[SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

lasombra · 2011-09-03 09:06:31

Hi folks

I've tried to install Archlinux. This works fine until where syslinux has to be installed. The installer cannot install syslinux cause it fails with: "Failde to set boot flag(s). syslinux-install_update -a failed with Error Code - 3"

Appropriate configuration and log files can be found here: http://sprunge.us/IZIh

Any idea why? Did I configure something wrong?

Before installing Arch I had Fedora with Grub2 installed.

Last edited by lasombra (2011-09-08 17:32:43)

Pernig · 2011-09-03 10:25:15

Hi lasombra.

Is there any reason why you prefer syslinux over grub?

Are you using the latest Arch install media? If not it may be that syslinux is trying to point to a 2.6 kernel rather than the latest 3.0 kernel, which has now been added to the [core] repository.

More info here:

http://www.archlinux.org/news/changes-t … filenames/

jakobm · 2011-09-03 10:26:45

/dev/mapper/cryptpool-cryptroot btrfs      44G  3.5G   39G   9% /mnt
/dev/sda1                       ext4       99M   24M   70M  26% /mnt/boot
/dev/mapper/cryptpool-crypthome btrfs     518G   56K  516G   1% /mnt/home
/dev/mapper/cryptpool-cryptvar  reiserfs   15G  769M   14G   6% /mnt/var

[DEBUG FS ] Installing Syslinux (/mnt/usr/sbin/syslinux-install_update -i -c /mnt)
...
[DEBUG FS ] Failde to set boot flag(s). syslinux-install_update -a failed with Error Code - 3
[DEBUG UI ] show_warning 'FAILED': Failed to set boot flag(s). MBR not installed (msg)

I don't know the installation procedure by heart, but did you select the right partition, i.e. /mnt/boot (sda1) to install syslinux to?
The error messages indicate that it should be installed to /mnt (/dev/mapper/cryptpool-cryptroot) which fails as it should

ataraxia · 2011-09-03 14:14:50

syslinux-install_update is a shell script, you can just look at it to see what it does. Maybe put a "set -x" in it so you get lots of debug output and run it again by hand.

"syslinux-install_update -a" does some work to determine what disk and partition to work on, and then runs "sfdisk "$disk" -A "$partnum".

lasombra · 2011-09-03 16:57:37

Pernig wrote:

Is there any reason why you prefer syslinux over grub?

No, not any particular one.

Pernig wrote:

Are you using the latest Arch install media? If not it may be that syslinux is trying to point to a 2.6 kernel rather than the latest 3.0 kernel, which has now been added to the [core] repository.
More info here:
http://www.archlinux.org/news/changes-t … filenames/

Thanks for the infoI use the latest installation media (as of August)

Last edited by lasombra (2011-09-03 17:02:33)

lasombra · 2011-09-03 18:30:32

I followed the arch installer and did a manual preparation of the disks. I had to do this with parted, as a GPT was detected. I did as follows:

sda1, boot, Primary, ext4       , 106.93 MB
sda2,     , Primary, crypto_LUKS, 640000.82 MB

And I let some free space in the end of the disk as I've read, that this is used by the GPT. Then I followed the installer step by step and all went fine except the installation of the bootloader. I've exited the installer and as suggested, I've run

/mnt/usr/sbin/syslinux-install_update -i -c /mnt

by hand. this returns "Syslinux install successful".

Then running

syslinux-install_update -a

fails with "FAILED to Set boot flag on /dev/mapper/arch_root-image. Mhh ok, so I assume I have to do chroot on /mnt. Running the command again complains

Could not find /proc/self/mountinfo
Areu you running a kernel greater than 2.6.24?

Ok, back again with exit, and checking the options for syslinux-install_update

syslinux-install_update -m -c /mnt

returns

Installed MBR (/mnt/usr/lib/syslinux/gptmbr.bin) to /dev/sda

That seems better. So I reboot the machine but i get Missing OS

According http://www.syslinux.org/wiki/index.php/Common_Problems this problem can be overcome executing

sgdisk /dev/sda --attributes=1:set:2

but this returns

Invalid partition data!

I am getting frustrated!

Last edited by lasombra (2011-09-04 10:18:36)

lasombra · 2011-09-04 10:25:26

sgdisk /dev/sda -v

returns

Warning! Missmatched GPT and MBT partition! MBR partition 1, of type 0x83,
has no corresponding GPT partition! You may continue, but this condition
might cause data loss in the future!


Warning! Missmatched GPT and MBT partition! MBR partition 1, of type 0x83,
has no corresponding GPT partition! You may continue, but this condition
might cause data loss in the future!

So I did

sgdisk /dev/sda -zap

and then

sgdisk /dev/sda -v

which returns

**********************************************************
Found invalid GOT and valid MBT; converting MBR to GPT format.
**********************************************************

Caution: Partition 1 doesn't begin on an 8-sector boundary. This may
result in degraded performance on some modern (2009 or later) hard disks.

Caution: Partition 2 doesn't begin on an 8-sector boundary. This may
result in degraded performance on some modern (2009 or later) hard disks.

....
No problems found. ....

But rebooting results again in "Missing OS". How the hell do I get the MBR in a way, that I can boot the arch installation.

Last edited by lasombra (2011-09-04 10:31:33)

lasombra · 2011-09-04 11:24:55

Ok, I am a step further. I've started with the live cd, called fdisk, deleted all partitions and recreated all partitions. This time the arch installer did not complained, and syslinux was installed successfully.

anatolik · 2013-03-10 22:32:14

I had the same error "Failed to set boot flag(s)." I have one GTP partition on my drive, the partition is boot and root fs at the same time. After the error I tried to boot and got "Missing OS" error. I run

sgdisk /dev/sda --attributes=1:set:2

and it fixed my error.

kayaman · 2013-11-26 09:11:54

Well i had the same Problem, got frustrated too. Still I could solve the Problem:

sda1 = /boot
sda2 = /
sda3 = /home
From the Live CD I did:

mount /dev/sda2 /mnt
mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/boot

the thing I remembered could have gone wrong was the installation directory of my Syslinux so i did:

syslinux-install_update -i -a -m -c /mnt/boot/

then it all worked.

Additionally I did the

sgdisk /dev/sda --attributes=1:set:2
sgdisk /dev/sda --attributes=1:show

before and it wasn't booting the system although it had the bootflag

jasonwryan · 2013-11-26 16:16:29

Please don't necrobump: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Fo … Bumping.27

Closing

Arch Linux

#1 2011-09-03 09:06:31

[SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#2 2011-09-03 10:25:15

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#3 2011-09-03 10:26:45

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#4 2011-09-03 14:14:50

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#5 2011-09-03 16:57:37

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#6 2011-09-03 18:30:32

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#7 2011-09-04 10:25:26

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#8 2011-09-04 11:24:55

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#9 2013-03-10 22:32:14

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#10 2013-11-26 09:11:54

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

#11 2013-11-26 16:16:29

Re: [SOLVED] syslinux-install_update -a failed, err3

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