[SOLVED] Multi-boot problems after slackware 12.2 install.

Kelean · 08-19-2009, 10:58 PM

I have just installed Slack 12.2 and from a Slackware point everything went very well for the most part. This is the first time installing Slack in about a year. So I know there were a few things I struggled with. I have solved most things by searching and reading here in he forum and the slack manuals.

My problem is that I am unable to boot everything on my hard drive. My current setup is winXP, Mepis8, Crunchbang 9.04, and Slackware 12.2. Win and slack boot just fine. Mepis8 boots to console. I can only log in as root but cannot start X. Crunchbang goes throught the motions but in the end it stops at "cannot start terminal 1" and then freezes.

When I try to start mepis and crunch it looks like slack is booting. Boot splash for both are gone.

Now when I went through the install I did not add mepis or crunchbang to my fstab file. I did add both to lilo. Here is my fstab abd lilo.config files.

Quote:

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
boot = /dev/sda
#compact # faster, but won't work on all systems.
# Boot BMP Image.
# Bitmap in BMP format: 640x480x8
bitmap = /boot/slack.bmp
# Menu colors (foreground, background, shadow, highlighted
# foreground, highlighted background, highlighted shadow):
bmp-colors = 255,0,255,0,255,0
# Location of the option table: location x, location y, number of
# columns, lines per column (max 15), "spill" (this is how many
# entries must be in the first column before the next begins to
# be used. We don't specify it here, as there's just one column.
bmp-table = 60,6,1,16
# Timer location x, timer location y, foreground color,
# background color, shadow color.
bmp-timer = 65,27,0,255
# Standard menu.
# Or, you can comment out the bitmap menu above and
# use a boot message with the standard menu:
#message = /boot/boot_message.txt

# Append any additional kernel parameters:
append=" vt.default_utf8=0"
prompt
#timeout = 300
# Normal VGA console
vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# ramdisk = 0 # paranoia setting
# End LILO global section
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda9
label = Slack
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda5
label = Mepis
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz
root = /dev/sda7
label = Crunchbang
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/sda1
label = WinXP
# map-drive = 0x80
# to = 0x81
# map-drive = 0x81
# to = 0x80
table = /dev/sda
# Windows bootable partition config ends

Quote:

/dev/sda10 swap swap defaults 0 0
/dev/sda9 / ext3 defaults 1 1
/dev/sda1 /winxp ntfs-3g umask=022 1 0
#/dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom auto noauto,owner,ro 0 0
/dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy auto noauto,owner 0 0
devpts /dev/pts devpts gid=5,mode=620 0 0
proc /proc proc defaults 0 0
tmpfs /dev/shm tmpfs defaults 0 0

What is wrong with lilo. I know it is something simple I think.

Do I need to add mepis and crunch to my fstab file? If so what info do I need to add?

Do I need to change the the location where lilo is pointing for mepis and crunchbang to boot properly.

Thanks for any help, Kelean

GrapefruiTgirl · 08-19-2009, 11:27 PM

All of your "image" lines in lilo.conf are pointing to the same kernel image, for one thing

though they are pointing to different partitions for where each respective root filesystem is.

Each OS has its own kernel, so you need to specify the proper name & location of each kernel, along with the correct partition for that kernel's associated OS.

There are a number of ways to go about this; surely many folks will tell you their own way, and there's a recent thread about the very subject: multi-booting Slack with other OS's. What I do usually, is keep all of the kernels for all my OS's on one partition. My main OS is Slack64, so in my Slack64 filesystem, in the /boot folder, I have kernels for some other installed OS's, and I execute LILO from that partition/OS.

I'll see if I can locate the other thread so you can see many of the other (arguably better?) ways of doing this.

PS - the fstab file is unrelated to this situation.

UPDATE: Read this thread: http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...urrent-744559/ and note in Post#19 there's a link to an external site which apparently has lots of valuable info about multi-booting. I haven't checked it out myself.

Good luck!
Sasha

Kelean · 08-20-2009, 08:51 AM

Thanks for the information Sasha. I have not been able to find the cure for my trouble. I tried to add the name and location to lilo.conf. When I get errors that say, no file or folder, unrecognized token "2.6.28-13-generic" at or above line 66 in file '/etc/lilo.conf'. I also get a warning: LBA32 addressing assumed. I do not think I have it right. I am getting confused.

Sasha, the link you gave me did not help much. It dealt mostly with grub. But I will give it a closer look when I get a chance.

Seems I always run into trouble when trying to boot different distros. Like slack and debian based ones.

I will keep searching and try to figure it out.

Thanks, Kelean.

brianL · 08-20-2009, 09:03 AM

If Slackware's lilo is in your MBR, you could try reinstalling Crunchbang & Mepis's grubs to their root partitions, then add these lines to Slack's lilo.conf:

Code:

other = /dev/sda5
  label = Mepis
other = /dev/sda7
  label = Crunchbang

And for that lba32 warning, add this to lilo.conf (I put it just before all the VESA framebuffer stuff):

Code:

lba32

allend · 08-20-2009, 09:09 AM

Quote:

Do I need to change the the location where lilo is pointing for mepis and crunchbang to boot properly.

As Sasha has pointed out, the answer to this is YES!
I suggest that you create a /boot/mepis and a /boot/crunchbang directory in your Slackware /boot directory. Then copy the Mepis kernel into /boot/mepis and the Crunchbang kernel into /boot/crunchbang.
Edit your /etc/lilo.conf in Slackware so that

Code:

# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/mepis/<mepis kernel name>
root = /dev/sda5
label = Mepis
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/crunchbang/<crunchbang kernel name>
root = /dev/sda7
label = Crunchbang
read-only # Partitions should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends

You will need to provide the appropriate names for the Mepis and Crunchbang kernels in the above.

Quote:

I also get a warning: LBA32 addressing assumed.

Adding this line to the global section of /etc/lilo.conf will kill the LBA32 addressing warning message.

Code:

lba32 # Allow booting past 1024th cylinder with a recent BIOS

Run lilo from your Slackware installation after making these changes to your /etc/lilo.conf.

Kelean · 08-20-2009, 09:39 PM

I solved it. Might not be the best way but fixed none the less. What I did was reinstall grub via mepis liveCD. With that I was able to boot win, mepis, and crunchbang. Next I edited my /boot/grub/menu.lst file. Added my slackware partition and it works now.

Thanks for the help, Kelean.

GrapefruiTgirl · 08-20-2009, 10:23 PM

Hey, as long as it *works*, and you understand *why* it works and how to edit it next time, then it qualifies as one of the best ways for you -- as probably mentioned above or elsewhere, there are lots of ways to go about this. The way I prefer is not 'the best' either, but I like it, and it works

Congrats, glad you got it sorted -- now you can mark this [solved] if you haven't yet

(see "thread tools" at the top)

Sasha

Kelean · 08-20-2009, 11:05 PM

Thanks Sasha, that's what I like about linux. If one way does not work then try a different approach.