[SOLVED] Media Test Failure after installation reboot

milter · 04-13-2016, 08:12 AM

Hello, I am trying to install Fedora for the first time. I downloaded the latest live version, booted from usb, and installed it. The installation process didn't seem to have any problems. I chose to shrink my windows installation so that I can dual boot.

When I rebooted I am getting this "media test failure" and a boot menu eventually comes on the screen. I can't figure out how to get into Windows or Fedora anymore.

I'm using a thinkpad x1 carbon laptop.

Please help?
Thanks

edit: I should also mention that in order for the live loader to actually load, I had to add "intel_pstate=no_hwp" at the loading screen.

yancek · 04-13-2016, 03:33 PM

You did not indicate which version of windows you are using or whether you installed UEFI or MBR or mixed them. More details please.

milter · 04-13-2016, 07:37 PM

I have Windows 7 installed (but can't get into because of this problem).

As for your other question, I don't understand it. I don't what UEFI or MBR are, so I don't think I manually installed either of them...

TxLonghorn · 04-14-2016, 04:58 PM

Quote:

I don't what UEFI or MBR are, so I don't think I manually installed either of them...

Boot your Fedora OS. Open a terminal and post the result of

Code:

sudo parted --list

JeremyBoden · 04-14-2016, 08:47 PM

You don't have UEFI.

MBR (Master Boot Record) is the first 512 bytes of your main disk.
It is very important as it contains the layout of your disk + the initial boot code that is run when you switch on your PC.
Do what @TxLonghorn says.

syg00 · 04-14-2016, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milter

When I rebooted I am getting this "media test failure" and a boot menu eventually comes on the screen.

What is the complete message ?. Sounds like a PXE message.

Quote:

I can't figure out how to get into Windows or Fedora anymore.

Take a photo of that menu and post it as an attachment - I'm guessing it will be a UEFI menu.

Quote:

edit: I should also mention that in order for the live loader to actually load, I had to add "intel_pstate=no_hwp" at the loading screen.

Looks like a fix for this was pushed out by the Fedora devs yesterday - not sure if it will make the F23 downloads. This needs to be added to grub for every boot by the looks of it but if you can't get to grub that's no help.

milter · 04-15-2016, 06:54 AM

Code:

user@debian:~$ sudo parted --list
Model: ATA SAMSUNG MZNLN512 (scsi)
Disk /dev/sda: 512GB
Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
Partition Table: gpt
Disk Flags: pmbr_boot

Number  Start   End    Size    File system  Name                          Flags
 1      1049kB  106MB  105MB   fat32        EFI system partition          boot, esp
 2      106MB   240MB  134MB                Microsoft reserved partition  msftres
 3      240MB   269GB  269GB   ntfs         Basic data partition          msftdata
 4      269GB   269GB  1049kB                                             bios_grub
 5      269GB   270GB  524MB   ext4
 6      499GB   512GB  13.6GB  ntfs         Basic data partition          msftdata


Model: SanDisk U3 Cruzer Micro (scsi)
Disk /dev/sdb: 4110MB
Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
Partition Table: msdos
Disk Flags: 

Number  Start   End     Size    Type     File system  Flags
 1      32.8kB  1394MB  1394MB  primary               boot, hidden

TxLonghorn · 04-15-2016, 07:03 AM

Your results show that Windows was installed in UEFI mode. The existence of a "bios_grub" partition indicates that Fedora might have been installed in non-UEFI mode (Legacy/CSM).
You do have to be sure when you boot the live Fedora that it is booted in UEFI mode before installing. You can verify the mode with the command:

Code:

[ -d /sys/firmware/efi ] && echo "Currently in EFI mode" || echo "Currently in Legacy mode"

milter · 04-15-2016, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TxLonghorn

Your results show that Windows was installed in UEFI mode. The existence of a "bios_grub" partition indicates that Fedora might have been installed in non-UEFI mode (Legacy/CSM).
You do have to be sure when you boot the live Fedora that it is booted in UEFI mode before installing. You can verify the mode with the command:

Code:

[ -d /sys/firmware/efi ] && echo "Currently in EFI mode" || echo "Currently in Legacy mode"

This is starting to make sense. But I can't run that command from my Fedora installation because I still can't get into it. The command in the previous code was run from a live load off of a usb stick.

If the problem is what you think it is, could I just reinstall Fedora in the correct mode, overwriting the previous install?

edit: when I run the command from the live loader off a usb I get "Currently in Legacy mode".

TxLonghorn · 04-15-2016, 07:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milter

edit: when I run the command from the live loader off a usb I get "Currently in Legacy mode".

That is the source of the problem. You will have to enter the computer's settings to figure out how to boot the live Fedora in UEFI mode instead of Legacy. You will have to re-install.
Windows in UEFI and Fedora in Legacy will not work out well, at all.
A live Fedora DVD may work better than a USB. How was your USB created?
If you are using Windows to create the USB, the Rufus program is pretty reliable.

milter · 04-15-2016, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TxLonghorn

How was your USB created?
If you are using Windows to create the USB, the Rufus program is pretty reliable.

I used https://sourceforge.net/projects/win32diskimager/. I will try again with Rufus, but I'm still not clear on what I need to change in the installation so that Fedora gets installed in UEFI mode. I just walked through the setup again, and I don't see anything referring to UEFI or Legacy.

milter · 04-15-2016, 08:52 AM

I just reinstalled Fedora following these instructions.

I'm still getting the media test failure. Here is my partition breakdown now:

Code:

[liveuser@localhost ~]$ sudo parted --list

We trust you have received the usual lecture from the local System
Administrator. It usually boils down to these three things:

    #1) Respect the privacy of others.
    #2) Think before you type.
    #3) With great power comes great responsibility.

Model: ATA SAMSUNG MZNLN512 (scsi)
Disk /dev/sda: 512GB
Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
Partition Table: gpt
Disk Flags: pmbr_boot

Number  Start   End    Size    File system  Name                          Flags
 1      1049kB  106MB  105MB   fat32        EFI system partition          boot, esp
 2      106MB   240MB  134MB                Microsoft reserved partition  msftres
 3      240MB   269GB  269GB   ntfs         Basic data partition          msftdata
 4      269GB   269GB  1049kB                                             bios_grub
 5      269GB   270GB  524MB   ext4
 7      270GB   270GB  524MB   ext4
 8      270GB   271GB  1074MB  ext4
 9      271GB   499GB  227GB   ext4
 6      499GB   512GB  13.6GB  ntfs         Basic data partition          msftdata


Warning: The driver descriptor says the physical block size is 2048 bytes, but
Linux says it is 512 bytes.
Ignore/Cancel?

TxLonghorn · 04-15-2016, 09:03 AM

Quote:

I just reinstalled Fedora following these instructions.

That link is for a Legacy installation, not UEFI.

This shows how to access the UEFI settings.

Quote:

Whether a Fedora image written to a USB stick will be bootable natively via UEFI is a somewhat complex question which depends on the Fedora release, the type of image (live or non-live), and the method used to write it. The --efi parameter to the livecd-iso-to-disk tool attempts to make a stick written with that tool natively UEFI bootable.

As of Fedora 20, all sticks written using "direct write" methods should be UEFI-bootable, at least some sticks written with liveusb-creator should be UEFI-bootable, and all sticks written with livecd-iso-to-disk --format --reset-mbr --efi should be UEFI-bootable. Use of --efi without --format and --reset-mbr can be considered a 'best effort', and may not produce a UEFI-bootable stick. Sticks written with other methods and tools will most probably not be UEFI-bootable.

If you boot a Fedora stick in UEFI native mode and install from it, you will get a UEFI native installation of Fedora. If you wish to do a BIOS native installation of Fedora, you must ensure you boot your stick in BIOS compatibility mode, if your firmware has this capability. The interface for choosing the mode used to boot varies between systems, and so we cannot give precise instructions on this. If you have difficulty, you may want to use a method which is known not to produce a UEFI-bootable stick, and hence force your firmware to boot it in BIOS compatibility mode.

- How To Create and Use the Live USB

milter · 04-15-2016, 11:18 AM

Yes! I edited Bios to use EUFI only and then booted from usb and reinstalled Fedora. No more media test failure!

Now when I boot up I have 3 options:

Fedora (4.4.6-301.fc23.x86_64) 23 (Workstation Edition)
Fedora (0-recuse-93aa------------4d) 23 (Workstation Edition
Windows Boot Manager (on /dev/sda1)

A few questions:

1) Am I supposed to have 2 Fedora options?

2) Can we re-check my partitions to make sure everything looks good now?

TxLonghorn · 04-15-2016, 11:33 AM

Congratulations on a successful UEFI installation!
I don't know much about editing the boot menu. I know that you use a program called efibootmgr.
(It is not uncommon to see multiple entries.)