Arch Linux

amitavmohanty01

Member

Registered: 2013-01-13

Posts: 40

[Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

I keep getting the following message each time on boot.

Initramfs unpacking failed: Decoding failed

I am not sure how to fix it. Please advise.

Also, if the decoding fails then how does the system still work fine?

Last edited by amitavmohanty01 (2020-01-11 04:56:47)

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Trilby

Inspector Parrot

Registered: 2011-11-29

Posts: 30,330

Website

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Without complete logs no one could say exactly how/why the system still works.  But the solution should be simple enough - just rebuild the initramfs's.  Make sure your boot partition is properly mounted then `mkinitcpio -p linux` or replace 'linux' with any alternative kernel you are using.

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amitavmohanty01

Member

Registered: 2013-01-13

Posts: 40

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Please tell me what more logs I should provide. I am pasting a larger snippet below.

Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: bridge window [mem 0x00100000-0x000fffff 64bit pref] to [bus 04] add_size 200000 add_align 100000
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: bridge window [mem 0x00100000-0x000fffff] to [bus 04] add_size 200000 add_align 100000
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: BAR 14: assigned [mem 0xc3000000-0xc31fffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: BAR 15: assigned [mem 0xc3200000-0xc33fffff 64bit pref]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: BAR 13: assigned [io  0x2000-0x2fff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:01:00.0: PCI bridge to [bus 02]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1c.0: PCI bridge to [bus 01-02]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1c.3: PCI bridge to [bus 03]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1c.3:   bridge window [io  0xe000-0xefff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1c.3:   bridge window [mem 0xf7000000-0xf70fffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0: PCI bridge to [bus 04]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0:   bridge window [io  0x2000-0x2fff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0:   bridge window [mem 0xc3000000-0xc31fffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:1d.0:   bridge window [mem 0xc3200000-0xc33fffff 64bit pref]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:00: resource 4 [io  0x0000-0x0cf7 window]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:00: resource 5 [io  0x0d00-0xffff window]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:00: resource 6 [mem 0x000a0000-0x000bffff window]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:00: resource 7 [mem 0xc3000000-0xf7ffffff window]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:00: resource 8 [mem 0xfd000000-0xfe7fffff window]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:03: resource 0 [io  0xe000-0xefff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:03: resource 1 [mem 0xf7000000-0xf70fffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:04: resource 0 [io  0x2000-0x2fff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:04: resource 1 [mem 0xc3000000-0xc31fffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci_bus 0000:04: resource 2 [mem 0xc3200000-0xc33fffff 64bit pref]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: NET: Registered protocol family 2
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: tcp_listen_portaddr_hash hash table entries: 4096 (order: 4, 65536 bytes, linear)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: TCP established hash table entries: 65536 (order: 7, 524288 bytes, linear)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: TCP bind hash table entries: 65536 (order: 8, 1048576 bytes, linear)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: TCP: Hash tables configured (established 65536 bind 65536)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: UDP hash table entries: 4096 (order: 5, 131072 bytes, linear)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: UDP-Lite hash table entries: 4096 (order: 5, 131072 bytes, linear)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: NET: Registered protocol family 1
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: NET: Registered protocol family 44
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: pci 0000:00:02.0: Video device with shadowed ROM at [mem 0x000c0000-0x000dffff]
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: PCI: CLS 0 bytes, default 64
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Trying to unpack rootfs image as initramfs...
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Initramfs unpacking failed: Decoding failed
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: fbcon: Taking over console
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Freeing initrd memory: 15640K
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: PCI-DMA: Using software bounce buffering for IO (SWIOTLB)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: software IO TLB: mapped [mem 0xb18d5000-0xb58d5000] (64MB)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: check: Scanning for low memory corruption every 60 seconds
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Initialise system trusted keyrings
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Key type blacklist registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: workingset: timestamp_bits=41 max_order=21 bucket_order=0
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: zbud: loaded
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Key type asymmetric registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Asymmetric key parser 'x509' registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Block layer SCSI generic (bsg) driver version 0.4 loaded (major 245)
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: io scheduler mq-deadline registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: io scheduler kyber registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: io scheduler bfq registered
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: shpchp: Standard Hot Plug PCI Controller Driver version: 0.4
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: probing for efifb
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: Ignoring BGRT: unexpected or invalid BMP data
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: framebuffer at 0xe0000000, using 3072k, total 3072k
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: mode is 1024x768x32, linelength=4096, pages=1
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: scrolling: redraw
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: efifb: Truecolor: size=8:8:8:8, shift=24:16:8:0
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: Console: switching to colour frame buffer device 128x48
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: fb0: EFI VGA frame buffer device
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: intel_idle: MWAIT substates: 0x142120
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: intel_idle: v0.4.1 model 0x5E
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: intel_idle: lapic_timer_reliable_states 0xffffffff
Jan 04 14:49:11 clown.man.machine kernel: input: Sleep Button as /devices/LNXSYSTM:00/LNXSYBUS:00/PNP0C0E:00/input/input0

mkinitcpio -p linux-hardened

shows image was successfully generated but the decoding fails still.

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Head_on_a_Stick

Member

From: The Wirral

Registered: 2014-02-20

Posts: 8,269

Website

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Have you changed the compression method in /etc/mkinitcpio.conf?

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+sour … ug/1835660

^ One person in that report said that the error went away after they changed from lz4 to gzip and then back again, which sounds nonsensical but it may be worth a try. Arch uses gzip OOTB.

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amitavmohanty01

Member

Registered: 2013-01-13

Posts: 40

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Have you changed the compression method in /etc/mkinitcpio.conf?

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+sour … ug/1835660

^ One person in that report said that the error went away after they changed from lz4 to gzip and then back again, which sounds nonsensical but it may be worth a try. Arch uses gzip OOTB.

I switched to gzip from lz4 and there is decoding problem any more.

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Quis custodiet ipsos custodes.

Head_on_a_Stick

Member

From: The Wirral

Registered: 2014-02-20

Posts: 8,269

Website

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

How strange

Anyway, please mark the thread [SOLVED] for the benefit of others.

(I presume you mean that there isn't a decoding problem any more, post back if I'm wrong.)

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Para todos todo, para nosotros nada

developsite

Member

Registered: 2024-11-10

Posts: 1

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Have you changed the compression method in /etc/mkinitcpio.conf?

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+sour … ug/1835660

^ One person in that report said that the error went away after they changed from lz4 to gzip and then back again, which sounds nonsensical but it may be worth a try. Arch uses gzip OOTB.

I switched to gzip from lz4 and there is decoding problem any more.

In my case the compression is ZSTD and I decided to keep it because I have problems with initramfs

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 23,174

Re: [Solved] Initramfs decoding failure

Please don't necrobump a 4 year old solved thread with the information that you're using the current defaults.