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How to "translate" grub bootloader to extlinux?

It's my habit to install 2-3 linux's on my computer (some people say it's a bad habit). Usually it's relatively easy for me to edit the /boot/grub/menu.lst to get my old linux's to start after the installation of the new one.

Recently I installed foresight-1.9.9.alpha4+20080222-x86_64. Alpha4 is test version of Foresight which I have used before. It is possible to start Alpha4 either using Syslinux/Extlinux or Grub as the bootloader. I chose Grub to get my other linuxes to start also.

Unfortunately Foresights installer configured the Grub bootloader in such a way that none of my OS's did start. But I used my Mandriva 2007 USB Flash to edit Alpha4's menu.lst and got WinXP and the linux's to start except Alpha4 :mad:

Can you find the error in /boot/grub/menu.lst:
........................................................................
The bootloader displays

Quote:

Booting 'Alpha4 kernel 2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64'

root (hd1,2)
Filesystem type is ext2fs, partition type 0x83

kernel /boot/vmlinux-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64 root=LABEL=/ quiet vga=0x317 splash ro

Error 13: Invalid or unsupported executable format

Press any key to continue ...

reading

Code:

title Alpha4 kernel 2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64

  root (hd1,2)

  kernel /boot/vmlinux-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64 root=LABEL=/ quiet vga=0x317 splash ro

  initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64.img

and the Alpha4's boot-foulder contains

Code:

[root@localhost media]# ls  /mnt/foresight/boot/

config-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64      System.map-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64

extlinux/                                    vmlinux-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64@

grub/                                        vmlinuz-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64

initrd-2.6.23.14-0.0.1.smp.gcc4.1.x86_64.img

[root@localhost media]#

There must be some simple error somewere, but what :scratch:
.........................................................................

Or shall I install Alpha4 again and hope it will generate a working bootloader if I let it use Extlinux?

I will try that but although I have used Google I have not found any examples or other good text how to include the other OS's to the bootloader.

Your boot files are here -->

Quote:

/mnt/foresight/boot/

Your entry in grub points to -->

Quote:

root (hd1,2)
kernel /boot/

Edit the grub entry to read /mnt/foresight/boot.....

and try again. The only other thing I can not verify from your post is the partition; hd1,2. Just remember grub counts from 0 not 1.

Quote:

Originally Posted by camorri (Post 3074807)

Edit the grub entry to read /mnt/foresight/boot

Sorry! I gave misleading information:

The situation:

I have installed Foresight Alpha4 in my second hard disk and Foresight's grub bootladers 1. part is in MBR. When starting the computer grub displayes the list of OS's to be booted. Trying Foresight the unfortunate result is "Error:13". Most propably there is only some small trick to get Foresight booting.

My other OS's boot well because I have edited Foresights /boot/grub/menu.lst copying the relevant text from the OS's own menu.lst's except WindowsXP which is chainloaded.

I can not start Foresight but for ex. Mandriva starts well. Foresight is installed on /dev/hdb3 which I have in Mandriva mounted on /mnt/foresight, thus

Code:

[root@localhost media]# ls /mnt/foresight/boot/

shows the situation in /dev/hdb3 which is / for Foresight's bootloader.

There may be something to develop in Alpha4's installer because it's Foresight 2's test version. I have already raported of that, but I hope I could pass the problem by. And it is also possible I have have made some simple error in editing the menu.lst.

.............................

I have an other option too:

Foresight will propably start well if it uses Selinux/Extlinux bootloader. Unfortunately I do not know anything about it (except that it is a bootloader able to start OS's using chainload). Does anybody know were to get advice how to configure Extlinux?

I believe that the Foresight 2.0 installer does not install grub correctly. When I tell it to install grub to MBR, it does not work and my old grub menu is not replaced. When I tell it to install to the beginning of /dev/hda6 (the foresight / partition) i cannot chainload it using grub from MBR.

When i told it to install with syslinux/extlinux, it did replace my MBR. Because of troubles with it detecting my refresh rate, i couldn't get it to do anything. I also could not boot to my main (ubuntu) partition using the new syslinux bootloader because i am ignorant, and a little slow.

Perhaps I will try to chainload syslinux on hda6 from grub on the MBR... anyone know how to do that?

I'll post again about that somewhere else...

Logan W

Now I have the new Foresight 2.0. But again it's impossible to get it installed to my 2 IDE and 1 SATA hard disk computer.

I ones had Foresights previous version and I liked it. Perhaps it's the time to wait for 2.1 or later version or :study:

grub chainloader is easy.

title chainload partition 3 on drive2
root (hd1,2)
chainloader +1

saikee did this with all 145 distros he tested...me thinks he has too much time.

note that I use root rather than rootnoverify so if above fails change it pls