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#1 2013-03-02 22:53:47

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

[Solved] system not bootable after update

Hello all,

I just ran pacman -Syyu, and now when I boot my system I get a message saying "Boot device not found."

I am in kind of a panic right now, I have work on this machine that needs to be completed, and unfortunately, the only place this work exists is on this laptop.

does anyone know if the update could have caused this?  if so, anyway to get Arch back without a full install?

I can't even use my home system, it crapped out on me last night, I am on a friends computer now.

any help is GREATLY appreciated.

--nixIT

EDIT:  Partedmagic is da bomb!

Last edited by nixIT (2013-03-04 15:48:03)


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#2 2013-03-02 22:56:47

WonderWoofy
Member
From: Los Gatos, CA
Registered: 2012-05-19
Posts: 8,414

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

Okay, so far we have this info: 1) you updated 2)you cannot boot. Now does that seem like enough info to solve this problem to you?

I understand you are in a panic... take a deep breath, get a live media whatever, start to check things out.

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#3 2013-03-02 23:02:13

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

Thanx for the quick reply,

Im trying to dig out a live media now.  Though I'll be honest, haven't had much sleep b/c of work, and I don't know where to begin looking for something wrong.

nixIT's rule of thumb, when work is on the line, NEVER update your system beforehand.  sad'

--nixIT

Last edited by nixIT (2013-03-02 23:02:29)


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#4 2013-03-02 23:17:31

WonderWoofy
Member
From: Los Gatos, CA
Registered: 2012-05-19
Posts: 8,414

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

Sounds like you didn't follow your rule of thumb. Does your setup by chance use LVM2?

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#5 2013-03-02 23:27:11

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

That's my new rule of thumb.  smile

I don't think my setup uses LVM2, I did see the notice on the homepage about that.  I am now booted with my trusty linuxMint 14 live media.  How can I tell if it uses LVM2?

--nixIT


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#6 2013-03-02 23:28:41

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

ugg, I just tried to mount my HD, and I get a message "Can't mount location".

I am so hosed.


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#7 2013-03-02 23:31:28

WonderWoofy
Member
From: Los Gatos, CA
Registered: 2012-05-19
Posts: 8,414

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

If you are not using an arch distrolet and you didn't set up lvm2 or know what it is, I am going to have to venture that you are not using it. It is not something that is automatically set up for you.


So you need to gather more info about your system, what was updated, what errors out on boot, etc. Otherwise I (nor anyone else) can really help you here. 

Hopefully you are at least running systemd, yeah?

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#8 2013-03-02 23:34:02

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

my system was running systemd, installed Arch on it last week, so it's been running for over a week with no issues.

I can't get into the system, so I don't know what was updated.  All I get upon boot is the message above, bascially telling me it can't find a system disk.

how can I gather more info on my system if I can't gain access to it.  Heck, I'm up for a re-install, I just need to get 10 files off that drive.

uggg. I'm so hosed.  the DISKS tool in linux mint is telling me the drive is 1 big partition and unrecognized.
sad

Last edited by nixIT (2013-03-02 23:36:31)


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#9 2013-03-03 00:03:33

WonderWoofy
Member
From: Los Gatos, CA
Registered: 2012-05-19
Posts: 8,414

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

You need to use chroot (or to get crap off the drive, simply.mounting it would be enough).

To get info from your logs you need to use journalctl... though in this case logsa are not going to help if nothing is being written (can't find the disk to write to).

So I keep asking for more info, and this seems to not be getting through. How do you booot? Uefi or BIOS? Grub syslinux gummiboot/efistub? More info man!

Also if it is not able to find your rroot device, check to make sure your entries are correct in your bootloader and fstab (ie. UUID, /dev/sdX, LABEL, PARTUUID, etc)

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#10 2013-03-03 00:19:34

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

WonderWoofy,

I appreciate your help immensely.  Thank you.  As for my laptop, I was using grub, I think it was grub2, can't be sure.  I am in good old fashion BIOS (UEFI farked up my home desktop yesterday).  I don't know info to give you, if you can ask for specifics I can relay them.  I'm sorry for not providing alot upfront, I am having a panic attack because of having 2 systems crash on my in a day, and I have an IT audit due on monday.

When I'm in my live CD, I can't even mount the HD of the laptop.  does that mean the HD is dead?

at this point, I just need to get 10 files off this drive, a reinstall after that is fine with me, my main goal, and to save me a solid week worth of work, is to get those audit documents off.


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#11 2013-03-03 01:30:40

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

WonderWoofy wrote:

You need to use chroot (or to get crap off the drive, simply.mounting it would be enough).

To get info from your logs you need to use journalctl... though in this case logsa are not going to help if nothing is being written (can't find the disk to write to).

So I keep asking for more info, and this seems to not be getting through. How do you booot? Uefi or BIOS? Grub syslinux gummiboot/efistub? More info man!

Also if it is not able to find your rroot device, check to make sure your entries are correct in your bootloader and fstab (ie. UUID, /dev/sdX, LABEL, PARTUUID, etc)

does this help:

sudo mount /dev/sda /mnt/kp
mount: wrong fs type, bad option, bad superblock on /dev/sda,
       missing codepage or helper program, or other error
       In some cases useful info is found in syslog - try
       dmesg | tail or so
[cinnarch@Cinnarch mnt]$ dmesg | tail
[ 1229.027847] EXT4-fs (sda): VFS: Can't find ext4 filesystem
[ 1229.028550] XFS (sda): bad magic number
[ 1229.028552] XFS (sda): SB validate failed
[ 1778.434022] ISOFS: Unable to identify CD-ROM format.
[ 1778.434316] SQUASHFS error: Can't find a SQUASHFS superblock on sda
[ 1778.434447] EXT4-fs (sda): VFS: Can't find ext4 filesystem
[ 1778.434618] EXT4-fs (sda): VFS: Can't find ext4 filesystem
[ 1778.434785] EXT4-fs (sda): VFS: Can't find ext4 filesystem
[ 1778.435438] XFS (sda): bad magic number
[ 1778.435440] XFS (sda): SB validate failed
[cinnarch@Cinnarch mnt]$ ^C
[cinnarch@Cinnarch mnt]$ sudo fsck.ext4 -vy /dev/sda
e2fsck 1.42.6 (21-Sep-2012)
ext2fs_open2: Bad magic number in super-block
fsck.ext4: Superblock invalid, trying backup blocks...
fsck.ext4: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/sda

The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
    e2fsck -b 8193 <device>

[cinnarch@Cinnarch mnt]$ sudo fsck.ext2 -vy /dev/sda
e2fsck 1.42.6 (21-Sep-2012)
ext2fs_open2: Bad magic number in super-block
fsck.ext2: Superblock invalid, trying backup blocks...
fsck.ext2: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/sda

The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
    e2fsck -b 8193 <device>


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#12 2013-03-03 01:41:02

nagaseiori
Member
Registered: 2012-09-22
Posts: 72

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

You are trying to mount the entire block device, but you need to mount the partition (/dev/sda1, /dev/sda2, etc.). Post the output of

fdisk -l

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#13 2013-03-03 01:44:22

thesystematic
Member
Registered: 2013-02-08
Posts: 44

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

Shouldn't it be /dev/sdax (/dev/sda1)? Can you post output of lsblk?

Edit: what @nagaseiori said

Last edited by thesystematic (2013-03-03 01:45:05)

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#14 2013-03-03 01:46:24

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

nagaseiori wrote:

You are trying to mount the entire block device, but you need to mount the partition (/dev/sda1, /dev/sda2, etc.). Post the output of

fdisk -l

thanks for the reply.

here you go.


sudo fdisk -l

Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes, 976773168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 4096 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 4096 bytes / 4096 bytes


Disk /dev/mapper/arch_root-image: 2947 MB, 2947547136 bytes, 5756928 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes


Disk /dev/mapper/arch_usr-lib-modules: 115 MB, 115343360 bytes, 225280 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes


Disk /dev/mapper/arch_usr-share: 2389 MB, 2389704704 bytes, 4667392 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes

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#15 2013-03-03 01:47:58

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

thesystematic wrote:

Shouldn't it be /dev/sdax (/dev/sda1)? Can you post output of lsblk?

Edit: what @nagaseiori said

it should be, but I no longer see it.

lsblk
NAME  MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda     8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 
sr0    11:0    1   699M  0 rom  /run/archiso/bootmnt
loop0   7:0    0 358.2M  1 loop /run/archiso/sfs/root-image
loop1   7:1    0   2.8G  1 loop 
└─arch_root-image (dm-0)
      254:0    0   2.8G  0 dm   /
loop2   7:2    0   2.8G  0 loop 
└─arch_root-image (dm-0)
      254:0    0   2.8G  0 dm   /
loop3   7:3    0  38.6M  1 loop /run/archiso/sfs/usr-lib-modules
loop4   7:4    0   110M  1 loop 
└─arch_usr-lib-modules (dm-1)
      254:1    0   110M  0 dm   /usr/lib/modules
loop5   7:5    0   110M  0 loop 
└─arch_usr-lib-modules (dm-1)
      254:1    0   110M  0 dm   /usr/lib/modules
loop6   7:6    0 247.5M  1 loop /run/archiso/sfs/usr-share
loop7   7:7    0   2.2G  1 loop 
└─arch_usr-share (dm-2)
      254:2    0   2.2G  0 dm   /usr/share
loop8   7:8    0   2.2G  0 loop 
└─arch_usr-share (dm-2)
      254:2    0   2.2G  0 dm   /usr/share

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#16 2013-03-03 03:51:04

thesystematic
Member
Registered: 2013-02-08
Posts: 44

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

How was it partioned previously? It looks like the partition table may have been corrupted/disappeared

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#17 2013-03-03 10:23:44

blackout23
Member
Registered: 2011-11-16
Posts: 781

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

Did you use gdisk or fdsik to partition?

http://geekyprojects.com/storage/how-to … le-or-mbr/

Have not used this before but seems to be able to find lost partition structure.

EDIT: I see you are using CinnArch if I'm not mistaken. We generally don't give support for any Arch Spinoffs, because we don't know what kind of configurations these distros do to the system and the people who install them often also don't know how everything was setup, which makes it very hard to offer any help. Some people might think that Arch Linux users just want to be elitist and hate everything that tries to be userfriendly but it's simply about knowing your system and being in control. Everything that is not Arch Linux doesn't offer that and has obvious drawbacks.

Anyway I hope we can help you get your files back. It definitely looks like your partition table was corrupted.

Last edited by blackout23 (2013-03-03 13:07:17)

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#18 2013-03-03 11:16:18

eDio
Member
From: Ukraine, Kyiv
Registered: 2008-12-02
Posts: 422

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

I'm also experiencing the issue.
My system can't mount efi partition on boot. Attempt to mount it by hand in recovery shell fails due to absent module (mount says, unknown fs type vfat).
I'm currently trying to resolve. Will post about any progress here.

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#19 2013-03-03 12:23:08

eDio
Member
From: Ukraine, Kyiv
Registered: 2008-12-02
Posts: 422

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

In my case the issue was caused by kernel update. I forgot to comment out testing repository and kernel got updated to 3.8.1. Resolved by downgrading.

nixIT
I suspect, this is not the case for you. But just in case, check your kernel version with

$ uname -a

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#20 2013-03-03 14:35:21

ayr0
Member
Registered: 2010-08-12
Posts: 94

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

if you want to try restoring the partition table, I've found the testdisk and photorec utilities invaluable.  I've used them before when I had a time deadline and I absolutely had to get data off the machine.

http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk
"TestDisk is powerful free data recovery software! It was primarily designed to help recover lost partitions and/or make non-booting disks bootable again when these symptoms are caused by faulty software, certain types of viruses or human error (such as accidentally deleting a Partition Table). Partition table recovery using TestDisk is really easy."

"-Copy files from deleted FAT, exFAT, NTFS and ext2/ext3/ext4 partitions."

Last edited by ayr0 (2013-03-03 14:39:11)

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#21 2013-03-03 15:02:20

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

thanx for all the feedback and support.

@Blackout23, the laptop had Arch installed.  Was only using cinnarch as the live media to see if I could recover the files.

@eDio,  I can't boot the system at all, so there is no way for me to run uname -a from the installed system.

@Ayr0,  A friend of mine just told me about testdisk, so I pulled out my partedmagic media (had a CD burned already), and was able to successfully save off the files I needed to thumb drive.  I'm going through the documentation now to see how I can use it to repair the MBR.

Thanx for all the help and support, plus nothing like a Xanax and a good nights sleep to help calm some stress.

--nixIT


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#22 2013-03-03 15:11:33

blackout23
Member
Registered: 2011-11-16
Posts: 781

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

So you got your files? Great. smile

I wonder how you got them since the partition you saved them on is no longer  in the partition table. I thought you need to repair the MBR first in order to successfully access your partition and therefore your files.

Would be good if you could report back if you ever find out how your MBR got corrupted.

Last edited by blackout23 (2013-03-03 15:12:55)

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#23 2013-03-03 15:16:38

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

the mount devices app in parted magic was able to temporarily mount the main partition and from there, I put in my USB flash drive, and just copied the files from the temp partition to the thumb drive, then moved those to wifes laptop and sent myself 2 emails with the files so I have them.

Im running testdisk now to see if it finds the 2 partitions.  So far it found the root partition (sda1) and it's saying that the second partition is deleted.  from within testdisk, when I change the second partition from deleted to either primary or logical, testdisk tells me the structure is bad.  I am currently trying to figure out how to fix it.

--nixIT


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#24 2013-03-03 15:26:01

blackout23
Member
Registered: 2011-11-16
Posts: 781

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

You might want to think about a backup solution for your personal documents in the future in case this happens again. Dropbox is of course simply if you trust them with your files.

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#25 2013-03-03 15:28:09

nixIT
Member
Registered: 2010-01-13
Posts: 528

Re: [Solved] system not bootable after update

oh I have backups of my files.  Just that this one file is a work document, and I had a backup of it, but it wasn't recent.  I needed the recent file to save me from redo-ing a weeks worth of work that is due tomorrow.


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