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I installed Ubuntu "on" Windows Vista using the Wubi installer.

The Ubuntu "disk" files are located in C:\ubuntu\disks\. (So, there's a large 30GB .disk file in that directory.)

How can I "mount" it so that I can easily access my Ubuntu files using Windows Explorer?

For example:

enter image description here

P.S. I haven't used any "partitions" or anything.

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Windows can't read Linux filesystems without installing a special driver. It will be far easier to mount the Windows drive from Ubuntu instead. – Patches May 25 '11 at 2:31
    
@Patches If I do that, will I be able to "see" Ubuntu from Windows, like in the image above? I tried fs-driver, but I can't seem to get it to work. – Mateen Ulhaq May 25 '11 at 2:33
    
No, you'll only be able to access it from Ubuntu. The above driver actually doesn't appear to work with modern Linux filesystems. ext2read does supports both modern filesystems and reading wubi disk images. Unfortunately, it provides only read only support and you must use a special program, not the standard Windows file access interfaces. – Patches May 25 '11 at 2:44
    
@Patches Will converting Ubuntu to some kind of partition do the trick? What if I used ISO? – Mateen Ulhaq May 25 '11 at 4:29
    
It's possible the IFS driver will work when Ubuntu is installed as a partition, but I'm not sure. Generally Linux users have one or more partitions assigned for Linux use that Windows never touches, a partition for Windows that Linux never touches, and then a third partition used specifically designed to be accessible from both systems and store files used by both. – Patches May 25 '11 at 4:59
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I ended up moving Wubi to a new partition, and then installing Ext2 driver for Windows and Ext2FSD, in that order. (Not sure which driver is the one that did it, but oh well.)

Partitioning Wubi

  1. Shrink the Windows partition using Vista's built-in tool. (If you encounter problems, click here.)
  2. Create a bunch of partitions.
    • Vista's tool is inadequate if you want to create more than four partitions. (Or plan on doing so in the future.)
    • Reboot into Ubuntu, run GParted to create a new extended partition. Then put a bunch of logical partitions underneath that. Do not move the Windows partitions. (You may resize them, but don't move them.)
  3. Move Wubi to the new partition.

Automatically Mount Partitions in Ubuntu

Why does the Windows volume need to be mounted every time you boot into Ubuntu? Wanna fix it?

(If that doesn't work, try one of these: LINK 1, LINK 2.)

Mount Linux Partitions in Windows

Use Ext2 driver for Windows and/or Ext2FSD, as mentioned above. If they don't work for you, you're stuck with the alternatives on this list or this list.

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