuration and multi-boot setup.

To add complication, I would like, once the new PC is booting debian 
Linux from the HDD onto bare metal, to imrove performance by providing 
for debian to boot (mostly) from a "shadow" copy on the HDD, and then do 
all subsequent dynamic loading of debian components, from the SSD.

> Regards
>
> Dee