Path: utzoo!utgpu!cunews!cognos!roberts
From: roberts@cognos.UUCP (Robert Stanley)
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc
Subject: Re: Installing OS/2 Over Another OS
Message-ID: <9099@cognos.UUCP>
Date: 4 Dec 90 00:12:34 GMT
References: <1990Dec3.181139.28985@terminator.cc.umich.edu>
Reply-To: roberts@cognos.UUCP (Robert Stanley)
Distribution: na
Organization: Cognos Inc., Ottawa, Canada
Lines: 36

In article <1990Dec3.181139.28985@terminator.cc.umich.edu>
           jwh@bodwin.ifs.umich.edu (James W. Howe) writes:
>I've been trying to install OS/2 1.2 EE over AIX on a PS/2
>and I encountered a problem.  The problem is that I could
>not remove the old AIX partitions on the hard disk.
>...
>My question is this, is there a way to remove partitions of
>other operating systems using only the OS/2 software provided?

Someone else has already suggested booting off a floppy and using 
FDISK.  It is by no means clear that this will work for foreign
(i.e. non-OS/2 partitions).  The OS/2 FDISK that I have claims to
understand only OS/2, DOS and Xenix partitions.

I do not have a PS/2 with AIX installed on it, so I have no way
of proving or disproving my theory.

The only way that I have found to *reliably* recover an entire
hard disk on a PS/2 is to use the low-level format.  To do this,
boot your machine from the reference diskette; when the first
menu appears, do a <control>A and you will get the "Advanced"
("Alternative"?) diagnostics menu, which includes a low-level
format.

Using the low-level format (which can take a l-o-n-g time for a
large disk) returns you a virgin volume.  The OS/2 installation
will then force you to partition, and offer you the entire volume.
Of course, this approach is no use if you have stuff in other 
partitions on the volume that you wish to keep.

Robert_S
-- 
Robert Stanley   UUCP: uunet!mitel!cunews!cognos!roberts | 3755 Riverside Drive
Cognos, Inc.     INET: roberts%cognos.uucp@uunet.uu.net  | PO Box 9707, Ottawa
(Research)      Alice: (613) 738-1338 x6115 (EST/EDT)    | Ont  K1G 3Z4, Canada
  [I haven't really lost my mind, I'm sure I have a backup on tape somewhere.]