Hi.

I've installed Slackware 8.1, everything went fine. But now i can't get it to work.....The lilo manager goes berserk...exactly after bios (when lilo boot is supposed to kick in), i only get
L 01 01 01 01 01 01 01 01.....and so on. The lilo boot manager won't start up normally, and only shows L 01 01 01 01 01 01 01 01.

Lilo is installed on MBR, Hda. I have also tried to install it in the root section. But nothing works.

This is my settings.

Hda1 = XP,
Hdd1 = /boot
Hdd2 = /swap
Hdd3 = /root

the lilo.conf checks out ok. I have changed it several times, with working lilo.conf with exaktly my settings. But don't work

Hda1 MBR where Lilo is currently, is not to big only 6 Gig.

Any ideas?

Hmm, I had this problem at one point. When I first installed Slack the thing the install program had for lilo didn't work so I ended up having to edit my lilo.conf file manually. Here's a copy of what it is now, hope it helps.

boot=/dev/hda
map=/boot/map
prompt
nowarn
timeout=1200
message = /boot/boot_message.txt
menu-scheme=wb:bw:wb:bw
ignore-table
disk=/dev/hdd bios=0x82
# Linux bootable partition config begins

# New kernel
image = /boot/vmlinuz2
root = /dev/hdb5
label = Slackware_Linux
read-only

# Old kernel
# If new works, comment this
#image = /boot/vmlinuz3
#root = /dev/hdb5
#label = Old_Slack
#read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends


# Perhaps this will boot Windows, who knows?
other=/dev/hda1
label=WindowsXP
table=/dev/hda
# End the stuff ripped out of the other lilo.conf

# LFS
image = /boot/lfskernel
root = /dev/hdb7
label = LFS
read-only

TheMad

First , restore MBR so that you can boot into XP.
Configure LILO to write it's stuff on your / (root) partition, NOT MBR !

Then you need to edit the boot.ini file that XP uses with it's bootloader, you will need a file that points to your linux partition.
Here's a program that creates bootsect-file and add the required entry in the boot.ini file.

http://www.winimage.com/bootpart.htm
BOOTPART creates a 512 byte file which contains an image of the boot sector that loads the boot sector of the partition. After, this file is declared in C:\BOOT.INI (a text file used by the Windows NT boot menu).

This is an example using the Windows "ntldr" to boot XP,Debian,Slackware and Minslack (CLI only). I created a softlink from the /boot/image (vmlinuz or bzimage) to "/" in order to forego the pleasure of having 2 bootscreens and
booting straight to the kernel. The examples are from Slackware but they're generic. Here's an example of lilo.conf with everything commented out except the essentials.

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
append="hdc=ide-scsi"
boot = /dev/hdb6
#message = /boot/boot_message.txt
#prompt
#timeout = 1
# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:
change-rules
reset
# Normal VGA console
vga = normal
# End LILO global section
# DOS bootable partition config begins

# DOS bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /vmlinuz-ide-2.4.18
root = /dev/hdb6
label = Slack
read-only
# Linux bootable partition config ends

Note that the image= is not in the /boot. Run "/sbin/lilo" If you get a "Warning" that this is not the first partition. You did good. Now create your bootsect file.

root@whatever#dd if=/dev/hdb6 of=/bootsect.slk bs=512 count=1

Copy the bootsect.slk to the drive where "ntldr" and "boot.ini" reside. (Normally Cby using a dos format floppy or e-mail it to yourself.(Not my idea but it was too cool) Then add a line to "boot.ini" Here's mine.

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect
C:\bootsect.dbn ="Debian"
C:\bootsect.slk="Slackware"
C:\bootsect.slm="Minslack"

Reboot and pic your flavor.

ok thanx, i'm gonna test the new ideas i got.

Nice with people who helps eachoter!

Yes... thanks TheMad...

Your suggestion worked for me...

On my workstation... the initial set up set

boot = /dev/hda2

I changed it to /dev/hda

and then

*Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/hda... I changed this to /dev/hda2
label = Slackware_8.1

It is booting with LILO now...

Cool...

So what is the purpose of the /boot/boot_message.txt? Is that logging boot messages? If so how do you set that up?

Hi, all.
I have got a boot problem. In my pc I have 3 installed operating system. And I have got 2 hard disk. Hadware browser show this.

-------------------------------------------------------
/dev/hda
----------hda1 502 MB ext2
----------hda3 298 MB linux-swap
----------hda4 18285 MB ext2
----------hda2 19077 MB Extended
................|-----> hda5 19077 MB ntfs
/dev/hdb
---------- 7640 MB Free space
----------hdb2 30522 MB Extended
................ |-----> hdb5 30522 MB ntfs
8 MB Free space
---------------------------------------------------------

in hda I got
1. Redhat 7.2
2. Windows XP
in hdb
Windows 2000svr

I last install Redhat and it work well now. And lilo show up normall at boot time. But when I select Windows XP to boot up It gives a error 'ntldr could not found press ctrl+alt+del to restart'. When I select Windows 2000 it get stack and notting happens. Please help me. I need at least linux and XP to work.
thanks

Your xp parititon is in the way back in the extended...oh boy windows isn't going to like that too much...to me windows always wants to be in the first partition in my hdd...but post your lilo.conf and then maybe we can start there...

and i am wondering..why are you sticking all your windows in the logical partitions??? it seems your win 2000 is also in the logical...it's better to have those in ur primary....for me this gives less geometry error...

Hey karanba,

I had the same issue on two different systems running W2K and Slack. I put lilo in MBR and after the install, Slack started, but W2K did not. I went into the lilo.conf and noticed that it had located my W2K install to hda3 when it was in fact on hda1. This may not be the case with you but it is something to check!

its easier to make your extended partitions primary, in stead of logical.

if the partition is logical, it won't boot.

and for the 1st post.

boot with dos floppy
fdisk /mbr

than start up slackware from cd-rom
add these parameters

bare.i root=/dev/hda1 image=/boot/vmlinuz noinitrd ro

than edit your /etc/lilo.conf

than load lilo

/sbin/lilo

and it would write good.

have fun and good luck