I am trying to install Mandrake Linux 8.1 on a Compaq Armada 7750MT notebook. Setup has successfully completed, and when I reboot I get the expeceted boot selecter. I can choose to boot linux, failsafe, or from the floppy. If I choose Linux or failsafe, it goes through the expected procedure of booting the linux kernel, etc..., but before I get a command line or X starts, it displays an infinite loop of hexedecimal numbers that look something like [<c01f4d745>] and the system becomes unresponsive.

I have repeated installation using recommended setup and expert setup, trying different configurations (although I'm not sure it would make a difference) and gotten no results. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

sounds icky.

can you use an interactive boot to find which service is causing this, assuming that it is a particular service.

if you can get in that wat check /var/log/messages to see if there's anythign vaguley useful there....

I have the same error message as the original post-er

Someone please help, I can boot to install any of the 3 packages, but once the install finishes, as soon as loading initrd comes up and finsihes, I get a bunch of error codes [<c1xxxxxx>] error desc. (doesn't help)

in a constant infinite loop!

the errors were scrolling so fast!! the pause button didn't work, the only way I could catch what it said was with a quick snapshot using my digital camera, which picked them up nicely...

[<c01094da] show_stack [kernel] 0x7a (0xdffdee2a))

others similar:

show_registers,
do_page_fault
vgacon_cursor
speakup_con_update
vt_console_print
__call console drivers
show_trace
show_stack
die (how descriptive)

I believe that's all of them, they repeat

I have no idea what it is.

P4 1.8A
Asus P4b266
512MB PC2100 DDR
SB Audigy
Soho Net Card 10/100 net card
Adaptec 2940AU
Asus GeForce 3 Deluxe
Pioneer 10X SCSI DVD
Matshita 24X SCSI CDRom
LiteON 40/12/48 IDE CDRW (externall, off)
Maxtor 60GB UDMA100 7200RPM

Is initrd a service?

Can you disable it?

#Garry

I don't know if it's an initrd service, hell I don't even know what that is other than it launches at boot.
I can't get anywhere in order to disable it.

I can't boot into single mode,
same error, boot disk or HD

Mandrake 9.0 Bootdisk & HD,
Mandrake 8.2 from HD

all same errors, RH has better description of error though.

Here are the snapshots from my digital camera..
forgive the flash, but it had to be on in order to have the quickest shutter speed to actually get what was on the screen..

Here we see everything booting fine...
http://members.rogers.com/danis/step1.jpg

here we see everything ok, BUT - Unknown bridge - assuming transparent???
http://members.rogers.com/danis/step2a.jpg

here it is again, slightly different, with some PCI cards removed, can't remember which ones...
http://members.rogers.com/danis/step2b.jpg

and here are the crap codes that keep appearing infinitely...
http://members.rogers.com/danis/step3.jpg

I believe those are all the different kinds, just repeating over and over...

Well, any help is appreciated...

I pulled out all my cards one by one cept my Geforce3, and same error, onboard sound disabled, tried disabling onboard USB 2, nothing.

I think it's something that I can't disable.
I can't boot,
I can't boot safe/single, whatever.

What gets me is that it boots fine and initializes everything fine for the setup meaning it has to detect all my devices and such in order to setup them up during install - it's the first boot that kills it.

Tried linux noapic,
apic is off in bios, using pic,
tried without the scsi card
(mind you I didn't reinstall all those times in between swapping cards, I don't think I'd have that much patience).

Any help appreciated, thanks guys...

For anyone else having this problem I did finally figure it out, Nov 2003, a full year since the bug.

What a stupid bug too, in the System Bios, BIOS UPDATE had to be enabled for me.

The whole time I had it disabled, and that's what apparently threw 3 distros and god knows how many kernels into an infinite loop on boot (not install, that went fine).

So if anyone has this error, let it be known, after searching the vast corners of cyberspace, this is the only forum with the solution.

CASE CLOSED! finally.