Deleted Bootmgr

[Remmelt]

Hi,

I had Kubuntu 9.1 running. I wanted a dual boot with Windows 7. In this process I accidentally removed the bootmgr.
I have two harddrives (SATA). It's booting from the smallest drive (this had (befor an earlier crash Windows data on it (NTFS formatted). The system is on the biggest drive (750 GB formatted in a Linux way). If I start up now and with the Windows 7-CD in the CD-rom it is very slow and the installation hangs showin the message Starting setup (something similar). If I try the repair option from the Windows 7 CD it does not work. Booting with the Kubuntu CD does not work either.
I used a Vista installation disk and discoverd that my PC does not recognize my above mentioned hard drives !

What I had was Kubuntu running. What I want is Windows 7 as the primary OS and Kubuntu (or probably Ubuntu) as a second possibilty.

I hope I am clear enough to get some workeable answers !!

Thanks in advance !!

Remmelt

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

"I hope I am clear enough to get some workeable answers !!"

Well, no, but it doesn't matter, you did a pretty good try, though.
You may have several issues, very hard to sort them out without actually being there at your PC.

If you had 9.10 installed and wanted to install 7, this would guide you through the safe way, step by step:
Vista *** The definitive dual-booting guide: Linux, Vista, 7, and XP step-by-step
http://apcmag.com/dualboot
(pick your case from their extensive menu of configurations)

If you are dual booting on two hard drives, and if you install GRUB 2 (the bootloader for 9.10) to the drive that is NOT set to boot first in your BIOS, there is a known bug that could delay the booting:
Current grub-pc takes several minutes to show menu
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+s...b2/+bug/420933

Usually, in these cases, it is sufficient to simply re-install GRUB 2.
You can do that from live Kubuntu CD or from inside your new Kubuntu (if you can't boot into your new Kubuntu, you can use Super Grub Disk to boot into it, then re-install GRUB 2):
GRUB 2 A Guide for Users
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3106368.0
Super Grub Disk, new site: http://www.supergrubdisk.org/

If you were to start from scratch, you should first use GParted Live CD to partition your drive(s), then run the Kubuntu installer and the 7 installer; it is always best to install Windows FIRST (but see the apcmag link I gave you above):
GParted (Live CD, USB, HD)
http://gparted.sourceforge.net/livecd.php
New Manual. New man page. See Documentation:
http://gparted.sourceforge.net/documentation.php

If you install 7 AFTER Kubuntu and on a non-first hard drive, you may have to run
sudo update-grub
to generate a new, correct boot menu (called /boot/grub/grub.cfg in GRUB 2, in your Kubuntu OS).
GRUB 2 should be able to take care of your 7 without issues, but just in case, you may have to fix things.


This is not much help to you. It basically says to start from scratch reading and try to sort out what's going on, but these links are important.

These statements, in particular, are perplexing issues:
"If I try the repair option from the Windows 7 CD it does not work. Booting with the Kubuntu CD does not work either. I used a Vista installation disk and discovered that my PC does not recognize my above mentioned hard drives !"

[Teunis]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

The Supergrub disk has an option to recreate the bootmanager for Windows and Linux on the disk of your choice.

And it has options to boot any installed Widows or Linux OS regardless of the bootmanager.

[Remmelt]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Hi,

Has supergrub been updated since last year november ? I have that version and that one has not those options.

I am able to install Ubuntu 8.04 !! stange, Kubuntu 9,1 won't work.

Thanks sofar,

Remmelt

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Yes SGD has been updated, but your should do it also.
As for 8.04, I'm happily using Kubuntu 8.04.3 (after getting its updates) and it's a good choice for an OS to use.

[????]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Which version of grub does super grub install?

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Btw, you might try to get a clearer picture of your setup (and for us, too), if you can boot into your Ubuntu or Kubuntu or use a Live K/Ubuntu CD,
at Konsole
sudo fdisk -lu
and copy the results here, telling what OS is where, and what drive your BIOS is set to boot from.

[Remmelt]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Hi,

This is output from sudo fdisk -lu

remmelt@remmelt-desktop:~$ sudo fdisk -lu
[sudo] password for remmelt:

Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 60801 cylinders, total 976773168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x4effcce4

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 2048 976771071 488384512 7 HPFS/NTFS

Disk /dev/sdb: 750.1 GB, 750156374016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 91201 cylinders, total 1465149168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000ea936

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 63 1446910289 723455113+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb2 1446910290 1465144064 9116887+ 5 Extended
/dev/sdb5 1446910353 1465144064 9116856 82 Linux swap / Solaris

Disk /dev/sdc: 2021 MB, 2021654528 bytes
63 heads, 62 sectors/track, 1010 cylinders, total 3948544 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xb0bcd68e

This doesn't look like a partition table
Probably you selected the wrong device.

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 ? 3223366781 3470046704 123339962 78 Unknown
Partition 1 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(518, 102, 15) logical=(825234, 44, 50)
Partition 1 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(743, 0, 62) logical=(888388, 51, 15)
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdc2 ? 432871117 1208554935 387841909+ 10 OPUS
Partition 2 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(205, 7, 0) logical=(110822, 6, 14)
Partition 2 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(920, 235, 50) logical=(309409, 54, 34)
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdc3 ? 1869562563 3788792630 959615034 8b Unknown
Partition 3 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(260, 125, 54) logical=(478638, 40, 56)
Partition 3 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(893, 46, 60) logical=(969992, 62, 35)
Partition 3 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdc4 ? 698875904 707198975 4161536 a OS/2 Boot Manager
Partition 4 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(269, 111, 50) logical=(178923, 43, 1)
Partition 4 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(0, 0, 0) logical=(181054, 33, 6)
Partition 4 does not end on cylinder boundary.

Partition table entries are not in disk order
remmelt@remmelt-desktop:~$

-------------

Remmelt

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Off hand, looks like Windows is on the hard drive that is set to boot first in BIOS, namely sda1. If so, good.
Looks like Kubuntu is on sdb1. If so, good.
Looks like you have a 2 GB flash drive plugged in that has a bunch of weirded-out stuff on it (including a boot manager? -> OS/2 Boot Manager). If so, bad.
I'd start by unplugging that flash drive before I did anything.

[Remmelt]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Hi,

What about formatting the drive from which my PC boots ? It is a Windows thing but am have no windows installed (the files there (the boot stuff) are probably relics from a previous Window OS.

Remmelt

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Yeah, you can do that. Also remove that very strange flash drive (do you recognize any of that stuff on it?). Also, the flash drive seems to have some strange MBR/partition table issues. To format the hard drive, I would use GParted Live CD.


Seems you need a plan Lay out what you want the finished result to be.
Best if Windows goes on the first drive, but that's up to you. With GRUB 2, it shouldn't matter as it runs os-prober and uses devicemap automatically and should locate your Windows no matter where it is and make a proper boot menu entry for it.

[tawee2009]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

This is output from sudo fdisk -lu

show me the content of /boot/grub/menu.lst or /boot/grub/grub.cfg

[Remmelt]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Hi,

My plan is this:
Have Windows on the largest 750 GB drive (the sdb drive).
Have Kubuntu and maybe also Ubuntu (wanna play with them ) on the second drive (the current sda drive). I want to partition it with a Linux patition (for (K)Ubuntu) and a Windows partition for backup stuff. The Linux partiton about 50 GB and the Windows 500 - 50 = 450 GB on sda-drive.

This night I moved all my relevant stuff to the sdb drive (750 GB drive). This evening (I am at work now) I will format the sda drive with GParted Live CD. So after that that drive should be clean. But then what should I do, taking into account my above mentioned plan ? I think that I will move all my stuff to the recently formatted sda drive. After that I will install Windows 7 (which by the way looks more and more like Kubuntu IMHO ?!) on the sda drive. Move data again and the install (K)Ubuntu on the sda drive and makin my PC dual boot.

Another possibility is that I can use a Virtual Box with Windows 7 as the host and K(U)buntu as the guest.

This evening I will show the requested output of the commands mentioned by the last poster tawee.

Thanks Qqmike sofar !!

Remmelt

[tawee2009]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Hi,

My plan is this:
Have Windows on the largest 750 GB drive (the sdb drive).....
.........................
......................
This night I moved all my relevant stuff to the sdb drive (750 GB drive).,,,.

maybe, you need not do such a tedious task, show me the content of /boot/grub/menu.lst or /boot/grub/grub.cfg by 'sudo cat' the filename

[Qqmike]

Re: Deleted Bootmgr

Sounds like your plan will work, step by step; also follow the guidelines of the apcmag site.
If you install 7 first, it will have its own bootloader. Then when you install K/Ubuntu, the 7 bootloader will be overwritten by the Kubuntu bootloader (GRUB 2), and, in theory, all should work well. (Worst case: sometimes, some folks have to re-install GRUB 2--NOT all of Kubuntu, just GRUB 2--and that can be done from a Live CD or using Super Grub Disk to boot into Kubuntu and do it from there--see the GRUB 2 Guide link.)

But, yes, first see what tawee2009 has in mind.