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#1 2012-11-02 13:22:52

fosskers
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Registered: 2012-02-21
Posts: 167
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[SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

SOLVED Nov 3 11:00 JST
After searching around, the solution I found that works for me is:
YES -> Adding `modprobe.blacklist=pata_acpi` to kernel command line.
NOT -> Removing pata and scsi from HOOKS in `mkinitcpio.conf`.

In fact, booting the live cd with pata_acpi blacklisted made it work fine too.

UPDATE Nov 3 10:30 JST
I've upgraded the kernel to 3.6.5 and still nothing.
I've removed both pata and scsi hooks from mkinitcpio.conf. I know I have a SATA disk. The dmesg entries are gone, but /dev/sda3 still isn't found.

*** ORIGINAL POST***

I feel an odd gratitude towards Arch Linux. Just as memories of wielding
install disks and recovery shells begin to fade, Arch throws a system-crippling
update my way to keep me on my toes.

Well, on to the matter at hand.

As far as I can tell, as of kernel 3.6.4 my Arch install fails mid boot.
I dual-boot with OSX (which I now rarely use) using REFIT on the MBR
and Legacy GRUB on the Arch partition itself (sda3).

When I try to boot the Arch partition, the following happens:
1. GRUB menu appears. I choose the kernel image to boot.
2. The first few normal kernel messages appear.
3. The screen is flooded by dmesg entries. This has never happened before.
    The messages seem to be normal; hardware detection messages, etc.
    Partway through, the appearance of new messages gets very slow.
4. The "waiting 10 seconds for device /dev/sda3" message appears.
    I've always seen this on every boot, and the device is always found.
5. 10 seconds passes and /dev/sda3 _isn't_ found.
6. I'm dropped to mkinitcpio's recovery shell.

Why would the kernel fail to find /dev/sda3 when both GRUB and the kernel
itself are ON sda3?

In trying to solve this I've done the following to no avail:
1. Downgrading the kernel (via manual mounting with live cd).
2. Reinstalling mkinitcpio, systemd, and the kernel.
3. Booting with root=/dev/disk/by-uuid/<uuid> instead of root=/dev/sda3
    in the kernel command line.
4. Booting with break=y in the kernel command line. This is supposed to halt
    the boot process for debugging after kernel modules are loaded. The halt
    itself occurs after all those laggy dmesg entries and I'm put into a
    mkinitcpio shell where I couldn't infer much. Resuming the boot then
    fails as written above.
5. Poking around in the recovery shell. There is a /dev directory but nothing
    resembling a hard drive in it. There also is no /dev/disk directory.
    Is this normal?
6. Praying to the gods of multiple religions.

I have (in theory) already completely switched over to systemd.
Could it be at fault? I've been at this for two days and by now could really
use a hand.

Please and thanks for anything you can think of.

Last edited by fosskers (2012-11-03 02:11:52)


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#2 2012-11-02 13:28:03

brain0
Developer
From: Aachen - Germany
Registered: 2005-01-03
Posts: 1,382

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

fosskers wrote:

3. The screen is flooded by dmesg entries. This has never happened before.
    The messages seem to be normal; hardware detection messages, etc.
    Partway through, the appearance of new messages gets very slow.

The loglevel of the Arch kernel is so that "normal" messages won't be shown. But without knowing the messages, all I can do is pray to a god of my choice that (s)he may give you wisdom.

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#3 2012-11-02 13:36:54

fosskers
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Registered: 2012-02-21
Posts: 167
Website

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

I can't really copy-paste the messages either...

If I `dmesg > foo` in the mkinitcpio shell then I can look at them all at my leisure, but is there any way I could get all of those out of there to show the world? USB sticks and manual mounting?


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#4 2012-11-02 14:52:27

brain0
Developer
From: Aachen - Germany
Registered: 2005-01-03
Posts: 1,382

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

You could always make a "screenshot" with your camera. Or, use pen and paper to write a few of them down. The important thing is to get a feeling of what we're dealing with here.

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#5 2012-11-02 14:58:42

lesto
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Registered: 2010-07-13
Posts: 115

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

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#6 2012-11-03 00:27:04

fosskers
Member
Registered: 2012-02-21
Posts: 167
Website

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

This isn't a duplicate.

Before, I was using an install disk from 2011 to try and fix things.
Just now, I just tried to boot with the 2012-11 install media... and guess what? It failed to boot in the exact same way. A splash of dmesg entries, then a failure to find the boot device. On an install disk.


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#7 2012-11-03 00:49:06

fosskers
Member
Registered: 2012-02-21
Posts: 167
Website

Re: [SOLVED]arch boot failing after upgrade to 3.6.4

The same install disk boots fine on my girlfriend's (newer) computer.

I tried removingn `pata` from the HOOKS field in mkinitcpio.conf as suggested in other threads, and while the ugly dmesg entries went away, it still fails to find /dev/sda3.

Last edited by fosskers (2012-11-03 00:49:42)


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