Please help me fix GRUB

nyheat · 08-31-2005, 12:37 PM

Solved - thanks to all that helped.

I recently installed Fedora Core on my system and now GRUB wont let me load into Ubuntu

GRUB shows 3 systems, but will only load WindowsXP and Fedora, but not Ubunu.
Here is the error I get:

Code:

	Booting "Ubuntu"

rootnoverify (hd0,5)
chainloader +1

Error 13: Invalid or unsupported executable format

Press any key to continue...

My hard drive is partitioned like so:

Primary Partition 1
- WindowsXP

Primary Partiion 2
- Ubuntu
- Fedora Core
- Swap space

This is what's inside my grub.conf file:

Code:

#boot=/dev/hda
default=0
timeout=5
splashimage=(hd0,5)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz
hiddenmenu
title Fedora Core (2.6.11-1.1369_FC4)
	root (hd0,5)
	kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.11-1.1369_FC4 ro root=LABEL=Fedora rhgb quiet
	initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.11-1.1369_FC4.img
title WindowsXP Pro
	rootnoverify (hd0,0)
	chainloader +1
title Ubuntu
	rootnoverify (hd0,5)
	chainloader +1

and this is what I get when I type in fdisk -l

Code:

[root@700m ~]# fdisk -l

Disk /dev/hda: 40.0 GB, 40007761920 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 4864 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1   *           1        2040    16386268+   c  W95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/hda2            2041        4864    22683780    f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/hda5   *        2041        3315    10241406   83  Linux
/dev/hda6            3316        4717    11261533+  83  Linux
/dev/hda7            4718        4864     1180746   82  Linux swap / Solaris

Disk /dev/sda: 262 MB, 262144000 bytes
32 heads, 33 sectors/track, 484 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 1056 * 512 = 540672 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sda1   *           1         485      255984    b  W95 FAT32
Partition 1 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
     phys=(0, 1, 1) logical=(0, 0, 33)
Partition 1 has different physical/logical endings:
     phys=(254, 31, 33) logical=(484, 27, 5)

what I couldn't understand is why Fedora thinks it's on hda5, when it's supposed to be on hda6
I can still mount Ubuntu and I can see that all the files are there untouched, and I tried changing grub.conf to hda3,hda4,hda5,hda6 and I always get the same error

homey · 08-31-2005, 01:11 PM

Quote:

title Fedora Core (2.6.11-1.1369_FC4)
root (hd0,5)

If Fedora is on /dev/hda6 then that is correct and your Ubumpu entry is incorrect.

While in Fedora, mount the partition /dev/hda5 and get the correct information for your grub.conf that should be used for the Ubuntu entry.

nyheat · 08-31-2005, 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by homey
If Fedora is on /dev/hda6 then that is correct and your Ubumpu entry is incorrect.

While in Fedora, mount the partition /dev/hda5 and get the correct information for your grub.conf that should be used for the Ubuntu entry.

I did as you said.
I mounted the partition, looked up the grub.conf in Ubuntu, copied over the 'correct' information, and ended up with this new but similiar error:

Code:

 Booting 'Ubuntu'

root (hd0,4)
 Filesystem type is ext2fs, partition type 0x83
chainloader +1

Error 13: Invalid or sunporrted executable format

Press any key to continue...

homey · 08-31-2005, 02:32 PM

I think the Unbuntu grub.conf should look more like other linux entries.
Here is an example but you need to put the correct vmlinuz and initrd information.

title Ubuntu Linux
root (hd0,4)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.10-5-386 root=/dev/hda5 ro quiet splash vga=792
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.10-5-386

nyheat · 08-31-2005, 04:54 PM

this is my grub.conf after all the changes:

Code:

default=0
timeout=5
splashimage=(hd0,5)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title Fedora Core
	root (hd0,5)
	kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.11-1.1369_FC4 ro root=LABEL=Fedora rhgb quiet
	initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.11-1.1369_FC4.img
title Windows XP Professional
	rootnoverify (hd0,0)
	chainloader +1
title Ubuntu
	root (hd0,4)
	chainloader +1
	kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.10-5-386 root=/dev/hda5 ro quiet splash
	initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.10-5-386

I am still getting the same problem

comprookie2000 · 08-31-2005, 04:59 PM

Is there a reason you want to chainload ubuntu?
title Ubuntu
root (hd0,4)
chainloader +1
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.10-5-386 root=/dev/hda4 ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.10-5-386

WhatsHisName · 08-31-2005, 05:26 PM

nyheat: It would be helpful if you would post the Ubuntu (hda5) /boot/grub/menu.lst and /etc/fstab in their entireties.

Did the partition numbering for the Ubuntu partition change as a result of installing FC?

You may find that the Ubuntu and/or swap partitions are misidentified in the Ubuntu fstab, but I would normally expect a kernel panic, not a grub error, if that was the case.

nyheat · 08-31-2005, 05:32 PM

Comprookie2000, what is chainloading? why does Fedora have it on by default?
Regardless, I took it off the list and everything works now. Thank you

PS: WhatsHisName thanks for the help but since the problem is now solved there's no need for me to post it.

comprookie2000 · 08-31-2005, 05:45 PM

As I undrstand it is a way of tricking windows into thinking it is still on the MBR.Something like that, I think