Announcement

**Qqmike** · Oct 30, 2009, 07:29 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

Sounds like the old GRUB is still controlling the booting.
I take it that the old GRUB was installed to the MBR of the Windows drive? And from its boot menu, you could choose either Windows or Kubuntu 9.04?

The Grub loading 1.5 ...
indicates that the old stage_1.5 of GRUB Legacy is loading and it is trying to find a boot menu (a /boot/grub/menu.lst). Sounds like the new GRUB 2 did not get installed or only got installed to the boot sector of the new Kubuntu 9.10 (and not to any MBR). So, the old GRUB is trying to boot something that doesn't exits (a menu.lst) or something it can't communicate with (the new GRUB 2 installed to the boot sector of the new 9.10 installation).

Whatever.

You should try to reinstall GRUB 2, using the GRUB 2 installation in the new 9.10 and installing to SOME MBR (either Windows HD or the Kubuntu HD -- I'll leave that choice to you since you know your system better and what you want to happen!).

You may have to use SGD to boot into your 9.10 to do this work at Konsole, or use a live CD to do the work. So you want to "re-install GRUB 2."

See:

GRUB 2 A Guide for Users
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3106368.0

EDIT, for info only:
Error 15: File Not Found => the old GRUB probably can't find its /boot/grub/menu.lst.

**tomcloyd** · Oct 30, 2009, 07:57 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

Thanks for the quick, helpful response. You were just the guy I was hoping to hear from.

I've been looking for the menu.lst file, and cannot find one (my own personal Error 15? heh heh).

I really didn't think there was any grub on the sda HD. Puzzling.

Going to go try the Grub 2 reinstall thing.

Thanks for the help!

**tomcloyd** · Oct 30, 2009, 08:42 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

Didn't succeed.

Using "Re-installing GRUB 2 using Live CD: Key Rescue Method" in your tutorial GRUB 2: A Guide for Users - I encountered a problem I cannot respond to since I don't understand it. Here's the console trace - note that I initially left out a step, but went back and fixed it, but came to the same end...

Code:

$ sudo fdisk -lu

Disk /dev/sda: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders, total 156301488 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x9c879c87

  Device Boot   Start     End   Blocks  Id System
/dev/sda1  *     63  42202754  21101346  7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2    42202755  156296384  57046815  83 Linux

Disk /dev/sdb: 160.0 GB, 160041885696 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 19457 cylinders, total 312581808 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x00003ada

  Device Boot   Start     End   Blocks  Id System
/dev/sdb1  *     63  19422584   9711261  82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sdb2    19422585  312576704  146577060  5 Extended
/dev/sdb5    19422648  48725144  14651248+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb6    48725208  312576704  131925748+ 83 Linux
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo mkdir /media/sdb5
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo mount /dev/sdb5 /media/sdb5
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo mkdir /media/dev
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo grub-install --root-directory=/media/sdb5 /dev/sdb5
grub-setup: warn: Attempting to install GRUB to a partition instead of the MBR. This is a BAD idea.
grub-setup: warn: Embedding is not possible. GRUB can only be installed in this setup by using blocklists. However, blocklists are UNRELIABLE and its use is discouraged.
grub-setup: error: Cannot read `/grub/core.img' correctly
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo mount --bind /dev /media/dev
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo grub-install --root-directory=/media/sdb5 /dev/sdb5
grub-setup: warn: Attempting to install GRUB to a partition instead of the MBR. This is a BAD idea.
grub-setup: warn: Embedding is not possible. GRUB can only be installed in this setup by using blocklists. However, blocklists are UNRELIABLE and its use is discouraged.
grub-setup: error: Cannot read `/grub/core.img' correctly
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$

All suggestions welcome...!

**Qqmike** · Oct 30, 2009, 09:43 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

First, those Warnings appear to be normal--par for the course, and most people ignore them. Chances are that you DID succeed in installing Grub 2 to the boot sector of partition sdb5.

OK, so ... but ... even if that's true, is that what you want? No harm done to have GRUB 2 there. But GRUB (or some bootloader) must be installed to some MBR (of some HDD) and then it must chainload to sdb5 (where you put the GRUB 2).

For example, let's say BIOS is set to boot from the Windows drive, sda. Then you could install GRUB 2 to the MBR of sda. GRUB 2 would then boot both Windows (on sda) and Kubuntu (on sdb). Some people, instead, use the Windows bootloader (NTLDR) in sda to boot GRUB in sdb. That seems more complicated to me, but not to those who do it.

Or, you could install GRUB 2 to the MBR of sdb and set BIOS to boot from sdb, then GRUB would boot Windows on sda and Windows would be on a non-first hard drive (which is OK, too).

Example: to install GRUB 2 from sdb5 to the MBR of sda, it would be:
sudo grub-install --root-directory=/media/sdb5 /dev/sda
Or, to the MBR of sdb, it would be:
sudo grub-install --root-directory=/media/sdb5 /dev/sdb

**Qqmike** · Oct 30, 2009, 09:49 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

"I really didn't think there was any grub on the sda HD. Puzzling.
Going to go try the Grub 2 reinstall thing."

That's why I suspect that GRUB 2 was NOT installed to any MBR anywhere. The old GRUB is still in the controlling MBR. GRUB 2 may have been put in the other non-controlling MBR or to some boot sector of some partition. In other words, the only remnant of the old GRUB Legacy would be in that controlling MBR; it's other files, including menu.lst, are gone, wiped out, since you installed a new OS and a new GRUB 2. So, GRUB Legacy is lost, left with loose ends, installed to that MBR but has nothing valid to point at.

**tomcloyd** · Oct 30, 2009, 10:30 AM

Re: fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

Well, in spite of what you (hopefully) say about my likely having installed grub 2, when I boot I get the same error. So, it makes sense to say there's no grub2 being found where it's being looked for - which should be sbb - my USB HD. My BIOS is set to look there. It appears to be failing there and defaulting to the MBR of sba, where I'd expect there to be little or nothing.

So, in your Grub 2 tutorial, Appendix section "Installing Kubuntu--GRUB 2 placement", I read, to my amazement, "GRUB 2 is standard on Kubuntu starting with 9.10. During its installation from the Live CD, you can specify if you want GRUB 2installed, and if so, where to put it."

So, it's standard, except you don't get it unless you ask for it, in my case. That has to be the problem. I didn't ask for it. I didn't know I needed to. (misc. curses)

How would I have know this? I didn't even know about that "Advanced" button until I read about it in your superb tutorial. I really REALLY think the installation interface needs to have information about this, given the commonness of heterogenious hardware setups these days. Defaulting to using an existing broken out of date grub is poor policy.

So...breaking news...while writing this I did my fourth 9.10 install attempt in 12 hours, and this time used that Advanced button...and I now have a functioning 9.10 interface on my screen.

So, my profound thanks to you for all the hand holding. Couldn't have got here without it.

t.

**Qqmike** · Oct 30, 2009, 10:48 AM

Re: <SOLVED> fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

"Well, in spite of what you (hopefully) say about my likely having installed grub 2, when I boot I get the same error."
Yeah, but I'm still right! Right, because you have no way of testing or using that GRUB 2 that got installed to sdb5. I'm sure it's there and can be used for chainloading.

"So, it makes sense to say there's no grub2 being found where it's being looked for - which should be sbb - my USB HD. My BIOS is set to look there. It appears to be failing there and defaulting to the MBR of sba, where I'd expect there to be little or nothing."

OK, now here's the clincher. Again WHERE did you want that GRUB 2 to go? I now see that you wanted it to go into the MBR of sdb, NOT necessarily into the boot sector (sector 1) of partition sdb5 -- which is where your commands put it (into sdb5).

This would have put GRUB 2 into the MBR of sdb5 and set everything up correctly for booting any and all OSs (see my next to last reply above):
sudo grub-install --root-directory=/media/sdb5 /dev/sdb
(where the notation sdb indicate the MBR of sdb (not any partition of sdb))

Anyway, glad you got it using the Advanced button option!

If you want to test my theory of the errors, boot into you new Kubuntu, install your GRUB 2 to that partition:
sudo grub-install /dev/sdb5
(which will not harm anything else or interfere with anything else you've done),
Then test to see if it is actually there (in boot sector of sdb5) by trying to chainload into it:

Reboot,
at the boot menu hit the "c" key.
Then type:
grub>chainloader (hdx,y)+1
grub>boot

where (hdx,y) is your sdb5 Kubuntu partition.
At the grub> prompt, you can see your drives using ls:
grub>ls
and then see which (hdx,y) corresponds to sdb5.

sdb5 = (hd0,5)
OR,
sdb5 = (hd1,5)

If BIOS is set to boot from sdb, then sdb5 = (hd0,5), so it would be
grub>chainloader (hd0,5)+1
grub>boot

Announcement

<SOLVED> fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

<SOLVED> fresh install of 9.10 > grub 1.5 ?? error 15 ??

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment