Can Linux Ubuntu save files on a Windows partition?

[Edgewalker]

Sorry if this is a noob question, but this is the first time i am trying Linux.
When I installed Windows XP two years ago i made a partition, which i wanted to install Windows on. I managed to install it on the other part, and i now have a 20gb empty partition. So, I was just wondering if all files i save from Linux must be stored at the same place as the Linux OS...

Edgewalker

[oz]

Welcome to the forums!

Yes, you can store files on other partitions with Linux.

[Edgewalker]

Thank you for the quick answer, im going to install Linux now, bye

[previso]

Should be OK if the partition does not have an OS. Many writes/deletes to M$ host from Linux can corrupt the M$ directory tree. I learned the hard way. Same warning when writing to Linux partition from M$.

[Shannon_VanWagner]

Absolutely Linux can write to windows partitions! I've done this for at least 5 years without any failure.

You can even install Ubuntu GNU/Linux (ubuntu.com) inside Windows (just put the disk in after you have already booted into windows). When you install Ubuntu using this method, it actually mounts/uses the windows NTFS partition to run from when you boot into it.

I use a Linux livecd to recover windows files from a virus-infected/dying machine all the time and it works perfectly.

Linux is like the uber-admin tool when working with windows. You can even manage your windows partitions with tools such as gparted.

Congratulations on your freedom!

Shannon VanWagner

[kurtdriver]

Mount it inside of Linux and then it's just another partition. Read the manual for the file called /etc/fstab for information about doing it automatically.
at any command prompt type:
[you@yourbox ~]$ man fstab
You can save files to it (or delete them). It's just another drive.

[devils casper]

Ubuntu support NTFS and FAT32 read/write access out of box. You have to mount NTFS Partitions through ntfs-3g.
Mount command :

sudo mount -t ntfs-3g  /dev/<partition> <mount_point> -o defaults,umask=0

Or add this code in /etc/fstab file :

/dev/<partition>   <mount_point>   ntfs-3g   defaults,umask=0   0   0

For FAT32 partition, replace ntfs-3g with vfat.

[uldics]

/etc/fstab and the command mount(umount) is very good stuff to read about. That is the oldschool, manual, command line way of doing that. Everyone wanting to be strong in GNU/Linux has to learn that.

But there is another, newbie friendly way of mounting partitions. If you have installed packages gnome-volume-manager (when you use Gnome) or kdf (when you use KDE), then it is just a point and click to do same things as the /etc/fstab does. I have fairly large amount of packages installed, I suppose, these are the necessary ones.

[lynne14]

I have a couple of drives both are windblows XP and Linux can see them and store stuff there . . You could go into partition manager and format them ext4 or ext3 ( Gparted )
under "system" and go to the administration part of the menu and down to the gparted program and find the drive have lots of choices as to how to re do it . .