Inconsistencies between Linux and DOS/Windows fdisk versions

[otf]

Hi *,

I am trying to setup a multiboot conf with a harddrive dedicated to WIndows
OSs and the other to Unixes/Linuxes using GRUB as multiboot manager.

while trying to set up partitions using Linux fdisk and then formatting
them with DOS/Windows, Windows refuses to install on these partitions. this
is what I get in Linux:

root@0[root]# fdisk -l /dev/hda

Disk /dev/hda: 13.7 GB, 13701316608 bytes
16 heads, 63 sectors/track, 26548 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 1008 * 512 = 516096 bytes

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hda1 * 2 4162 2097144 6 FAT16
/dev/hda2 4163 12484 4194288 b W95 FAT32
/dev/hda3 12485 20806 4194288 87 NTFS volume set
/dev/hda4 20807 26548 2893968 b W95 FAT32

but DOS/Windows' fdisk tells me the System is UNKNOWN and refuses to even
run scandisk on these partitions or format them.

Each time I tried the partitioning I run

dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/hda

in order to make sure there is no residual formatting information on the
platters.

Also, Linux has ways to format FAT16 and FAT32 file systems, but not NTFS
ones. The "NTFS volume set" I set to them make the partition active and
then install WIndows XP on this partition.

I know the drive itself is physically OK and I have tested these partitions
using knoppix by writing files into them (the FAT16 and FAT32 ones).

Why does this happen?

Could you point me to similar trials?

Thanks
otf