LinuxQuestions.org - Lilo displaying "01010101010101"

- Linux - Desktop (https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/linux-desktop-74/)

- - Lilo displaying "01010101010101" (https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/linux-desktop-74/lilo-displaying-01010101010101-a-656681/)

I did some poking around in google but couldn't find a bios manual for your specific model. Doesn't look like Gateway keeps those things on record for their legacy products. However, I'm surprised that there isn't a LBA/auto option anywhere in the bios, as the Intel site seemed to indicate that it was an option. Boards of this era (mine is of similar vintage) typically did not support LBA2 out of the box. For Windows, typically a driver from Intel or Microsoft (XP SP1 and after) provided support > 128 G. Of course, once you get past BIOS and boot the system, slackware, like Windows, will have no problem supporting the hardware. You might try some lilo options like "lba32" or "linear" if you want to go back to lilo, I'm not sure about the relevant options for grub.

Sounds like some kind of windows problem

Quote:

Originally Posted by MafiaTux (Post 3233985)

Sounds like some kind of windows problem

Umm. Not quite sure how you mean, considering windows isnt started up yet, nor have I started it in the last few days... Yes windows did take control when I "installed" lilo to the master boot record of hda, however after I installed grub it gave me another error message. So what exactly do you mean its a "windows problem"?

DragonM15

Quote:

Fadoksi, I am highly considering using grub. I will have to do some research on installing it. Have you had any experience installing grub from a system that originally comes with lilo?

When I had Slackware some time in the past, I replaced LILO with GRUB since I like it more. I had no problems with it. If the BIOS causes the problem maybe a BIOS upgrade would be a good idea.

I didn't see any support, including BIOS upgrade for his system on Gateway's site.

I am a dozy **** (as we say in Oldham), I should have noticed lba32 was missing from your lilo.conf, it's recommended to put it in the global options. Although I wouldn't have known whether that was causing the problem.

I am not sure where to go from here. I have looked through the bios multiple times trying to find something that I didnt see the time before and have come up empty handed. I added lba32 to my lilo.conf and reloaded lilo, but it still gives me the "L 01 01 01" error. My lilo.conf now looks like this:

Code:

# LILO configuration file

# generated by 'liloconfig'

#

# Start LILO global section

# Append any additional kernel parameters:

append=" vt.default_utf8=0"

boot = /dev/hda



# Boot BMP Image.

# Bitmap in BMP format: 640x480x8

  bitmap = /boot/slack.bmp

# Menu colors (foreground, background, shadow, highlighted

# foreground, highlighted background, highlighted shadow):

  bmp-colors = 255,0,255,0,255,0

# Location of the option table: location x, location y, number of

# columns, lines per column (max 15), "spill" (this is how many

# entries must be in the first column before the next begins to

# be used.  We don't specify it here, as there's just one column.

  bmp-table = 60,6,1,16

# Timer location x, timer location y, foreground color,

# background color, shadow color.

  bmp-timer = 65,27,0,255



# Standard menu.

# Or, you can comment out the bitmap menu above and

# use a boot message with the standard menu:

#message = /boot/boot_message.txt



# Wait until the timeout to boot (if commented out, boot the

# first entry immediately):

prompt

# Timeout before the first entry boots.

# This is given in tenths of a second, so 600 for every minute:

timeout = 1200

# Override dangerous defaults that rewrite the partition table:

lba32

change-rules

  reset

# 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

# End LILO global section

# Windows bootable partition config begins

other = /dev/hda1

  label = Windows

  table = /dev/hda

# Windows bootable partition config ends

# Linux bootable partition config begins

image = /boot/vmlinuz

  root = /dev/hda3

  label = Linux

  read-only

# Linux bootable partition config ends

Should the lba32 option be put somewhere else, or is it fine where it is at?

Thanks,
DragonM15

I put it just after reset, before all the framebuffer entries. Not sure if it matters, as long as it's in the global options.

Did you try "linear"?

Quote:

Originally Posted by mostlyharmless (Post 3241268)

Did you try "linear"?

I tried linear, lba32, and I also moved it up to in between the framebuffer entries and reset. All no no avail. I still receive the
L 01 01 01 01.... error.

I am convinced at this point that the problem exists in the bios, but I have looked and looked and can't find anything that looks wrong. I find it kinda wierd that I have never had this problem on ANY other computer I have installed linux on. Anyways, I will take another look through the bios for the heck of it and hope I can see something.

DragonM15

Just an idea, since nothing else is working..

Going back to Grub, I wonder whether the problem is at Stage 1.5 or 2; rather than try grubconfig (which I've had problems with), try making a grub boot floppy or use SuperGrub (http://www.supergrubdisk.org )and install grub straight from the grub prompt. If nothing else, the grub shell commands about the geometry might be helpful or illuminating.

I had this problem a while back. I think its an MBR problem, I just cant remember what I did to fix it :(

but I dont think its logical to install grub (and you say you have done that, and it still wont work) lilo works perfectly well, somethings just gone a bit wrong in this case.

as a last resort I think if you re-installed slackware it would probably solve the problem.

I think that may have been what I did in the end.

I have no experience with LILO, but seeing as you received a GRUB error 17 i know what the problem is. Your hard drive order is all screwey (or not). I've come across this many many times and the solution is almost always the same. It's rather difficult to explain this, but here's my attempt:

BIOS is reporting your hard drives to GRUB as:

hd0
hd1
hd2

GRUB sees these drives in the same manor, which is why GRUB started to load (the MBR for the correct drive was obviously found). However, the GRUB menu.lst config file reports the drives as they're /dev name:

hda
hdb
hdc

Here's the neat part that angers me. Not always does hda = hd0 etc etc. This is when errors start to happen. GRUB from MBR is looking for /boot in the wrong place because the naming scheme got all whack somewhere during installation/probing. Solution: Manually locate /boot and re-establish GRUB's understanding of its location.

Here's how:

As stated before, make a GRUB boot floppy disk and boot up the computer with this floppy (if no floppy drive is available i think a USB flashdrive might work, but i haven't tried it). You will be presented with the GRUB prompt.

From the GRUB prompt you need to determine which drive is what (hd0, hd1, etc) including their partitions (hd0,0 hd0,1 etc). You need to get a clear understanding and pin point your /boot directory (it's in / partition unless you gave /boot its own partition) and you also need to pinpoint which drive's MBR contains GRUB.

Now, let's tell GRUB which partition contains /boot. Example:

root (hd0,1)

Now lets re-setup GRUB in the MBR. Example:

setup (hd0)

That should be it. If you've correctly identified the correct drives & partitions when you reboot GRUB should load. If not, try try again. ;)

i had the same problem and i remember what i did , since it happen recently
i had the hda1 (with the mbr ofc ) on the primary IDE as a SLAVE
it seems that there was some confusion with the entries and identifications of hda1 since it searched it as Master
so i opened the case and switched from SLAVE TO MASTER the hd and the dvd-r on primary IDE
hope it hlps :)