I have found LQ to be most helpful. Please help with my first MDK 9.2 install.

I get a hang on file-system check on boot. The system hangs when checking ALSA 0.6.9. I read somewhere to avoid installing GNOME b/c it uses this file and using only the default KDE desktop would avoid the conflict. No such luck.

I am dual booting with WinXP Pro. I have separate partitions for each OS.

I've tried the "rescue" feature in the emergency boot program. No luck. I also read that installing cdialog or newt would solve the problem. Not sure where to install these at. Command line from rescue function?

Also seen I can turn off the filesystem check intervals by using: tune2fs -i 0 /dev/hda2. MDK is on my hda2. Not sure where to do this command either.

I cannot get MDK to boot past ALSA. I'm a total newbie and need some help in plain english.

Please help!!!

"Also seen I can turn off the filesystem check intervals by using: tune2fs -i 0 /dev/hda2. MDK is on my hda2. Not sure where to do this command either."

You can do this from the command line of any Linux system as long as /dev/hda2 is not mounted. So you could boot tomsrtbt and enter the tune2fs command. You could use knoppix. With knoppix you will have to umount /dev/hda2 before entering the tune2fs command. If the Mandrake rescue system will give you a command line you could issue:
umount /dev/hda2
to make sure the partition is not mounted. Then issue:
tune2fs -i 0 /dev/hda2

When you get things straightened away I suggest that you take the time to make yourself a decent rescue system:
http://users.rcn.com/srstites/LifeBo...home.page.html

___________________________________
Steve Stites

Thank you for the help Steve.

I booted to rescue mode and then selected command line. The unmount command was not recognized. The tune2fs command worked properly. Issued "reboot" and the computer rebooted and proceeded to go thru the file-system check like before and got hung again.

Any other suggestions? How do I load newt without having a working linux distro?

How do I use knoppix and tomsrbtb to fix it?

Thanks in advance.

Carl

"The unmount command was not recognized."

The command is umount.

"Any other suggestions?"

Try doing the file check from the rescue disk:

umount /dev/hda2

fsck /dev/hda2

tune2fs -i 0 /dev/hda2
___________________________________
Be prepared. Create a LifeBoat CD.
http://users.rcn.com/srstites/LifeBo...home.page.html

Steve Stites

Thanks for the tip, will try it out. Also will read commands more carefully in the future.

The latest round of issued commands performed as requested, but still failed to solve the ALSA problem. I even successfully installed Newt and Cdialog to try and fix the problem. Nothing worked.

Finally did get Linux to fully boot by typing "i" for the interactive start-up sequence feature. I skipped loading "ALSA" and "sound" and she booted up marvelously well.

On the downside, tried to run ALSA from within the KDE desktop and it locked up my machine and was forced to do a manual shutdown. Ever since then, I still have to skip ALSA and sound to boot, but now my desktop configuration file is missing and I can't make any adjustments-- plus the additional kernels I installed have disappeared. I'm going to reinstall, unless there is an easier way.

What other sound kernels are there? My Vaio doesn't like ALSA.

Thanks. Carl

All is well. Here is what I did:

1) reinstalled Mandrake
2) turned off chkconfig of alsa and sound
3) booted successfully
4) installed the other recommended sound driver
5) sound works and boots without problem

The fonts are a little funny in some screens and the video is jerky in some of the games, but I'll figure it out.

Thanks,

Carl