Arch Linux

Gonzakpo

Member

Registered: 2008-05-17

Posts: 45

Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

Hello everyone. I'm already an Arch user and I'm very happy with it. The problem is that now I'm trying to install another Arch on another HD (to try out KDE4 without breaking my previous Arch install).
The problem is that everytime I want to install Arch everything goes fine but then when I want to boot with that HD I get GRUB's errors. Sometime is just that GRUB can't find the kernel image and sometime not even GRUB is able to start up (it frezes saying nonsenses). I'm starting to doubt about the HD. Could it have the MBR broken (I mean phisically)?
On the other hand, when I log in the working Arch install I can see all the partitions and the files in them (GRUB files, / files, etc.). Also I ran "fsck -f" and it says everything is alright....

Any ideas of what could be the problem ?

Thanks.

Last edited by Gonzakpo (2008-09-28 18:06:01)

Xyne

Administrator/PM

Registered: 2008-08-03

Posts: 6,963

Website

Re: Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

Could you post the contents of /boot/grub/menu.lst for both your current Arch installation and for the one that you're trying to set up on the second disk, along with the output of "fdisk -l"? (as root if it tells you that it cannot open /dev/whatever)

I suspect either that you have to change the line "root (hdx,y)", or that you need to chainload the second installation, or both. It sounds likely that you've configured the second Arch installation as if it were the primary one.

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Gonzakpo

Member

Registered: 2008-05-17

Posts: 45

Re: Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

Sorry, I forgot to mention something important. My motherboard comes with a boot menu incorporated. Something like an integrated "GRUB". It lets me choose from which HD I want to boot so I really don't need to put all my OSes in the same GRUB. I just install them as if they were on the only HD in the PC. That way each HD is completely transparent to each other.

Anyway, here it is the menu.lst from the non working HD.

# Config file for GRUB - The GNU GRand Unified Bootloader
# /boot/grub/menu.lst

# DEVICE NAME CONVERSIONS 
#
#  Linux           Grub
# -------------------------
#  /dev/fd0        (fd0)
#  /dev/hda        (hd0)
#  /dev/hdb2       (hd1,1)
#  /dev/hda3       (hd0,2)
#

#  FRAMEBUFFER RESOLUTION SETTINGS
#     +-------------------------------------------------+
#          | 640x480    800x600    1024x768   1280x1024
#      ----+--------------------------------------------
#      256 | 0x301=769  0x303=771  0x305=773   0x307=775
#      32K | 0x310=784  0x313=787  0x316=790   0x319=793
#      64K | 0x311=785  0x314=788  0x317=791   0x31A=794
#      16M | 0x312=786  0x315=789  0x318=792   0x31B=795
#     +-------------------------------------------------+

# general configuration:
timeout   5
default   0
color light-blue/black light-cyan/blue

# boot sections follow
# each is implicitly numbered from 0 in the order of appearance below
#
# TIP: If you want a 1024x768 framebuffer, add "vga=773" to your kernel line.
#
#-*

# (0) Arch Linux
title  Arch Linux
root   (hd1,0)
kernel /vmlinuz26 root=/dev/disk/by-uuid/a69baf94-a0c3-4306-b1e3-efe8fbec338b ro
initrd /kernel26.img

# (1) Arch Linux
title  Arch Linux Fallback
root   (hd1,0)
kernel /vmlinuz26 root=/dev/disk/by-uuid/a69baf94-a0c3-4306-b1e3-efe8fbec338b ro
initrd /kernel26-fallback.img

# (1) Windows
#title Windows
#rootnoverify (hd0,0)
#makeactive
#chainloader +1

ghostHack

Member

From: Bristol UK

Registered: 2008-02-29

Posts: 261

Re: Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

change root (hd1,0) to root (hd0,0), grub will detect the drive it is on as hd0, regardless of its physical position.  (my motherboard has the same feature as yours so I have encountered this myself).

Gonzakpo

Member

Registered: 2008-05-17

Posts: 45

Re: Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

thanks, but it didn't work.

I'm starting to suspect that there's something wrong with the MBR (phisically damaged) and it's not pointing right to GRUB.
I'll try to boot the drive from another one and see what happens. I guess it should work.

Gonzakpo

Member

Registered: 2008-05-17

Posts: 45

Re: Can't install Arch (SOLVED)

Ok, I found a workaround. Booting from another drive works so the MBR must be damaged.

KDE4 it's AMAZING!

Last edited by Gonzakpo (2008-09-28 18:05:31)