Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 03:15:01

I was getting ready to install Windows to an empty section of my laptop's hard drive so that I could dual boot for a couple of things I just can't get in Linux. When I tried installing, it froze during format. This didn't seem like a big deal because it was previously unpartioned space. It corrupted the partition table. With the hard drive connected at boot, all OSes, on the hard drive and on CD, kernel panic during boot, reporting hundreds of partitions. I tried removing the hard drive, booting a live CD and then connecting the hard drive through USB. This did not give me access to the hard drive. The kernel started throwing an error message: "INFO: task khubd:211 blocked for more than 120 seconds." I can't even get access to the hard drive enough to wipe it. Is there any way to gain access to the hard drive in /dev without reading the partition table, or artificially capping the partitions read? ( I would love to get at some data that is on the hard drive because I am stupid and have not recently backed up )

Please help. At this stage the hard drive isn't even usable.

Amzo2 · 2012-06-19 03:20:45

You could try using dd to overwrite the partition table and mbr of the disk. It's worth a try:

Where /dev/sdX is the path to your hd.

dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdX bs=512 count=1

This command will wipe the partition table and master boot record. Warning! Backup any and all data first! Well, I doubt you can back up anyways.

Last edited by Amzo2 (2012-06-19 03:21:40)

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 03:22:47

I can't get that far. It does not get as far as displaying /dev/sda as it gets stuck reading the partition table before that point.

Amzo2 · 2012-06-19 03:36:55

Then I can't think of any other possible way to erase the device, if you can't access it by plugging it in by usb, or directly, then I'm not sure of how else you would access it.

Have you tried plugging it into a Windows machien via usb to see if that brings it up.

Was it the Windows Installation that froze that corrupted the table?

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 03:40:27

Yes. It was the windows installation that did it, and I don't have another machine with Windows available to try and see if it'll work. The Windows install disk also hangs when trying to boot, so it's pretty clearly also affected.

Is there seriously no way to connect a hard drive without udev trying to read the partition table?

Amzo2 · 2012-06-19 03:51:15

Well, the modules would be loaded for the drive to be detected anyway. If you blacklisted those modules, or stopped udev from detecting it, then the drive wouldn't show up in /dev. If say then you did that, then loaded the modules after it booted up the LiveCD. It might also result in a crash.

I can only think of trying it in windows. Since it was writing an NTFS partition, and Windows will have better NTFS support than what Linux does, so chances it will pick up the drivers seem higher.

You could try Hirens Boot CD Which contains a WindowsXP mini which runs from CD, and also includes a lot of file system tools, to see if you can manage to repair it.

x33a · 2012-06-19 03:51:26

Can you boot and go to the bios options? See if the drive is being displayed there. It seems to me more of a controller error.

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 03:52:58

For added information, Grub2 is still on the hard drive and starts just fine, and grub2 does boot the Linux OS on the laptop. The kernel just panics during boot because of the partition table, though. Unfortunately, Grub2 doesn't give me the ability to recover data or wipe the hard drive.

Amzo2 · 2012-06-19 03:56:37

You could try using: http://www.pendriveapps.com/partition-t … or-ptedit/

A partition table editor created by symantecs, and see if you can erase the NTFS partition table, but that would also require a Windows Machine. Other options are Ultimate Boot CD.

Last edited by Amzo2 (2012-06-19 03:59:06)

Trilby · 2012-06-19 04:01:44

There certainly are ways. The question is are any feasible. Hopefully so, but I suspect they'd all require deactivating udev or running some "udevless" environment.

Do you have access to any other OSs at work/school/library? Perhaps if they manage devices differently you'd have a shot. I don't know if the odds would be good with that, but it should be easy enough to try.

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 05:01:57

Windows XP is unable to do anything with the hard drive as well. At this time, Grub is the only thing that seems to be able to read the hard drive. Unless there is a way to wipe a hard drive through grub, I'm not sure what to do.

x33a · 2012-06-19 06:08:58

If you want to wipe the hard drive without recovering anything, try dariks boot and nuke disk. Or try gparted live, preferably an older version without udev.

progandy · 2012-06-19 06:22:16

x33a wrote:

If you want to wipe the hard drive without recovering anything, try dariks boot and nuke disk. Or try gparted live, preferably an older version without udev.

You can try to use GParted for recreating your partition table, too.
http://geexhq.com/recover-partition-table/

Katherine1 · 2012-06-19 08:29:15

I have found that, for some reason, the kernel on the hard drive in question will boot into the initramfs before freaking out, which gives me a command line. While the root partition seems to be gone, the home partition is still there. Unfortunately, I can't mount and other hard drives. I'm attempting to get networking up to SSH my stuff off. I have stuck a copy of the root for the arch live cd and a copy of the modules for this kernel onto a CD and then copied that stuff into a tmpfs. It's running, but I'm having trouble getting the right things up and running. Anyone know how to manually bring a system up to the point where wired internet will work from an initramfs?

EDIT: For clarification, this kernel ( linux-ck ) opts to terminate the processes that are looping through the bad partion table, rather than run out of memory and kernel panic like all other kernels ( including arch linux live cd and gparted ). The system will not recognise any USB storage, but I can mount CDs for reading. I want to get files off the hard drive before I wipe it. Since USB drives will not work, I need to get networking up, or find a way to boot a linux environment that will work.

Last edited by Katherine1 (2012-06-19 08:42:27)

x33a · 2012-06-19 14:18:45

Have you got any other live cd apart from arch? If yes then please try it first.

Arch Linux

#1 2012-06-19 03:15:01

Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#2 2012-06-19 03:20:45

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#3 2012-06-19 03:22:47

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#4 2012-06-19 03:36:55

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#5 2012-06-19 03:40:27

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#6 2012-06-19 03:51:15

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

#7 2012-06-19 03:51:26

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#8 2012-06-19 03:52:58

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#9 2012-06-19 03:56:37

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#10 2012-06-19 04:01:44

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#11 2012-06-19 05:01:57

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#12 2012-06-19 06:08:58

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#13 2012-06-19 06:22:16

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#14 2012-06-19 08:29:15

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#15 2012-06-19 14:18:45

Re: Corrupted Partition Table = unusable hard drive

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