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#1 2010-02-05 05:14:10

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Hello,

I installed Arch earlier, but once I get to the stage where I select which partition to install GRUB, I get an error that it cannot be installed and that I should look at /dev/tty7. I'm not sure how to look in there, for the installation failed and I cannot boot into Arch. I can, however, boot into a non-graphical GRUB where I have tried to "find /boot/grub/stage1", but it returns that the file cannot be found.

Any ideas on how to get GRUB working so I can get into Arch? :]

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#2 2010-02-05 14:15:25

Lexion
Member
Registered: 2008-03-23
Posts: 510

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

how did you setup the partition map? did you use cfdisk?

Macs don't use a bootloader, they use openEFI, and openEFI only uses the GPT partition table. Cfdisk only writes to the mbd partition table, so you have to use parted. Once you use parted, grub should install fine, but if it doesn't, get rEFIt (a program that makes openEFI accessable and gives you a nice bootscreen). Then you can get into the openEFI shell and sync the MBD and GPT partition tables so that grub works.


urxvtc / wmii / zsh / configs / onebluecat.net
Arch will not hold your hand

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#3 2010-02-05 15:15:59

stryder
Member
Registered: 2009-02-28
Posts: 500

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

It is most likely you are using GPT. I had the same problem and it is because legacy grub cannot interact with GPT.

If your intention is to dual boot osx and archlinux I think you should use boot camp to partition the space you need for archlinux. rEFIt is the opensource version of it, I think. This way grub will work. Check out the wiki: http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Macbook.

To go to tty7 press ctrl-alt-F7 (you are at ctrl-alt-F1).

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#4 2010-02-05 16:59:53

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

@Lexion I used GParted to partition, then I used whichever partition program comes built into the Arch installation. I'm also using rEFIt, but without GRUB, the Arch partition will say "Missing Operating System." I have looked this up and found that I also need GRUB.

@stryder I'll double check the wiki, but I believe I have done exactly what it has told me to do. Also, whenever I ctrl-alt-F7, it goes into command line, but it brings up some kind of error and I cannot type; I'm forced to manually shut down the computer.


Thanks!

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#5 2010-02-05 20:36:05

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Here's your solution: Use the 2008.06 iso.

Last edited by DeeCodeUh (2010-02-05 20:38:02)

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#6 2010-02-05 20:48:21

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Can you elaborate why I should? If I do, should I update after I do?

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#7 2010-02-05 21:04:15

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Because I installed Arch on my Girlfriend's Macbook a month ago. Strangely enough, that was the last iso that worked.
So install using that CD, update, move all of the .pacnew files to where they should be, and you'll be good as new.
It's a good thing Arch is rolling release.

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#8 2010-02-05 21:09:16

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Okay thanks. I'll try it out!

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#9 2010-02-05 22:20:31

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

It went well until I got to the Install Bootloader section. Then with either GRUB or LILO it said the installation couldn't be complete and asked me if GRUB/LILO were installed. Wasn't that the point of the Install Bootloader section... haha

Last edited by rodney3 (2010-02-05 22:23:15)

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#10 2010-02-05 22:34:45

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Did you have the grub package selected during package selection?

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#11 2010-02-06 00:14:38

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Grub actually isn't in the package list unless it's listed as something other than 'grub'. LILO is, but whenever I try to install the packages, I get an error:

warning: couldn't create package cache, using /tmp instead
:: Retrieving packages from core...
error: fail to commit transaction (unexpected error)
error: error downloading 'gcc-libs-4.3.1-1-x86_64.pkg.tar.gz':
warning: failed to retrieve some files from core
errors occured, no packages upgraded
Package installation FAILED

Also, I get the GCC error even when GCC isn't selected.

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#12 2010-02-06 06:07:25

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Is this a net install CD?
What does ifconfig say? You don't need to tell me exactly what it says, just does it have a network device running?
Can you ping google.com?

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#13 2010-02-06 20:08:56

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

It's not the net install, it's the core install. And I'm not sure where I can actually enter commands. The only spot where I actually type is on startup with GRUB.

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#14 2010-02-06 20:15:01

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

It sounds like the image you downloaded is corrupted.
Get the md5sum of the iso you downloaded and check it with this: http://goo.gl/brS0

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#15 2010-02-06 20:23:32

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Nope, I just checked and it's totally fine. Hmm.

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#16 2010-02-06 22:29:13

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Okay, a few things. One, I found that to get to the CLI, I had to hit Alt-F7 rather than Ctrl-Alt-F7. I tried to cat TTY7, but it didn't do anything. Also, when I fdisk -l, it doesn't show all of my partitions; it only shows sda1 through sda4. Any ideas why?

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#17 2010-02-07 00:57:57

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Unless you have an extended partition with more partitions inside of it, a hard drive can only support 4 partitions.

So is this what you're saying?
You ran the 2008.06 boot cd, booted up until you logged in as root, ran /arch/setup, went through each numbered process in order, and when you got to the "install packages" stage, it gave you an error saying that it failed to retrieve packages?

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#18 2010-02-07 01:11:20

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

That is correct. And it only does this with the 2008.06 cd. The latest stable release yields no problems in that area, but still problems installing GRUB.

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#19 2010-02-07 01:36:22

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

hm, I don't know what to say. That image has always worked well for me.

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#20 2010-02-07 01:57:22

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Okay so now on startup, when I root in GRUB, I actually get something! But I'm not sure what to type in with kernel. Any help? I tried to do:

kernel /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda3

but it gives me an Error 15: File Not Found

Last edited by rodney3 (2010-02-07 02:07:43)

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#21 2010-02-07 03:08:01

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Maybe you're missing ro on the end of the line?
haha, I don't know enough about grub. I don't even know what "ro" does.

# (0) Arch Linux
title  Arch Linux
root   (hd1,0)
kernel /vmlinuz26 root=/dev/disk/by-uuid/33d93913-a5a7-469e-a148-1ffceb5cdd8f ro
initrd /kernel26.img

I hope this helps.

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#22 2010-02-07 03:09:18

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Okay, so apparently ro stands for read only.
I could have guessed that.

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#23 2010-02-07 03:24:41

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

That helped out a lot, and I checked out my menu.lst by using an old live-cd of another distro, so I got it booting, but 2 seconds after it starts booting, I get a kernel panic. Gah!

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#24 2010-02-07 03:51:15

DeeCodeUh
Member
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: 2007-11-27
Posts: 176

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

Oh man, the problems just never stop, do they? lol

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#25 2010-02-07 04:09:24

rodney3
Member
Registered: 2010-02-05
Posts: 13

Re: GRUB install fails on MacBook during Arch installation

haha yeah I think I'm going to reinstall Fedora until I get a new laptop (which will be a PC). This thread wasn't the beginning of the problems, either! Anyway, I hate to give up on something like this, but thanks for all of your help!

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