Dual boot problems with slack and xp

tikifire2 · 10-23-2010, 08:49 AM

Hello everyone. I am fairly new to linux. I had my laptop dualbooting windows xp and ubuntu 10.04 32 bit. I decided to install slackware 13.1 and did so via the 13.1 iso dvd. While going through the install process I made a usb boot stick. When I tried to install lilo to the mbr it came back with an error and said it hadn't installed. Upon restarting my computer I get and error and can't boot into either xp or slack. I can get into slack via the usb boot stick though. The lilo.conf file looks good but I still get an error after saving the file and running /sbin/lilo:

# /sbin/lilo
Warning: Device 0x0800: Inconsistent partition table, 1st entry
CHS address in PT: 0:1:1 --> LBA (63)
LBA address in PT: 15 --> CHS (0:0:16)
Fatal: Either FIX-TABLE or IGNORE-TABLE must be specified
If not sure, first try IGNORE-TABLE (-P ignore)

I then ran fdisk -l and get the following:

# fdisk -l

Disk /dev/sda: 160.0 GB, 160041885696 bytes
190 heads, 15 sectors/track, 109677 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 2850 * 512 = 1459200 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xc266c266

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 91728 130712392+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2 91729 109677 25577325 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 91729 108306 23623642+ 83 Linux
/dev/sda6 108307 109677 1953667+ 82 Linux swap

Disk /dev/sdb: 2055 MB, 2055019520 bytes
64 heads, 62 sectors/track, 1011 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 3968 * 512 = 2031616 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xb0bcd68e

This doesn't look like a partition table
Probably you selected the wrong device.

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 ? 812341 874508 123339962 78 Unknown
Partition 1 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(518, 102, 15) logical=(812340, 26, 50)
Partition 1 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(743, 0, 62) logical=(874507, 47, 15)
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb2 ? 109091 304576 387841909+ 10 OPUS
Partition 2 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(205, 7, 0) logical=(109090, 32, 14)
Partition 2 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(920, 235, 50) logical=(304575, 21, 34)
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb3 ? 471160 954837 959615034 8b Unknown
Partition 3 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(260, 125, 54) logical=(471159, 58, 56)
Partition 3 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(893, 46, 60) logical=(954836, 54, 35)
Partition 3 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb4 ? 942 958 32768 a OS/2 Boot Manager
Partition 4 has different physical/logical beginnings (non-Linux?):
phys=(269, 111, 50) logical=(941, 26, 53)
Partition 4 has different physical/logical endings:
phys=(0, 0, 0) logical=(957, 59, 54)
Partition 4 does not end on cylinder boundary.

Partition table entries are not in disk order

Here is my lilo.conf file:

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS
boot = /dev/sda
#compact # faster, but won't work on all systems.
# Append any additional kernel parameters:
append=" vt.default_utf8=0"
prompt
timeout = 300
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# ramdisk = 0 # paranoia setting
# End LILO global section
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = Windows
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda5
label = Slackware
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends

One final note is that as I was searching the web for answers to this problem I came across a site that mentioned having to run /sbin/lilo -u prior to changing linux distros or removing the linux os from your system altogher. I did not do this.

Hopefully I have included the needed information. Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you.

rfernandez · 10-23-2010, 01:29 PM

Have you tried "# /sbin/lilo -P ignore" ? From man lilo:

Code:

-P {fix|ignore|<global-option>}
              Fix or ignore `corrupt' partition tables, i.e., partition tables  with  linear  and  cylinder/head/sector
              addresses  that do not correspond.  Always try -P ignore first, as -P fix will re-write the partition ta-
              ble, possibly destroying all partitions on the disk.

              -P ignore is also used to bypass the partition table check for partition types within the partition table
              which  might  not  allow the installation of a LILO boot sector.  Compare with the "-F" flag, which over-
              rides the check of the actual boot sector.

              -P <global-option> allows the passing of any global option which may appear in the global  section  (top)
              of  the configuration file (/etc/lilo.conf).  For instance, -P nowarn will pass the "nowarn" option, just
              as though "nowarn" appeared in the configuration file (same as the "-w"  switch).   Similarly,  -P  time-
              out=50  will  add  or  override  the "timeout=" line in the configuration file.  Note that the general -P
              switch actually duplicates a number of command line option switches.  However, it  is  not  strictly  the
              same  as  some  switches  whick  cause  an override of other options; e.g., "-g" (-P geometric), "-L" (-P
              lba32).

EDIT: backup is important!

tikifire2 · 10-23-2010, 07:31 PM

That worked. Thank you. I had typed the /sbin/lilo -P but hadn't put ingore at the end. Still trying to figure out the options of the command line.

I definitely have everything backed up. Lost too much over the years not too.

Thanks again for the help.