after a right installation of Linux Mandrake 8.1 on brand new maxdata, linux doesn't boot correctly :

(...)
CPU: AMD Athlon(tm) XP 1600+ stepping 02
(...)
ntrr : v1.40
(...)
PCI : Using IRQ router default ...
isapnp : scanning for PnP cards ...
CPU 0 : Machine Check Exception : 0000...007
Bank 3 : b4000...83b at 34000...83b
Kernel Panic : unable to continue.

Any idea ? (it might be due to the 'XP' part in the name of the processor...)
I'm also a little bit worried for the installation program didn't ask me for the screen model ...

this happens after you went through all the configuration process when you booted off of the CD right?
I highly doubt that it is because of the XP of the processor, that has nothing to do with it. I could think of a couple of things, but the strange part is that, from what you say, this is after completely installing Mandy, correct?

If this is after you installed Mandy it means the Linux kernel already booted once (for installation) and most likelt differs from the kernel you are using to boot your system after installation. The only easy thing that comes to my mind now is to try to boot into installation again, change VT with Alt+F2 and then try to copy another kernel from the cd and replace the one you are using now. This might solve it, later when you can boot your OS you can investigate what is wrong further, and it's not the processor, i have the same one and it works.
Hope that helps

-NSKL

I dont think that XP has anything to do with a kernel panic, because I am running RedHat 7.2 & Mandrake 8.2 on an XP1800 Athlon with 256 Mb DDR PC2100 ram. I doubt your hardware is the culprit. When you boot do you use LILO or GRUB, my Mandy install had both but when I used LILO it had several options on booting Mandrake, Failsafe, Floppy. if there is more than one option at boot time then try them all. It may be easiest to reinstall Mandy the first time I install 8.2 I went by recommended and it failed so I reinstalled a second time & used expert option & it worked great. Don't be afraid of the expert option it isn't to hard & let's you make more decisions about the setup.

Good luck

Bubba169

I use an Athlon XP 1600+ with Red Hat and there's no problems there. I have had kernel panics with this system when I had my DDR timings set too high. Try going into your bios and set your memory access timings to automatic or lowest setting and see if that helps.

Sorry for answering so late. I'll reply you all :

# zLinuxz
The kernel panic took place after completely installing Mandy, I mean when I first turned on my computer after the installation.


# NSKL
I tryed to "boot into installation again",
but didn't manage to "change VT with Alt+F2" (first because nothing happen when I press these keys, and then becouse I don't exactly know what VT is),
neither did I manage to "copy another kernel from the cd and replace the one I am using now" (what do I have to do ?).

# bubba169
You told me : I doubt your hardware is the culprit ; I now believe you and am relieved.
I'm using lilo, and I tryed the three options : linux, failsafe ...,
none of them did work.
I already installed mandy in "expert" mode, and I hope I won't have to reinstall it (I've done it 10 times on my pentium166, and then 2 times on my athlon1600).

# Amerist
I didn't find DDR timings settings in my bios : I don't know wether my memory access timings are set to "automatic or lowest setting" but you may help me once again.
Here is a page of my bios :
memory frequence access for [sync]
DRAM cas select [spd ]
at bus clock [clk2/4]
... [disabled]
... [128 MB]
... [32Mb]
... [Auto]
... [Disabled]
I/O recovery period [1 us]

Are you overclocking that XP? and is it running hot?
Both of these are the main culprits for Machine Check Exception errors.

I've never overclocked a pc and I don't know what good temperature is ... What can I do to run it cooler? Is it related to the "memory access timing" Amerist was talking about?

Machine Check Exceptions are usually CPU related, but sometimes can be caused by faulty ram. Do you know what temp the cpu is running at? You can have a look for a system health status section in your bios with a temp reading, and putting a bigger/better quality heatsink/fan on the cpu will bring down the temp.

I went in my bios :
I think I have to leave "CPU external and internal cache" enabled.
I also can read :

boot up system speed [high] -> I set it to low
gate A20 option [fast] -> I set it to normal

Result : no improvement...

I have the same machine check exception problem with Mandrake 8.1, only it comes up during the first couple of seconds during the install. I'm using a Duron 900 with DDR ram. No adjustments in the BIOS seem to help. I started a thread in the distibutions forum about this.

Rob

I'd bet one of two very different things.
1) your kernel is looking for pnp ISA cards, of which there should be none on a board that supports an Athlon XP
2) you have a faulty memory chip, as that bank3 error sounds a lot like
a memory problem.

solutions:
1) You need to boot with a kernel that doesn't have isapnp support built
in. This can be done by booting with your CDROM. It should give you a
boot prompt just before it starts to load linux. If it does, and it uses
LILO, do the following at the prompt:
hit <Left Shift>
type:
mount root=/dev/hdXX
hit <ENTER>
where hdXX is the root partition of your installation. (maybe /dev/hda1,
you should have seen this when going through the partitioning during
install.
You'll boot into your new system using the kernel on the CD, but using
the hard drive as your filesystem. This means you can boot into a
writable system (unlike CDROM, which is read only). If this works,
copy the kernel from the Mandrake CD, (which is probably in a place like
/boot/vmlinuz, though I've never used Mandrake, so I don't know) to
/boot/vmlinuz-test
Edit /etc/lilo.conf and add the following just above any other 'image="
lines:
where /dev/hdXX is the root partition.
If there is an "image=blah" line with a "default=" line, comment that out
run lilo:
reboot, remove your CDROM, and try again.

2) You can check your memory using memtest86
http://memtest86.com

If Mandrake uses GRUB instead of LILO, you'll need to read up a bit on
GRUB -- I don't use it, and haven't bothered to learn it, but it should
allow the same sort of parameter passing to the kernel.

Thanks a lot, it worked !
Though I couldn't do it with the Mandrake bootable cdrom
(when booting the install cdrom, press F1 then F2,
at the 'boot' prompt I tryed :
boot: mount root=/dev/hda1 -> no kernel 'mount'
boot: alt0 root=/dev/hda2 -> ...didn't work, because
it started an installation...)
I managed to get the kernel.


Summary of what I did (it may help someone later):

1) get from a friend :
- 1 CDROM DemoLinux
- 3 CDROM Mandrake9.0

2) install Mandrake9.0
- choose ext2 format type which DemoLinux do recognize

3) boot with DemoLinux cdrom, then

mkdir /mnt/cdrom1
mount -t iso9660 /dev/cdrom1 /mnt/cdrom1
cp /mnt/cdrom1/isolinux/alt0/wmlinuz /mnt/hda1/boot/vmlinuz_test

emacs /mnt/hda1/etc/lilo.conf
>image=/boot/vmlinuz_test
> root=/dev/hda1
> label=Test_kernel
> read-only

chroot /mnt/hda1 lilo

4) I now have to compile a kernel since the
bootable mandrake kernel can't :
- produce sound,
- print,
- read, write fat32,
- write floppy

Dude/Dudette

just check your ram. If you have a proggie that will post your ram before an actual boot, this may help.

I've had some wierd things happen during initial installs due to very minute ram probz.
SuSE's boot CD has one built in. It does fine. Can be a lenghty process, but it hasn't failed me yet.

L8rz

I had the same problem and what I founded was that there existed a bug in the kernel when working with AMD XP chipset and an AGP card. AMD submitted the path to the kernel but there were distributions with that problem (Mandrake 8.1)