Mounting and unmounting drives (SOLVED)

Linux Support
1

Hello again,

have tried both the long way, as recommended by SeZo, and the short way, as recommended by Mark, on the 11th October, and in each case I get a message “cannot find list of partitions! (Try mounting /sys)”

So please guys, I would like to return GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT to original state before I tried “clocksource=hpet” and before anything I may have done to it with my latest efforts. How do I do this?

When I have done this, what is the best way to set my Linux drive as the master? I have, of course set it in the BIOS as the first harddrive to boot from.

As a ‘by the way’, Linux does not seem to like the Floppy being set as first boot device if there is no disk in it, lots of beeping! Have set harddrive as first boot.

I assume that this ‘grub’ file is more or less equivalent to Windows “Boot.ini”. Am I right?

Like the way Linux double checks that I am allowed to make changes to files, and doesn’t assume that it is still me sat at the terminal!

Cheers

Tony N

2

Have just found that Linux has taken over and I now can’t boot to Win XP even if I set that drive as first in the list!!

Heeeeelp!!!

Tony N

3

Can you send the output from:

sudo fdisk -l

and the contents of:

gedit /boot/grub/grub.cfg
4

Hi Mark,

fdisk -l =

Disk /dev/sda: 160.0 GB, 160040803840 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 19457 cylinders, total 312579695 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000204fb

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 63 312560639 156280288+ 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
/dev/sda2 312560640 312576704 8032+ 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 312560703 312576704 8001 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

Disk /dev/sdb: 40.0 GB, 40019582464 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 4865 cylinders, total 78163247 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x0005d6c2

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 2048 61388799 30693376 83 Linux
/dev/sdb2 61390846 78161919 8385537 5 Extended
/dev/sdb5 61390848 78161919 8385536 82 Linux swap / Solaris

Disk /dev/sdc: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders, total 156301488 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xb4b3b4b3

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc2 * 16065 156296384 78140160 5 Extended
/dev/sdc5 16135 20482874 10233370 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
/dev/sdc6 20482939 156296384 67906723 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

gedit boot/grub/grub.cfg =

DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE

It is automatically generated by grub-mkconfig using templates

from /etc/grub.d and settings from /etc/default/grub

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/00_header

if [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then
set have_grubenv=true
load_env
fi
set default=“0”
if [ “${prev_saved_entry}” ]; then
set saved_entry=“${prev_saved_entry}”
save_env saved_entry
set prev_saved_entry=
save_env prev_saved_entry
set boot_once=true
fi

function savedefault {
if [ -z “${boot_once}” ]; then
saved_entry=“${chosen}”
save_env saved_entry
fi
}

function recordfail {
set recordfail=1
if [ -n “${have_grubenv}” ]; then if [ -z “${boot_once}” ]; then save_env recordfail; fi; fi
}

function load_video {
insmod vbe
insmod vga
insmod video_bochs
insmod video_cirrus
}

insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
if loadfont /usr/share/grub/unicode.pf2 ; then
set gfxmode=auto
load_video
insmod gfxterm
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
set locale_dir=($root)/boot/grub/locale
set lang=en_GB
insmod gettext
fi
terminal_output gfxterm
if [ “${recordfail}” = 1 ]; then
set timeout=-1
else
set timeout=10
fi

END /etc/grub.d/00_header

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/05_debian_theme

set menu_color_normal=white/black
set menu_color_highlight=black/light-gray

END /etc/grub.d/05_debian_theme

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/06_mint_theme

set menu_color_normal=white/black
set menu_color_highlight=white/light-gray

END /etc/grub.d/06_mint_theme

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux

function gfxmode {
set gfxpayload=“$1”
if [ “$1” = “keep” ]; then
set vt_handoff=vt.handoff=7
else
set vt_handoff=
fi
}
if [ ${recordfail} != 1 ]; then
if [ -e ${prefix}/gfxblacklist.txt ]; then
if hwmatch ${prefix}/gfxblacklist.txt 3; then
if [ ${match} = 0 ]; then
set linux_gfx_mode=keep
else
set linux_gfx_mode=text
fi
else
set linux_gfx_mode=text
fi
else
set linux_gfx_mode=keep
fi
else
set linux_gfx_mode=text
fi
export linux_gfx_mode
if [ “$linux_gfx_mode” != “text” ]; then load_video; fi
menuentry ‘Linux Mint 13 Cinnamon 64-bit, 3.2.0-23-generic (/dev/sdb1)’ --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
recordfail
gfxmode $linux_gfx_mode
insmod gzio
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
linux /boot/vmlinuz-3.2.0-23-generic root=UUID=356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b ro quiet splash hpet=force clocksource=hpet $vt_handoff
initrd /boot/initrd.img-3.2.0-23-generic
}
menuentry ‘Linux Mint 13 Cinnamon 64-bit, 3.2.0-23-generic (/dev/sdb1) – recovery mode’ --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
recordfail
insmod gzio
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
echo ‘Loading Linux 3.2.0-23-generic …’
linux /boot/vmlinuz-3.2.0-23-generic root=UUID=356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b ro recovery nomodeset
echo ‘Loading initial ramdisk …’
initrd /boot/initrd.img-3.2.0-23-generic
}

END /etc/grub.d/10_linux

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_lupin

END /etc/grub.d/10_lupin

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen

END /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+

menuentry “Memory test (memtest86+)” {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
linux16 /boot/memtest86+.bin
}
menuentry “Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)” {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root=‘(hd1,msdos1)’
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 356591ee-d91d-4187-ba86-4119ed52848b
linux16 /boot/memtest86+.bin console=ttyS0,115200n8
}

END /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober

if [ “x${timeout}” != “x-1” ]; then
if keystatus; then
if keystatus --shift; then
set timeout=-1
else
set timeout=0
fi
else
if sleep --interruptible 3 ; then
set timeout=0
fi
fi
fi

END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/40_custom

This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries. Simply type the

menu entries you want to add after this comment. Be careful not to change

the ‘exec tail’ line above.

END /etc/grub.d/40_custom

BEGIN /etc/grub.d/41_custom

if [ -f $prefix/custom.cfg ]; then
source $prefix/custom.cfg;
fi

END /etc/grub.d/41_custom

Long, isn’t it?

Thanks for your help Mark

Tony N

5

Are the 3 drives all internal hard drives ?

if not, which are external … 160GB, 40GB, or 80GB ?

6

All internal.

160GB, SATAII 0, Win XP64 Pro (C) + small empty partition (D)

80GB, IDE 1, WorkingDisk (E) + Generaldata (F)

40GB, IDE 0, Linux.

Thanks

7

OK, best bet will be to first fix the Windows XP bootloader … have you got an XP 64bit CDROM ?

8

One thing to look at, you have three partitions marked as bootable [!] rather than the one the computer is expecting … which will cause some (all?) BIOS’s to pick different disks to boot from depending on which way the wind it blowing. Try making sda “only” bootable.
(run “fdisk /dev/sdb” for example then type “a1wq”, then “fdisk /dev/sdc” then “a2wq”)

9

The problem was solved in another topic … he’d apparently set the wrong drive as the primary boot device in the BIOS