Ubuntu on Dell Recovery Partition?

Sorry to keep troubling the Linux thread, but I now have Windows back under my thumb, and having used the Recovery Partition, am now ready to remove it and free up 10GB.

Now, I read somewhere that I can use Windows to delete the Recovery Partition, but to use the disk space, I have to use a third-party app like gparted. Now bear with me here. I was thinking of deleting the partition and merging it with the Windows partition, then resizing it so that the 10GB are available for Ubuntu.

Then I realized that I might be able to just spare myself the trouble. Could I boot Ubuntu, and choose to install it in the space left by the removed Recovery Partition? This way I wouldn't be endangering my Windows partition, would I? Has anyone else done this before? PLEASE HELP ME!

 

If you have your Windows discs, then you don't really need the recovery partition. You could install Ubuntu on it, but make a smaller swap (not the default size). If you are serious about Ubuntu, 10GB may be just far too small.

 

What do you mean by "a smaller swap?" I don't know that term.
For now, I think 10GB will suffice. I won't be using it as a main OS for now.

But it will work? That's good. Do I delete the partition in Windows first, or can I do it all with gparted?

Thanks for your reply!

 

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SwapFaq
http://linux.about.com/od/ptn_howto/a/hwtptn04t04.htm

 

Thanks, John B! I still think 10GB will be fine for the present. I really just need to familiarize myself with Ubuntu. And that way, by the time I need more space, I'll be comfortable with the process of messing with partitions and whatnot.

 

Take a look on this before giving ur final word on going with 10gb
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=202740
That was on less than 2 monts after i started my Linux journey.

 

Thanks, Enunes, but I am positive I will still be using Windows after installing Linux. This is my learning period with Linux.

 

you will have full access to your Vista partition if you need more space for data.

 

I went thru a learning phase also (well, I've used it years ago, then quit), but this time around it has taken over my life Keep us posted.

 

Alright. I am now staring at a box that is title "Install." Underneath that, it says "Prepare partitions." Under that we have four "Devices." Above them all, it says "/dev/sda." I want to install on the Dell Recovery Partition (10GB). Which one is it? We have:

/dev/sda1 fat16 /media/sda1 82MB 33MB
/dev/sda2 ntfs /media/sda2 10737MB 3200MB
/dev/sda3 ntfs /media/sda3 66520MB 21500MB
/dev/sda5 fat32 /media/sda5 2683MB 1900MB

I think the one I'm after is the second one. Am I right?
Also, why no sda4?

Alright, assuming that it is the second one, do I need to format it to fat32 or something other than ntfs?

Anyway, if I go "Forward," having selected the second one, I get the error "No root file system is defined. Please correct this from the partitioning menu."

I go to edit the partition, and there are three boxes. The first one has the new partition size, which is atm the whole thing. The second one is entitled "Use as:" and is set at ntfs. (Do I need to change this?) And the third is the "Mount point:" which is set at /media/sda2.

Obviously, this configuration is not working, because of the aforementioned error message.
Down below, there is a helpful blurb about a mount point and swap file. Does that mean I need to set that partition in the edit menu to a swap file size, and that will create two partitions: one swap file and one for installing Ubuntu? Again, does this all need to be FAT32, or part of it, or what?

And do I need to change the mount point any?

PLEASE HELP ME!