can't boot

spate · 01-24-2003, 04:57 PM

I took a test the other day for a linux admin job. One part of the test was break and fix. When I got to the computer, the memory module was unplugged, and the HD cable was unplugged. When I finally got the PC to start, all I got was "insert bootable disk", or something. It was like the message you get when you leave a floppy in the drive when you reboot.

The BIOS recognized the HD and the HD was set to boot after the cd and floppy.

Any ideas as to what the problem was?

Thanks

acid_kewpie · 01-24-2003, 05:03 PM

the bios was not set to boot from the drive
the drive had no boot sector / an invalid boot sector
the drive didn't have an active boot sector for dos (not relevant i guess)
someone had just written "insert bootable disk" on the screen in tippex
the drive was actually a piece of cheddar

ok.. maybe the last ones are pushing it...

spate · 01-24-2003, 05:30 PM

I had just finished installing the OS (slackware 8.0), and it was working fine. I had to leave the room for about five minutes, when I came back and rebooted, I got the error.

The bios was set to boot the HD third.