Minimal system requirements for KolibriOS:

The system can boot from any of following devices:

I. Install to floppy.

  1. Insert clean floppy without bad sectors to drive.
  2. Write to it kolibri.img image with any available methods:
    a) (if you have already loaded Kolibri by any method) run the program
    rdsave and select the variant corresponding to floppy
    b) (for DOS and Windows) run subjoined install.bat
    c) with program WinImage or its analogue (e.g. DiskExplorer)
    d) (for Linux) set "executable" attribute to subjoined script install.sh
    and run it
    Now you can boot from floppy (keep it in drive, reboot, set in BIOS option
    of floppy booting).

II. Install to hard disk.
There exists several loaders from hard disk. All are oriented on DOS and
Windows users. Also standard Linux-loader GRUB can be used. All methods work
with file kolibri.img. If you already have old version of Kolibri installed,
simply replace kolibri.img to new. If you have booted from LiveCD, which
does not contain the file kolibri.img, Kolibri can create it independently,
to do this, run the program rdsave, enter the file name for saving and select
the corresponding variant. Of course, in this case Kolibri must be able to
write to file system of selected partitions, currently this means that
only FAT volumes are ok.

  1. Most of all features has the loader mtldr (author - Diamond) - works with
    DOS/Win95/98/NT/2k/XP/Vista, supports FAT32 and NTFS, has installator, can
    be installed to any folder on disk.
    To install, simply run file HD_load\mtldr_install.exe and select image file.
    Apropos, by this way you can install several images. There is also
    variant of install by hand - for those who want to know what installator
    does: directions in HD_load\mtldr
  2. There is also the loader MeOSLoad (author - Trans, expanded by Mario79) -
    works with DOS/Win95/98, supports FAT32, it is placed with the instruction
    to the folder HD_load\MeOSLoad.
  3. Moreover, there exist a program which allow load Kolibri directly from
    Windows 95/98/Me (of course, unloading it) - 9x2klbr (author - Diamond),
    supports FAT32 and NTFS.
  4. Usage of the loader GRUB. Place the file 'memdisk' to the folder 'boot'
    or to the partition used for Kolibri.
    a) For GRUB2, in the folder /etc/grub.d add to one of files next lines:

menuentry 'KolibriOS' {
linux16 (hd[Hard disk number],[partition number])[path]/memdisk
initrd16 (hd[Hard disk number],[partition number])[path]/kolibri.img
}

  example:

menuentry 'KolibriOS' {
linux16 (hd0,msdos1)/boot/memdisk
initrd16 (hd0,msdos1)/boot/kolibri.img
}

  then, run in terminal 'sudo update-grub'.

b) For old GRUB, add to the configuration file 'menu.lst' next lines:

  title KolibriOS
  kernel (hd[Hard disk number],[partition number])[path]/memdisk
  initrd (hd[Hard disk number],[partition number])[path]/kolibri.img

  Remember that numeration in GRUB starts from 0. Example:

  title KolibriOS
  kernel (hd0,0)/boot/memdisk
  initrd (hd0,3)/kolibri/kolibri.img

III. Install to USB-Flash-drive.
The special loader for FAT32-volumes has been written, it and its installer
to flash drive can be found in the folder HD_load\USB_Boot.
For not-FAT32 drives you may use article placed in the folder
HD_load\USB_Boot_old.

IV. Install to CD and DVD.
There exists special LiveCD-version of Kolibri, which contains
in addition to standard things some "heavy" (in Kolibri standards) programs:
the ported emulator DosBox, games "Fixed Rate Pig" and "sokoban".
You can also create bootable CD or DVD on the base of kolibri.img, adding
anything what you want, in the mode of floppy emulation.
The appropriate actions are determined by used CD/DVD write program
(focus on words such as "boot floppy emulation").