boot.ini is actually in hda2.


I did a rescue using kubuntu's CD and then grub--install. Was that ok?

fdisk is reliable, I have the same version.
And I have 255 heads too, do you sure it's a problem?
The last thing I'd look to is c:\boot.ini
Here's mine:
xp is at /dev/hda9 (but it thinks it's at the 7th).
Make sure your boot.ini is right.

My LILO boots /dev/hda1, then winloader looks for boot.ini and loads xp.

How can it be? Windows _can't_ work without the beginning of the disk, because it stores its boot files _there_
Can you "ls -l /path/to/hda1" and "ls -l /path/to/hda2"?
And "cat" c:\boot.ini and d:\boot.ini
I'd recommend reinstall GRUB using MDV Install CD. Instead of "Install" option you choose "Upgrade", MDV then checks all dependencies and will offer you to reinstall GRUB (LILO?).

If you somehow got Windows boot files at /dev/hda2 copy them to /dev/hda1 and check /dev/hda1/boot.ini.
If your Windows' at /dev/hda2 primary then your c:\boot.ini should look like

If the disk was in use during fdisk then the changes take place only after reboot. Did you reboot? It's also possible that you didn't write out the partition table with the 'w' command. Changing the head count isn't enough, you also must explicitely write out the new partition table to the disk.

From the hex dump: your ntfs partition MUST start at sector 8195040 and MUST have head value of 240. Don't even try anything utill you get these right.

I'm also puzzled because the partiton start was the correct 8195040 when you run ntfsresize -fi and the ntfs consistency check indeed worked fine as it was expected. Later you wrote that the partition starts at 8209215 and that one definitely is broken. Following that you sent the above hex dump which is again correct, it's indeed the partition start but it can't be because somewhere you made the partition start to be the incorrect 8209215. Well unless you noticed and fixed it again.

fdisk is in util-linux but I doubt you need a newer one. fdisk should just work. You didn't write if there was any error or warning message. Fdisk does warn that the changes may take place only after reboot. So you probably didn't save the modifications.

SMB can boot one partition marked as bootable if booted via the disk option OR it can boot individual partitions directly. What you say is impossible, hda1 is not marked bootable so you couldn't boot from the disk but directly from the partition. See here a screenshot e.g.: http://btmgr.sourceforge.net/scrshots/sbm1.gif 'HD1 0' is hdb (disk), 'HD1 1' is hdb1 (partition 1), 'HD1 2' is hdb2 (partition 2).

But you didn't answer my question. Is Windows running fine if you boot from hda1? If yes then your Windows boot partition is hda1 and you must configure that also correctly with grub.

I also don't understand if your installation is on hda1 then how hda2 can hav also boot.ini :-o It makes no sense.

You are right the /dev/hda1 does have boot.ini, they both have
Here they are:

/dev/hda1 (FAT32 that has the windows installation files)

[boot loader]
timeout=0
default=C:\CMDCONS\BOOTSECT.DAT
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect
C:\CMDCONS\BOOTSECT.DAT="Microsoft Windows Recovery Console" /cmdcons


/dev/hda2 (NTFS, the one with windows XP - installed)

[boot loader]
timeout=0
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS

[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn
C:\CMDCONS\BOOTSECT.DAT="Microsoft Windows XP:n palautuskonsoli" /cmdcons

I know and I tried again but it just doesn't stay at 240. After boot it's back in 255.

Sorry about that, I tried using differend starting points couple times and forgot it to wrong value for a while. It currently has the correct value.

that's strange because the /dev/hda2 (NTFS) has the bootable flag but the dev/hda1 (FAT32) is the only showing in SMB list.

The /dev/hda1 partition boots just fine but it's actually a windows installation partition. See when I bouth this PC they didn't give me a windows CD but instead the installation files are stored in the dev/hda1 where the windows can be installed.
Oh and to make sure we understand each other, I have only one HD.


Ok I'm going to try and figure how to burn those ISO's in CD so I can use the SystemRecoveryCD to reinstall GRUB.

Thanks for all the help.

Well I reinstalled grub again but it didn't help.

These things must be done (true):
1) your XP is at /dev/hda2;
2) move d:\boot.ini to /dev/hda1.
[although, yours is quite strange in comparison with mine. Try mine too (with a bit editing)];
3) you must load /dev/hda1 in GRUB (not /dev/hda2);
4) on my system none of the partitions is bootable, so it's not necessary.

I use LILO and can't say anything about GRUB.
If Mandriva has LILO, you can install LILO and I'll put /etc/lilo.conf, so that you be able to boot in all three OSes.

Then probably mandriva's fdisk is also broken. You REALLY-REALLY-REALLY must set the head number to 240. When NTFS was created then the partition table had value 240. Boot won't work from NTFS unless you restore 240 in the partition table. Try SystemRescueCD or Knoppix.

I used the fdisk in SystemRescueCD to change the head count to 240. And then I typed w and I saw the messages when the partition table was written in disk. However when I went back to fdisk the head count was back in 255 again...

I've never heard such problem. Somwthing must rewrite it to 255 from 240 but what? Do you have some BIOS MBR protection turned on? Some special boot software, hardware driver? Antivirus? However I fail to see how the partitioner could change it from 240 to 255? Are you sure you're editing /dev/hda (note, no number in the end!) and not some other device?

Yes I used /dev/hda. And no I don't have any antivirus software. I'll have to check if there is some protection turned on in BIOS but other than that I don't have any idea what is causing that.

Thanks.

Edit: no protection options in BIOS...

Ok I was able to do this finally using MEPIS. However this is what it said:

Warning: HDIO_GETGEO says that there are 255 heads

Disk /dev/hde: 14593 cylinders, 240 heads, 63 sectors/track
Warning: extended partition does not start at a cylinder boundary.
DOS and Linux will interpret the contents differently.
Old situation:
Units = cylinders of 7741440 bytes, blocks of 1024 bytes, counting from 0

Device Boot Start End #cyls #blocks Id System
/dev/hde1 0+ 541 542- 4097488+ 1b Hidden W95 FAT32
end: (c,h,s) expected (541,239,63) found (510,29,63)
/dev/hde2 * 542 10065- 9524- 71994352+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
start: (c,h,s) expected (542,0,1) found (510,30,1)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde3 10065+ 15505- 5440 41126400 5 Extended
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde4 0 - 0 0 0 Empty
/dev/hde5 12285+ 13096 812- 6138688+ 83 Linux
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde6 13097+ 13244 148- 1118848+ 82 Linux swap
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde7 13245+ 15504 2260- 17085568+ 83 Linux
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde8 10065+ 11174- 1110- 8385867 83 Linux
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
/dev/hde9 11174+ 12284- 1111- 8393931 83 Linux
start: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
end: (c,h,s) expected (1023,239,63) found (1023,254,63)
Warning: given size (82252800) exceeds max allowable size (68462415)

sfdisk: bad input



hmm I wonder why it doesnt accept 82252800.