Hello all

I am having trouble with linux install...allright...
I have a dell dimension 4100 1ghz maching with 384 megs of ram. The hardrive is a 80 gig hdd. Here is the problem... I wanna install slackware on this machine. I burnt the ISO (correctly) Like 3 times. I keep putting them in the computer and got nothing...no emulation about it booting from cd at all....nada... I have installed slackware and many other distrobutions before on many systems. I made sure the boot order was correct(i even made the cd-rom the only only on the list!) But what is really throwing me off is this, I pop in a debian or a ubuntu disk and it boots and starts installing fine....So i figured it was just my cds.... but so i try all 3 of them on my laptop and they all boot up fine... i dont understand this. Somone please give me some advise!

Try grabbing a different ISO, or an ISO from a different mirror.

Sounds like the isoLinux section of the iso is b0rked

Ah , I thought maybe it was just the cd-rom for some reason, so i replaced it... same thing...

Thats very odd.
I suggest you try a different version of slackware and then use swaret or something similar to upgrade.

It sounds to me that there may be something wrong with the ISO for the version you are trying or rather some very odd condition where your burner cannot handle this specific sequence.

Or you bought a bad spool of CD-r's

Hi,

I don't think this is a media issue. The OP states that he changed systems and the distro booted. I don't think changing version levels is the way to go.

I would try using 'sbootmgr' first to see if the problem is BIOS related. sbootmgr will boot any recognized devices. If you select the cdrom device from the 'sbootmgr' screen and the system still doesn't boot.

I would check which ide channel the cdrom is on. Some dell machines have a problem booting from ide1. If this is the problem, just move the cdrom to the ide0 channel. I've worked on some Dell systems that require the cdrom as master on the ide0 channel. I really don't like setting the cdrom as master on the ide0 channel but if that what is takes to get an install then go for it.

If you don't want a cdrom install, can you go with a 'NFS' install using a usb stick or floppy for the install1/2 disk, network.dsk?

I dont think its a boot chain error... user states that ubuntu et al install fine:

Hi,

Missed that! I hit the quote when I saw the first paragraph without reading the rest. Sorry!

Just so I'm sure I've got this right---you burned the 3 slack 11 install iso's
1) they wont boot on your Dell 4100 box
2) they do boot on your laptop
3) ubuntu disk will boot on your Dell 4100

Or is it that you burned 1 slack DVD 3 times... and all 3 three of the dvd's give
these results? if this is the case, and if the dimension can't read dvd's,
the results you describe make sense else, I'm a loss....

--Lawrence

I've had the same problem on my old computer. I cant get the new Slackware Linux to boot from the iso cds Ive been burning. The system boots all other Linux disks I have (knoppix and ubuntu) but not the Slackware. This cd also boots on other systems fine so its apparently not the cd or the system.

Does anyone know how to get this cd to boot? Is it just some sort of problem with the new slackware iso files that they wont boot on older systems or something. Seems very strange to me..

Hi,
My sympathies on the iso troubles...the install iso's I burned
worked perfectly..If you can, post exactly which iso's from which
mirror. Also, did you check that the .asc and .md5 checks verified the
download?

For instance I downloaded the three cd iso's beginning with

slackware-11.0-install-d1.iso

and the associated .asc and .md5 files from

http://slackware.cs.utah.edu/pub/sla...ware-11.0-iso/

If there is a mirror with bad/corrupted iso's out there you could
save many folks from having the same difficulty. But in any case,

Merry Christmas,
--Lawrence

I had the exact same problem with a Dell Dimension 4100. When I try to boot to the slackware cdrom #1, it just goes straight to windows. Is there a workaround using floppy disks?

I should point out that I tried several different boot order configurations attempting to get the cd to boot...

After mounting the first install iso in /mnt/cdrom And changing
to /mnt/cdrom as my working directory,
#dir -1
shows these files and directories:

ANNOUNCE.11_0
BOOTING.TXT
CHANGES_AND_HINTS.TXT
CHECKSUMS.md5
CHECKSUMS.md5.asc
COPYING
COPYRIGHT.TXT
CRYPTO_NOTICE.TXT
ChangeLog.txt
FAQ.TXT
FILELIST.TXT
GPG-KEY
PACKAGES.TXT
README.NPTL
README.TXT
READ_D1.TXT
RELEASE_NOTES
SPEAKUP_DOCS.TXT
SPEAK_INSTALL.TXT
Slackware-HOWTO
UPGRADE.TXT
isolinux/
kernels/
slackware/

Is this what you see in your cd? If this is _not_ what your iso#1
has in it, would you post the name of the file you downloaded
and which mirror you got it from? If other cd's can boot from
your cd player, this isn't a boot order problem. Ordinarily, the
name of the first install iso is:

slackware-11.0-install-d1.iso

--Lawrence

i tried ANOTHER cd.... to no avail.... I dont have a floppy drive in which i can use. this sucks. The md5's on all my copies are correct,i dont know what to do.

I'm not sure if this applies to burning iso files, but did you make the disk bootable when burning it? If not, maybe it's worth a try.

DemetriusCrisco, more often than I like to admit, I've had to take a breath,
step away from the computer, and think: _why_ is there a difference in
what I expect and what this computer is doing?
Here are some facts your posts seem to indicate:

1) This computer can boot other bootable cd's
2) The Slackware cd's you burn can boot on other computers
3) The iso's md5 checksums agrees with the published md5
string
4) You have installed Slackware many times before
5) There is no floppy drive

For me, a bootable cd following the El Torito standard either boots or it doesn't.
A cd reader boot-enabled by the bios that can boot one properly
burned cd, can boot any other properly burned cd.

This sounds a lot like a closed room murder mystery....The
appearance of the facts make it impossible for a murder to have
happened...yet there's the dead body...

Although you've not directly answered my question about this,
If we assume that your disk is the Slackware cd image and *not*
the Slackware dvd image, the choice left appears to be a network
install if the Dell has a ethernet card.

Best wishes,
--Lawrence