Got grub> after new installation. What next?

[oshunluvr]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

re: grub-install;

According to the grub manual: The correct target for the --root-directory= switch is the mounted location of /boot, not the device name where it resides.

Unless you are running grub-install from another device other than your install, (i.e. liveCD or USB) the --root-directory= switch is not needed at all.

Examples:
Successfully (like Garth) you manually boot to your hard drive install, /boot resides on the same partition as /. The correct entry for grub-install is:

sudo grub-install /dev/sda

You have booted to the liveCD (or USB) and need to run grub-install. /boot resides on the same partition as /. You must create a mount-point, mount /, and then direct grub-install to it using the --root-directory= switch. Assuming your mount point is /mnt the correct command would be:

sudo grub-install --root-directory=/mnt /dev/sda

This second command would also be used if you are have booted a liveCD and /boot resides on a different partition than /. You must create a mount-point, mount /boot, and then direct grub-install to it using the --root-directory= switch. Assuming your mount point is /mnt the correct command would be the same as above.

I keep a separate grub partition and a backup and have six installs (give-or-take) and installers often do not behave as well as one might wish, so I am doing this frequently. In addition, two of my installs (sometimes up to four) reside on RAID0 devices that grub-update does not properly detect. So I also manually edit my grub.cfg as well.

I fully admit I have not attempted using the device as the target for the --root-directory switch, but I have never seen it documented or referred to prior to this post.

My comment regarding the Gparted LiveCD was in reference to grub only. It is not the proper utility to recover from grub issues. The latest and greatest disc for grub recovery would be Rescatux http://www.supergrubdisk.org/categor...atuxdownloads/

BTW: Check your device.map file and make sure /dev/sda is the only device listed.

[Garth]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

Thanks for all your help so far. I've now re-formatted and re-installed XP on my Thinkpad T22, prior to having yet another attempt to load Kubuntu, this time using Wubi which I've downloaded from the Ubuntu site.

As I participate in the Thinkpad Users Forum I've also posted a message in their Linux section as there are clearly some members who have Ubuntu and Kubuntu installed on their T series Thinkpads.

A Footnote: IBM used to market Caldera Linux on the T22 as an alternative op system to Windows.

[Garth]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

I have another even older Thinkpad (600E) so I installed Ubuntu and Kubuntu on this 12 Gb hard disc as a dual-boot without a problem. Then I've swopped this into my problematic T22 and this also runs both Ubuntu and Kubuntu, showing a grub menu as expected at startup.

I've therefore had a chance to investigate more with Kubuntu and have made sure that all the hardware works, including a plug-in Belkin Wireless N PCMCIA card.

I've tried out Kubuntu playing audio and video files but these didn't work too well with the default software, so I've downloaded vlc media player which works well on the T22 with Windows, and now also worked with Kubuntu as well. It will stream video very smoothly even from a USB stick.

I have tried to install vlc on Ubuntu but it won't let me, saying that the software is from an unrecognised source (although this doesn't appear a problem when installing vlc on Kubuntu).

Perhaps there is (a) either a problem with my 160 Gb hard disc preventing grub from writing to the mbr although booting to Windows is fine or (b) some limitation of the T22 which prevents a large hard disc being fully read when split into several partitions. The T22 will normally read a 320 Gb hard disc split into 2 partitions for Windows so I wouldn't have expected this to be a problem. However it's likely that it was originally fitted with a 12 Gb hard disc so this is a quantum leap in size. The Thinkpad Users Forum think that there is no limitation on the capacity of a notebook disc fitted in a T22.

What I haven't done is to install Kubuntu directly on the 12 Gb hard disc when fitted inside the T22. Could be the next step!

The saga continues.......

[oshunluvr]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

Re The booting/grub issue: I'd lay money that it's a bios issue and a settings change or bios upgrade would help things.

[Garth]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

The T22 has the latest BIOS (version 1.12 released 2004/04/27) and I've looked at the BIOS settings several times - all appear correct so that is a dead-end.

[Garth]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

I've now solved this problem. I have an even older Thinkpad (600E) so I installed the 160 Gb hard disc in this, and installed Windows XP, then Ubuntu 10.10, then Kubuntu 10.10 and got the grub menu up on startup as expected.

I've now installed the 160 Gb hard disc back into the Thinkpad T22 and the boot menu and all operating systems are now accessable.

I now have to find out how to alter the wording on the grub menu so I can remember which ubuntu loads "Ubuntu" and which ubuntu loads "Kubuntu"! I expect the answer is out there somewhere!

Many thanks for all your help.

[oshunluvr]

Re: Got grub> after new installation. What next?

Wow, what a pain in the A**! but good work. Hopefully, you won't have t go through that again.

In answer to your second dilemma, grub reads the name from the file /etc/lsb_release and puts it into /boot/grub/grub.cfg from there.

You can edit this file and run grub-update and it will change the menu. However, it also changes the variable --class= and I don't know what impact this may have (likely none).

Alternately, you can manually edit /boot/grub/grub.cfg and type in what you'd like, but these edits will be over-written every time you run grub-update. I doubt you'll run it very often so this might be your easiest option.