[HLUG] Broken Boots
Chris Owens
cowens at clara.co.uk
Fri Sep 23 12:02:03 UTC 2011
Kevin my response to your helpful post
Q1. In Linux, hibernation file usual resides on the swap partition so it
normally causes no persistent problems. In Windows it will sit usually
on the c:\. I doubt hibernation or suspension can be part of the
remaining issue.
A. Agreed. Presumably Pete's suggestion of removing the battery will
have fixed this possibility.
Q2. Can you boot the Windows CD in any other PC? The T40 is not a
particularly new device but sometimes you get odd issues with old
original XP and CD drivers which mean once it loads it can stop
accessing the drive.
A. This is interesting. The 'spare' CD copy of XP which came with the
second hand T40 will not either run or start restoration of Windows in
the T40 or another somewhat older laptop currently running 10.04 and
Windows 2000. Similarly a CD copy of W2K will not load into either
machine from cold boots - both just run through to the grub menu after
'Press any key to boot from CD'
Q3. Check whether there are any SATA connections, XP doesnt understand
them until SP3 which you would need to slipstream into a CD to get to
work. Check BIOS for SATA compatibility modes or legacy IDE etc.
A. Not quite sure how to do this or what to look for where
So, worth identifying if the CD works properly (it doesn't seem to -
either two CDs have spontaneously corrupted or 10.04 has done something
to both machines that prevents live booting from MS Windows CDs), to
help narrow the options down.
Q4 As you haven't used Windows for some time it is possible that this
issue was not related to recent activity with power management but at
some other point perhaps when grub was updated.
A. True I haven't used Windows recently but in retrospect I couldn't
boot from it for several months since a major power outage as Tony
correctly identified. The problem has arisen trying to restore XP.
Q5 Are you hoping to get a) Windows back or b) just remove it or c)
re-install?
A. The Office for Domestic Affairs (Compliance Division) has requested
that her holiday photos be stored off camera but the software for the
Panasonic Lumix needs post W2K Windows so 1 or 3 is the answer, nothing
else acceptable!!
Is this time for sudo ms-sys -m /dev/hd0,1 I ask or is the problem now
more subtle?
Many thanks
Chris
==================================
Tony: Thanks for this below
1. Have managed to find what a MBR looks like but as yet not the way to
list it from a machine. From what I've seen I don't think I would spot a
corrupted one if I saw one!!
2. See above
3. Didn't take a back up so can't do
4. Couldn't find a /boot/grub/grub.conf but less /boot/grub/grub.cfg
(last section) returned:
### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
menuentry "Microsoft Windows XP Professional (on /dev/sda1)" {
insmod ntfs
set root='(hd0,1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 3e10e00710dfc3d5
drivemap -s (hd0) ${root}
chainloader +1
}
### END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
which I guess shows grub is looking in the right place.
Tony sales 22/09/11
1. Don't know - but I imagine there is a way to do this
2. Don't know.
3. No - but it would be possible to copy a bit for bit image of it back
this way - had you taken a backup before it happened.
4. Yes - look in /boot/grub/grub.conf - you will be able to see which
drive/partition it is trying to boot from.
-----Original Message-----
From: herefordshire-bounces at mailman.lug.org.uk
[mailto:herefordshire-bounces at mailman.lug.org.uk] On Behalf Of Chris Owens
Sent: 22 September 2011 12:26
To: Herefordshire Linux Users Group.
Subject: Re: [HLUG] Broken Boots
Gentlemen many thanks;
George: The fear Index has risen to the stage where everything is backed
up - thanks
Julian: Have got into the BIOS via [F1] at power-up, reset it to
Default Settings but can't find any place that has obvious re-sets for
Hibernation/Suspension.
Loss of function of the 'Access IBM' button (see previous
post) may provide a couple of clues. Normally this should give access to
Rescue Partition, BIOS or
Proceed to Normal Boot but Bug #19634 certainly in older
versions of Ubuntu blocks the first and last choices which is what led
me to believe that 'Access
IBM' was the way to access the BIOS. Further apparently
any over-write/corruption of the MBR completely blocks its function
which is the current situation.
Tony: As to the cause of all this I am sure you are absolutely
correct - it is almost 100% certain the battery went flat at some stage
during an Ubuntu (not
Windows) suspend or hibernation.
Before applying the nuclear option, is there 1. Anyway of checking
the content of the MBR against what it should be and/or restoring it
from the Linux side
2. Why does the Windows Rescue CD only give the option to Run Windows
(which it doesn't) and not allow a fresh
Install (which it used to). After all the Ubuntu 10.04 Live Disc
still allows both choices. Could corruption of MBR
give this situation.
3. Is there any way of running a Windows install into /dev/sda1 from a
Linux terminal.
4. Is there any way to see where the boot-loader is pointing and which
one is the recovery partition
I am sure these questions (especially No 3) reveal a profound
ignorance of computer science for which I can only apologise but then
this is what keeps me young - well sort of. Seriously though it is very
instructive for me to dig into this a bit. So far my ill informed guess
is it is a problem with MBR
Thanks again
Chris
On 22/09/11 09:49, Tony Sales wrote:
> Sounds to me like the laptop was in hibernate or suspend mode and the battery ran out - this may have caused file corruption on the Windows partition or bootsector explaining why Windows won't boot but Ubuntu will. However this doesn't explain why the Windows recovery CD won't boot. Another possibility is that somehow the grub bootloader is pointing to the wrong partition for Windows - possibly trying to boot from the recovery partition? Either way if you have the Windows recovery disk it might be best just to wipe the partitions and start again - after backing up any files from the windows partition using Ubuntu.
> ________________________________________
> From: herefordshire-bounces at mailman.lug.org.uk [herefordshire-bounces at mailman.lug.org.uk] on behalf of Chris Owens [cowens at clara.co.uk]
> Sent: 21 September 2011 14:18
> To: info at lifespacedesign.co.uk; Herefordshire Linux Users Group.
> Subject: Re: [HLUG] Broken Boots
>
> Hi Pete
>
> Thanks for such a quick reply. I think you are at least partly on
> the right lines. Great man.
>
> Powered down and took out the battery for couple of minutes. Result
> the machine now recognises and boots from the live Ubuntu 10.04 CD but
> still no luck with the Windows CD, when it just asks 'Press any key to
> load CD' and then goes straight through to the Grub Menu. Trying to
> start Windows from there ends up with the Blue Screen we all know so
> well. So still a bit stuck but thanks all the same.
>
> BTW it is a lap-top so am a bit reluctant to change the Hard Drive
> even if I had one spare.
>
> Chris
>
> On 21/09/11 12:54, Pete Linnell wrote:
>> Chris,
>> Looks at first blush that the machine is in hibernate or standby. Have
>> you tried/done any of the following;
>>
>> Insert a different HDD
>> Power down/remove battery
>>
>> I am not suggesting you should do either of these, but if you have it
>> would tell us a little more, including locating the issue between BIOS
>> and boot sector.
>>
>> Maybe you could bring it along next week ? there is bound to be
>> someone that knows what they're doing about ;)
>>
>> Pete
>>
>> On 21/09/11 12:37, Chris Owens wrote:
>>> Hi Folks
>>>
>>> Sorry to trouble you with a tricky one.
>>>
>>> Have been running Windows XP and Ubuntu 10.04 on an IBM T40 no probs
>>> for over a year - in fact almost forgot about Windows. Then fiddled
>>> with Power Management to try and optimise Energy use in downtimes
>>> with little success. Re-boots and/or Wake ups completely shambolic,
>>> anything from completely successful restart with open programmes etc
>>> to several kernel panics. Gave up but then noticed Windows no longer
>>> accessible and I cannot re-load it.
>>>
>>> Present situation
>>> 1. On Power Up T40 boots straight to Grub Menu in say 20 secs
>>> no sign of usual Hard Drive/Memory start up messages.
>>> 2. Pressing Access IBM to enter BIOS no longer works but BIOS
>>> can still be entered using F2. (BIOS Version 2.12 (1RET85WW) Device
>>> Boot Order: Floppy>
>>> CD-ROM> HD confirmed
>>> 3. Selecting Ubuntu 10.04 from Grub Menu boots normally to a
>>> fully functional system.
>>> os-prober confirms /dev/sda1:MS Windows XP
>>> Prof:Windows:chain
>>> GParted partitions look OK
>>> Windows partition accessible quite normally from
>>> Ubuntu
>>> BUT 4. Selecting Windows XP from Grub Menu boots to a Windows B&W
>>> Screen requesting type of Windows Start up Safe Mode, Normal Boot etc
>>> all of which
>>> lead to Blue Screen of death with insufficient time to
>>> note down 'problem' hex-dec addresses but the first is STOP: 0x0000007B.
>>>
>>> 5. Interrupting Windows XP boot from Grub Menu (pressing
>>> Access IBM button) returns: Authentication of System Services failed.
>>> <ESC> to Resume. Press
>>> <ESC> and you get back to Grub Menu
>>>
>>> 6. Starting up with either Windows XP or Ubuntu Live CD has
>>> no effect. T40 ignores content of the CD-ROM Drive and goes straight
>>> to Grub Menu.
>>>
>>> I am sorry this is a bit of a rambling post but I haven't a clue what
>>> the problem is or how to fix it but would very much appreciate any help
>>>
>>> Thanks everybody
>>>
>>> Chris
>>>
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>>> Web: http://www.herefordshire.lug.org.uk
>>> List: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/herefordshire
>>
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