LiveCD problem

AlexDM · 08-02-2005, 10:10 AM

Hello, this is my first try to use MEPIS and I would like to try and install it but

it seams that the LiveCD doesn't work for me . At the beginning every thing goes well and it loads ok until the "network" part. After this it gives me some errors with regard to my HDD.... like 8-10 of them . Something about sectors and stuff like that. But the loader still goes on and after some other initialisations I am presented with a grey screen and an working mouse that looks like a cross. And that's it. After that nothing happens. I've waited like 10 minutes and after that I've restarted my PC.

I have a new HDD that does not have any bad sectors or other problems.
Also , Fedora , Mandrake and Ubuntu installed without any problems on the same HDD ( at the time of MEPIS installations there was only Windows installed )

I've tried 2 difrent versions of LiveCD... the same problem.

Any sugestions? And also I do not need LiveCD... I want to install the MEPIS directly if that would be possible...

rose_bud4201 · 08-02-2005, 03:17 PM

Mepis, by default, does a bad block check to map out any bad areas on your hard drive, so they won't be used. This is probably what you saw, and unless you start having problems with losing data or the OS not booting at all, it shouldn't be anything to worry about.

That grey screen with the cross cursor is what it looks like when a window manager isn't running (i.e. KDE, Gnome, WindowMaker, etc), but X is.
If you can get to a terminal (I seem to remember that right-clicking will bring one up...I think) try this:

Quote:

From http://www.webhostinghosts.com/forum...s-3.3.1-1.html:

Quote: Does anyone know how to boot MEPIS and load a different window manager on startup. I have looked but can't find anything unfortunately hence my question to the group.

There is a startup script file where your default window manager is set.
You can edit this to load any manager you have installed. I'm not totally familiar with how Mepis is setup, but I did find a file
/etc/X11/default-display-manager that lists /usr/bin/kdm. But before you change this: In the script, /etc/inittab, edit the line

id:5:initdefault:

to read

id:3:initdefault:

Then change the default-display-manager file to the window manager you have installed and want to use. Reboot. You will boot into a terminal -- no gui. Login. Now, type 'startx' without the ' to start the X server and boot the GUI. If it works, you'll have your new GUI and you can change /etc/inittab back. If it doesn't work, you'll fall back to the terminal instead of being stuck in a continuous loop with a boot routine that continously fails.

You'll have to be root to change all these files.

You can use one of the commandline text editors (vi, emacs, pico) to edit those two files.
What does the file /etc/X11/default-display-manager have as its contents now?
/usr/bin/kdm should load KDE.

Hope that makes sense!

AlexDM · 08-03-2005, 04:05 AM

No... It seams I can not bring up a console. And I was wrong the mouse cursor is not a cross. It is the clock... so it is supposed to do something but I've waited like 6-7 minutes and nothing happend... As I've said this is my first liveCD experience so how long it takes for the system to load?

Am I doing something wrong here?

rose_bud4201 · 08-03-2005, 07:29 AM

No, I don't think you're doing anything wrong at all

I've had some LiveCD's not work at all with my system (they just sit there and hang) ...that may be the case here. Something that MEPIS does may just simply not like your system, and given that it's a single disc LiveCD distribution, of which you've tried several versions, there's probably not a whole lot that can be done about it.
Since you've said that several other linux distros have successfully installed and run on your system, I don't believe it would be a hardware problem (unless MEPIS is being unusually sensitive about those hard drive sectors, which again would be MEPIS's fault, not your hardware's).

I'd say that you could post on MEPIS' forums with your hardware specifications and the fact that you can't get a version of the distro to completely boot up, and wait for them to perhaps fix something...and try a different distribution in the meantime :-/

AlexDM · 08-04-2005, 03:18 AM

Hmmm I would have loved to have MEPIS. But since I can not I am now runing Kubuntu . I've downloaded the Install CD and all went well without a problem. THey also have LiveCD but also an install CD leaving the choice to the user. Maybe MEPIS should have also 2 versions ( Live and Install) ....

cedar · 08-07-2005, 03:01 PM

MEPIS is a live CD, but you can install it from there if you choose. It's both in one disc rather than having 2 different CDs. I don't know what the problem might have been. I know you would have liked MEPIS. Can you post your hardware here so we can have a look? Maybe we can figure out a solution.

AlexDM · 08-08-2005, 05:15 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by cedar
MEPIS is a live CD, but you can install it from there if you choose. .

yes... I know that I can install MEPIS from the same CD but that is after the live cd boots up witch , in my case it didn't.

My configuration is :

PROC - AMD XP 2100+
MB - Abit nForce2
Video - LeadTek A400 ( GeForce 6800 )
HDD 1x MAXTOR DP9 80 GB
DVD-ROM TEAC 42X

That;s about it...

FF103 · 08-08-2005, 08:45 PM

Have you tried booting with some different parameters? Two that I have had to use on a couple of occasions are "xdrvr=vesa" and "acpi=off" these have been successful in getting a couple of x displays working and also a usb mouse on a laptop.hope this helps.

AlexDM · 08-09-2005, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by FF103
Have you tried booting with some different parameters? Two that I have had to use on a couple of occasions are "xdrvr=vesa" and "acpi=off" these have been successful in getting a couple of x displays working and also a usb mouse on a laptop.hope this helps.

no. I haven't. I tried MEPIS on my second PC back home and lately I have next to no free time to "play" with installations. That was way I was so disapointed that it didn't "just worked". And that's way I've installed after 2 tries of MEPIS Kubuntu and it worked. Now... I am a newbe to Linux. I know that MEPIS and Ubuntu as well are debian based. But that are the main diffrences ?

mos · 08-09-2005, 06:24 PM

kubuntu and ubuntu are divergances from debian compatability, MEPIS, and almost any other debian distro, do not break this compatability