Arch Linux

tdraket

Member

Registered: 2012-06-24

Posts: 3

[Solved]Can't get any bootloader to work

I previously had Mint installed on my computer and before I tried installing Arch on my computer I set up a virtual machine and installed arch on that with no problems on my first try.  Now I've installed arch from the net install(same iso I used from the VM install and it's 64 bit) and it appears that everything installs correctly but when I reboot I get an error 15 from grub.  When I installed I used syslinux not grub so I figure this is some remanent from my old Mint install.  I tried installing with grub but got the same error.  Then I installed with syslinux as my bootloader 3 more times and got the same error.
I set up the system with a single partition the first time(same as on the vm) and then I tried letting it do the auto partition but still no success.
I'd appreciate any input into what I'm doing wrong and I figure it's something simple I missed.

Edit: I installed arch successfully on a vm again so I'm sure it's some issue related to my hardware. 
System Info:
AMD quad core processor
16GB Ram
5 hard drives, installing on a 500GB drive

The thing I can't figure out is that syslinux doesn't give me a choice to install to a specific hard drive so I'm not sure how I'm messing up the install.  I also tried both the dev and uuid method of referring to my hard drives.  This is really stumping me.
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Last edited by tdraket (2012-06-26 23:18:33)

cfr

Member

From: Cymru

Registered: 2011-11-27

Posts: 7,143

Re: [Solved]Can't get any bootloader to work

Mint probably defaults to GPT partitioning and EFI booting if your system supports it. If so, have you checked that your BIOS is setup to allow "legacy" booting? If you have the option, have it prefer BIOS/legacy booting over EFI. If you used the regular net install image, the installer will have given you an MBR partition map and set you up for BIOS/legacy booting with "legacy" grub or syslinux. I'm thinking that that might not overwrite everything to do with the GPT/EFI setup if that's what you had with Mint.

If somebody else suggests something and that person sounds as if they know what they're doing, try their suggestion first. Mine is pure conjecture.

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tdraket

Member

Registered: 2012-06-24

Posts: 3

Re: [Solved]Can't get any bootloader to work

I poured through my bios(fancy overclocking motherboard so way too many options) and I was unable to find anything about legacy booting or anything remotely related.  In the boot section it just had the order you want to boot disks in and what type of device you want to boot from.  You could be on the right track I just wasn't able to find anything related to what you are saying.  Is there another installer I can use that will use a GPT/EFI bootloader?  I'll try anything to get my computer set up with Arch.

DSpider

Member

From: Romania

Registered: 2009-08-23

Posts: 2,273

Re: [Solved]Can't get any bootloader to work

Well, is your motherboard UEFI-capable and was the HDD you're trying to install to, formatted (or converted) as GPT?

And I seriously doubt that you got an "error 15" message from Syslinux. What did it say, exactly?

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"How to Succeed with Linux"

I have made a personal commitment not to reply in topics that start with a lowercase letter. Proper grammar and punctuation is a sign of respect, and if you do not show any, you will NOT receive any help (at least not from me).

tdraket

Member

Registered: 2012-06-24

Posts: 3

Re: [Solved]Can't get any bootloader to work

Sorry if I wasn't clear about the error.  I said I installed syslinux and i was still getting the grub error still.  I figured out that the error was due to the order my hard drives were booting in.  I had to try every single order.  The reason I was so confused was that I had installed grub the time I switched the hard drive boot order and I used the /dev/sdxy reference so I still got the same error.  I had assumed that since there was a boot order then if nothing was found on one drive then the other drive would boot up.  What happened  when I changed the boot order of the drives was that with two of the drives I'd just get a blinking cursor and the other two drives would have the grub error 15.  Then I switched the drive order after a syslinux install and i got it going to busybox because my /dev/sdxy were wrong because I changed the boot order.  So I installed using UUID and then my problem went away.  I appreciate everyone's help in this matter.

Summary: UUID is better than /dev/sdxy for drive reference and it I needed to change the boot order of the drives(it would be nice if my bios called them what they were in the boot menu like it does in the summary screen).