Fedora 20/Windows 8.1 dual boot help?

edit

It's been a long time since you've been online, so I assume you've fixed it. But, I'll provide my answer anyway. Here goes:

Option 1: Modify the GRUB2 configuration

1. Execute this bit of code:

   echo "menuentry 'Windows Boot Manager ' {
   set root='hd0,gpt$(sudo parted -l|grep fat32|grep boot|grep "EFI system partition"|awk '{print $1}')'
   chainloader /EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bootmgfw.efi
   boot
   }"
   

   The output should be close to:

   menuentry 'Windows Boot Manager ' {
   set root='hd0,gpt2'
   chainloader /EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bootmgfw.efi
   boot
   }
   

2. Copy this output using Ctrl+Shift+C or by right clicking and clicking copy and paste, respectively. Next, execute:

   sudo vi /etc/grub.d/40_custom
   

   After that, press i, and then scroll to the bottom of the document using the arrow keys. Press Ctrl+Shift+V to paste, and then save by pressing Esc and typing :wq [ENTER].

3. Run this command in the terminal: sudo cat /etc/grub.d/40_custom

   The output should look like

   #!/bin/sh
   exec tail -n +3 $0
   # This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries.  Simply type the
   # menu entries you want to add after this comment.  Be careful not to change
   # the 'exec tail' line above.
   
   menuentry 'Microsoft Windows 8' {
   set root='hd0,gpt2'
   chainloader /EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bootmgfw.efi
   boot
   }
   

   Do not remove any other parts of this documents. If you accidentally mess up, do not type :wq,but instead :q! [ENTER]. Re-execute the command with the vi in it.

4. Run grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/efi/EFI/fedora/grub.cfg. Do not alter this command as it can mess up your system. Next, reboot using reboot in the command line or any other option.

5. You should be able to access both Windows and Linux now using GRUB2.

Option 2: Using the BIOS boot menu

1. During the screen with the laptop company name (e.g. Lenovo or Acer), press F12, F1, or Esc. This key depends on model and maker of the box. On laptops, try Fn+F2, Esc, Fn+F1, etc. This is not the same as the BIOS Settings, it is the boot menu (see this for example).

1. Press Windows 8 or Windows. Sometimes, it may be a strange string of words (name of the HDD, I think). Try each one, and check for the Windows one.

2. You will have to do this every time you want to boot into Windows. In my opinion, this is not the best option. It takes too much effort and it is hard to do on quick BIOS computers.

Option 3: Reinstall with one /boot/efi partition

1. Get a spin of Fedora and burn to USB, DVD, etc. You maybe want to try a netinstall.

2. At the partitioning, select the 260 MB partition in Windows, and use that.

3. Boot into Windows and Fedora!

Option 4: Try a Windows VM

Get a virtual machine program on Fedora. Several are available as shown here (yum search vm):

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