[gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Knut Feiert]

Today I tried to install Gentoo Linux 1.0_rc4_pre2 .
I am not very familiar with linux and followed the installation guide
step by step.
The vi confrontation in step 4 had an additional quirk for me because 
of the german keyboard layout. ( colon is uppercase o-umlaut) ....
But the stopper was step 5: 
At the GRUB prompt I typed:
root (hd0,12)
setup (hd0,11)
and grub said checking for /boot/grub/stage1
and /grub/stage1  file not found

rc 15

According to the install guide the directory is /boot/boot/grub/ 
where the stage1 file actually is.

What can I do?

Knut

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[drobbins]

On Wed, Jan 31, 2001 at 09:55:32PM +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:

> Today I tried to install Gentoo Linux 1.0_rc4_pre2 .  I am not very familiar
> with linux and followed the installation guide step by step.  The vi
> confrontation in step 4 had an additional quirk for me because of the german
> keyboard layout. ( colon is uppercase o-umlaut) ....  But the stopper was
> step 5: At the GRUB prompt I typed: root (hd0,12) setup (hd0,11) and grub
> said checking for /boot/grub/stage1 and /grub/stage1  file not found

To solve the kemap problem, before you begin you should type:

# loadkeys de-latin1-nodeadkeys

I need to add this to the install guide.

As for the GRUB problem, I think you are specifying the wrong root and boot
partitions.  GRUB's "root partition" is our "boot partition".

Try this in grub:

grub> find /boot/grub/stage1

GRUB should then tell you what partitions it found stage1 on.  This should
be the partition you specify in the grub "root" command.  I hope that helps.

Best Regards,

-- 
Daniel Robbins					<drobbins@gentoo.org>
President/CEO					http://www.gentoo.org 
Gentoo Technologies, Inc.			

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Knut Feiert]

On Wed, 31 Jan 2001 14:19:47 -0700, drobbins@gentoo.org wrote:

>To solve the kemap problem, before you begin you should type:
>
># loadkeys de-latin1-nodeadkeys
>
>I need to add this to the install guide.

Doing this after the command env-update in step 4 
gives me back my keyboard.


>
>As for the GRUB problem, I think you are specifying the wrong root and boot
>partitions.  GRUB's "root partition" is our "boot partition".
>
>Try this in grub:
>
>grub> find /boot/grub/stage1
>
>GRUB should then tell you what partitions it found stage1 on.  This should
>be the partition you specify in the grub "root" command.  I hope that helps.
>

GRUB tells me (hd0,11) and after reading the install guide more 
carefully I only can agree!

But after the command root (hd0,11) neither "find" nor "setup" can 
find stage1 any more.

Could it be a problem that fdisk does not write the partition records 
in disk order? I have split a former linux partition (hda8) in boot and
root 
and left the swap (hda9) and ended up with boot as hda12, root as
hda13,
and swap as hda8.

Knut 

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[drobbins]

On Thu, Feb 01, 2001 at 07:13:06AM +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:

> Doing this after the command env-update in step 4 
> gives me back my keyboard.

OK, great, I'll add this to the install guide soon.

> >Try this in grub:
> >
> >grub> find /boot/grub/stage1
> >
> >GRUB should then tell you what partitions it found stage1 on.  This should
> >be the partition you specify in the grub "root" command.  I hope that helps.
> >
> 
> GRUB tells me (hd0,11) and after reading the install guide more 
> carefully I only can agree!
> 
> But after the command root (hd0,11) neither "find" nor "setup" can 
> find stage1 any more.
> 
> Could it be a problem that fdisk does not write the partition records 
> in disk order? 

find should still be able to find stage1, even if your partitions are 
weird.  If you don't have LBA mode enabled in your BIOS, then you may
be running into 1024 cylinder-related problems.  But first, make sure
that the stage1 file exists:

1. boot the Gentoo CD
2. mount your root at /mnt/gentoo
3. mount your boot at /mnt/gentoo/boot
look inside /mnt/gentoo/boot/boot/grub and make sure all the files are
there.
If the files are there, then for some reason GRUB can't get to them.
If you have a FAT, FFS, ext2 or reiserfs partition located closer to
the beginning of the drive, then mount this partition, and create the
/mountpoint/boot directory.  Then, cp -ax /mnt/gentoo/boot/* /mountpoint/boot,
4. unmount /mountpoint
5. chroot /mnt/gentoo
6. grub
7. grub> find /boot/grub/stage1
8. if found, then use this partition as your GRUB "root"

-- 
Daniel Robbins					<drobbins@gentoo.org>
President/CEO					http://www.gentoo.org 
Gentoo Technologies, Inc.			

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Knut Feiert]

I have changed the partition allocations with PartionMagic
and have now hda8 as boot and hda 9 as root.
GRUB could find the files but after:
Running "install /boot/grub/stage1 d (hd0,7)
/boot/grub/reiserfs_stage1_5 p
/boot/grub/stage2" .... failed
Error 31: File is not sector aligned

What todo about this????

Fortunately due to your tutorial on IBM developerworks
I could make a GRUB boot floppy which works and 
gets Gentoo Linux up and running.

Knut


On Thu, 01 Feb 2001 07:13:06 +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:

>GRUB tells me (hd0,11) and after reading the install guide more 
>carefully I only can agree!
>
>But after the command root (hd0,11) neither "find" nor "setup" can 
>find stage1 any more.
>
>Could it be a problem that fdisk does not write the partition records 
>in disk order? I have split a former linux partition (hda8) in boot and
>root 
>and left the swap (hda9) and ended up with boot as hda12, root as
>hda13,
>and swap as hda8.
>

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[drobbins]

On Sat, Jan 01, 2000 at 01:12:17AM +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:
> I have changed the partition allocations with PartionMagic
> and have now hda8 as boot and hda 9 as root.
> GRUB could find the files but after:
> Running "install /boot/grub/stage1 d (hd0,7)
> /boot/grub/reiserfs_stage1_5 p
> /boot/grub/stage2" .... failed
> Error 31: File is not sector aligned
> 
> What todo about this????

Here's what the GRUB documentation says:

31 : File is not sector aligned
	This error may occur only when you access a ReiserFS partition by
	block-lists (e.g. the command `install'). In this case, you should
	mount the partition with the `-o notail' option.  

Now that's strange.  It appears that if you use the hosted version of
GRUB, it doesn't access the filesystem directly but uses blocklists
instead.  If you repeat the exact same grub commands from your boot
floppy (hit "c" to get to the command line), it will work.  I may need
to switch the docs back to the old method of installing GRUB, i.e.
rebooting with the CD, hitting "c" and typing the commands in.

Let me know if my suggestion works.

> Fortunately due to your tutorial on IBM developerworks
> I could make a GRUB boot floppy which works and 
> gets Gentoo Linux up and running.

:) Glad I could help :)

-- 
Daniel Robbins					<drobbins@gentoo.org>
President/CEO					http://www.gentoo.org 
Gentoo Technologies, Inc.			

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Knut Feiert]

On Thu, 1 Feb 2001 12:56:29 -0700, drobbins@gentoo.org wrote:

>Now that's strange.  It appears that if you use the hosted version of
>GRUB, it doesn't access the filesystem directly but uses blocklists
>instead.  If you repeat the exact same grub commands from your boot
>floppy (hit "c" to get to the command line), it will work.  I may need
>to switch the docs back to the old method of installing GRUB, i.e.
>rebooting with the CD, hitting "c" and typing the commands in.
>
>Let me know if my suggestion works.
>

I tried it but got the same result.
For now I have sidestepped the problem,
by formatting the /boot partition as ext2,
and it works.

If you have some other suggestions for
the Reiserfs I will try them.

Knut

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[drobbins]

On Thu, Feb 01, 2001 at 11:03:55PM +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:
> On Thu, 1 Feb 2001 12:56:29 -0700, drobbins@gentoo.org wrote:
> 
> >Now that's strange.  It appears that if you use the hosted version of
> >GRUB, it doesn't access the filesystem directly but uses blocklists
> >instead.  If you repeat the exact same grub commands from your boot
> >floppy (hit "c" to get to the command line), it will work.  I may need
> >to switch the docs back to the old method of installing GRUB, i.e.
> >rebooting with the CD, hitting "c" and typing the commands in.
> >
> >Let me know if my suggestion works.
> >
> 
> I tried it but got the same result.
> For now I have sidestepped the problem,
> by formatting the /boot partition as ext2,
> and it works.
> 
> If you have some other suggestions for
> the Reiserfs I will try them.

OK, I know the problem.  You're installing GRUB to a partition rather than
your MBR.  Apparently, it doesn't have room in the boot record of your partition
to install the Stage1.5 file for ReiserFS, so it needs to use the blocklist
method for loading the kernel.  However, ReiserFS is not compatible with the
blocklist method unless you mount the boot partition with the notail option
before copying over the GRUB files.  You can fix this by:

1.  Boot Gentoo Linux with your boot disk
2.  mount /boot -o notail
3.  mkdir /tmp/grub
4.  mv /boot/boot/grub/* /tmp/grub
5.  mv /tmp/grub/* /boot/boot/grub
6.  umount /boot

Now, you should be able to use the bootdisk (or the grub program under Linux)
to set up your boot sector.  Of course, now that everything is using ext2
(which doesn't need the notail option), you're all set.

What I didn't notice immediately is that you're using GRUB as a secondary (not
a primary/MBR) boot loader.

Best Regards,

-- 
Daniel Robbins					<drobbins@gentoo.org>
President/CEO					http://www.gentoo.org 
Gentoo Technologies, Inc.			

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Knut Feiert]

I have reformatted /boot, mounted -notail, copied the files,
and it worked.
Shouldn't step 2 of the install guide be changed accordingly?

On the other hand is it worthwhile using a journaling 
file system for a partition which is not mounted 
most of the time and has a limited number of files?
Especially for those who do kernel compilation only 
if they have to and then forgetting about the 
-notail business?

Knut

On Thu, 1 Feb 2001 16:12:21 -0700, drobbins@gentoo.org wrote:

>
>OK, I know the problem.  You're installing GRUB to a partition rather than
>your MBR.  Apparently, it doesn't have room in the boot record of your partition
>to install the Stage1.5 file for ReiserFS, so it needs to use the blocklist
>method for loading the kernel.  However, ReiserFS is not compatible with the
>blocklist method unless you mount the boot partition with the notail option
>before copying over the GRUB files.  You can fix this by:
>
>1.  Boot Gentoo Linux with your boot disk
>2.  mount /boot -o notail
>3.  mkdir /tmp/grub
>4.  mv /boot/boot/grub/* /tmp/grub
>5.  mv /tmp/grub/* /boot/boot/grub
>6.  umount /boot
>
>Now, you should be able to use the bootdisk (or the grub program under Linux)
>to set up your boot sector.  Of course, now that everything is using ext2
>(which doesn't need the notail option), you're all set.
>
>What I didn't notice immediately is that you're using GRUB as a secondary (not
>a primary/MBR) boot loader.
>

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[drobbins]

On Sat, Feb 03, 2001 at 05:48:41PM +0100, Knut Feiert wrote:

> I have reformatted /boot, mounted -notail, copied the files, and it worked.
> Shouldn't step 2 of the install guide be changed accordingly?

I added the notail options to the install guide, which should resolve the
issue.

> 
> On the other hand is it worthwhile using a journaling 
> file system for a partition which is not mounted 
> most of the time and has a limited number of files?
> Especially for those who do kernel compilation only 
> if they have to and then forgetting about the 
> -notail business?

Yes, it's no big deal to use ext2, but this problem only occurs when GRUB
is not going on your MBR.  For now, the current install instructions should
suffice.  I also added information on how to use loadkeys to restore your
keymap.

Thanks for your help,

-- 
Daniel Robbins					<drobbins@gentoo.org>
President/CEO					http://www.gentoo.org 
Gentoo Technologies, Inc.			

Re: [gentoo-dev] GRUB stage1 file not found

[Jerry A!]

On Sat, Feb 03, 2001 at 10:09:04AM -0700, drobbins@gentoo.org wrote:
: 
: Yes, it's no big deal to use ext2, but this problem only occurs when GRUB
: is not going on your MBR.  For now, the current install instructions should
: suffice.  I also added information on how to use loadkeys to restore your
: keymap.

I know that this may sound like a lot, but maybe you could document how
to tell if GRUB is being installed on your MBR vs on a disk partition.

I think if people know what the difference is and how to tell which way
one is installing GRUB, it'll go a long way...

        --Jerry

name:  Jerry Alexandratos         ||  Open-Source software isn't a
phone: 703.599.6023               ||  matter of life or death...
email: jerry@akopia.com           ||  ...It's much more important
                                  ||  than that!