Hello Linux users, I am currently on Ubuntu trying to switch over to Manjaro. Please take note that I am new to Linux (only been using it for a couple of months) and know very limited command prompts. Needless to say, all was going well. I mounted Manjaro to a USB stick, booted it up into the boot manager and then came across this (P.S: this is not the exact code, just what I believe to be the relevant information. P.P.S if anyone knows the command to place code in a better fashion please tell me):


CPU:0 PID:1 Comm: swapper/0 Not Tainted 3.16.7.4-1MANJARO#1
<then follows my hardware name then 2 line of a bunch of random letters and numbers>
Call Trace:
dumpstack+0xx4d/0x6f
panic+0xd5/0x209
mount_block_root+0x2a4/0x2b3
mount_root+0x53/0x56
prepare_namespace +0x137/0x16f
Kernel_init_freeable+0x218/0x23c
? rest_init+0x90/0x90
Kernel_init+0xe/0xf0
ret_from_fork+0x7c/0xb0
? rest_init+0x90/0x90
Kernel Offset: 0x0 from 0xffffffff81000000(relocation range:0xffffffff80000000-0xf000000009fffffff)
---[ end Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: unable to mount root fs on unknown block (2,0)

Steps taken:
1. Created space on my /boot drive.
2. Found out that my /boot partition is ext2 and my two other partitions are ext4.
3. Tried remounting the Manjaro ISO file onto my USB.

All three steps amounted to no avail. I realize I need to know whether or not the /boot drive supports ext3 but I do not know how to do that. Other forum topics I have seen pointed towards changing .grub but I don't even know how to access it. Would anyone be willing to help?

Noted, and, wow, you're really not scared of a challenge, are you
I went with something safe, like Fedora...and stuck to it for a year...
Anyway...
What is the main goal? Using Manjaro? Okay, post that on the Manjaro forum too...
I use Manjaro, never had a kernel panic before...
It looks like your drive designation is wrong...
And...why not go with the Manjaro Live DVD instead? Everything is in there and the install is easier that way..
Manjaro takes simple partitioning scheme: a /boot, a swap, a /root and a /home...SDA1 tru 4, and yes, preferably the same FS type LOL
I'll follow this thread, I like this one
Welcome to linux
Thor

Thank you for the reply Thor 2.0. I don't actually think it's coming from the bootable USB though. Upon further research it seems like it might have something to do with the Kernel trying to mount to hda rather then sda. This information was taken from matsvw's post on the linuxquestions website entitled: "Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on unknown-block(2,0)". Other stuff is on there relating to fixes but I have no clue what they are talking about.

It's likely one of these two problems :

1. Boot up manjaro with a recovery disk and reinstall your bootloader so that it points to your root filesystem.

2. If that doesn't work, it probably means you need a initial ramdisk to load the kernel module for your filesystem. Usually ext3 or ext4 depending on what you used when you formatted your root filesystem.

1 members found this post helpful.

Thank you for the speedy reply mralk3, would you be able to tell me how to go about doing this?

Did you follow a guide to install manjaro to the USB stick? If I could take a look at that, I would be able to tell you where you went wrong.

The title of the youtube tutorial I used was this: "Manjaro Linux Boot Camp - Part 3 How To Make a CD/usb Bootable Disc"

Is it possible that it's a problem with how Ubuntu is configured and not the Manjaro USB? From what I've got on the forums that's where the problem lies.

I watched the video. The problem could be that the bootloader is being written to wrong partition scheme, so the bootloder is pointed to the wrong partition. This happens a lot with different distributions of Linux when using Unetbootin to write an ISO to a USB Stick. In my experience, Unetbootin works better for this task when already running Linux.

I would suggest using different software than Unetbootin to write the image. According to posts on the Manjaro forums, Unetbootin does not work well with Manjaro for this task.

You should try the pendrivelinux.com Universal USB Installer. I have not used this software but it looks like people have a lot of success after looking around at reviews.

http://www.pendrivelinux.com/

EDIT: Since you are using Ubuntu, you could also use the "dd" command to copy the image directly to the USB stick.

I tried using the Universal USB installer and my USB doesn't seem to to be detected (currently using a Lexar 4gb which the computer does detect). I next tried the DD command but that didn't work either because the DD command apparently only works with other ubuntu .iso files (I didn't want to mess around to much with the DD command as I wouldn't have known what in the blue blazes I was doing. Still back to square one with my USB device now completely wiped.

Edit: I used the GUI and the GUI did not want to read the Manjaro iso file I have.

Post everything. We can't help if we don't have the data. If it's too difficult to capture, take a photo and post that.Use [code] tags around any output you post - can be accessed from the "Advanced" editting button - the "#" button.
Note you can also post links to make it easier for us to go look at your references. Just hover over the buttons to see what they do.

What is your current status - Is Ubuntu still usable ?
Have you looked at the Manjaro wiki - it has an article for checking the downloaded iso, and how to burn it. Personally with hybris iso's I always just use "dd".
KISS.

If Manjaro usb install uses grub then you can manually set the correct 'root' partition.

Just boot with USB and in GRUB bootloader go to command mode. Select you kernel and initramfs and appropriate parameters and boot up.

Manjaro is not Debian-based and is instead Arch Linux based. I've been looking around the web but cannot find anything conclusive as to which bootloader it uses (EDIT: I might use the "dd" commands if push comes to shove but I'll need to do research as to how "dd" works.). I'm starting to question whether it is even worth trying to switch distros at this point due to all the complications it is causing at the moment. I've decided to switch to a dvd rather then a usb and see if things work differently. Crossing my fingers in hopes that there won't be a kernel panic.

EDIT: yes Ubuntu is still usable and yes I have looked at the Manjaro Wiki. Tried ISO to USB and that didn't work because apparently it could not detect the ISO file. Also, it's possible to do a screenshot while in the BIOS? I didn't know that either.

I have now sucessfully installed and updated Manjaro. Lesson learned: use a dvd rather then a USB. Much less problems this way.

Interesting. I took this as an opportunity for me to try Manjaro to see what it looked like. Installed just fine off a USB.

I said take a photo not a screenshot - most people use their phone.