I have done unimaginable things to my hard disk in the last few days, trying to install slackware. I need some help here

I have made the swap and the target drive, i.e i made two partitions. I have the following problems still

1. When i use the fourth console to check messages it says mount: bad option, bad super block on dev/hda2 , bad option or too many mounted file systems. - I actually re-partitioned the drive with DOS and formated the drive before i re -ran this line
dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/hda and repartitioned with linux and made swaps, turned the swaps on and restarted the system. before going on to install from set up.

2. I am not able to set root password - i think this may be the root of the problem- it enters an "infinite loop" until i say no to quit and restart the system. Then it says "operating system is missing" i wonder where the message comes from

3.I prefer the the traditional linux file system the ext2 but the default seems to be the reiserfs?

Thank you for your help....

xmeson

If you boot from the Slack CD, you'll be automatically log on as root (or you can enter root as the username, and no password prompt will come up, I can't really remember fully because I only installed Slack 9 twice, and it never dies on me ).

From there use cfdisk to partition your hard disk (or remove any existing ones), and then run setup to actually install slack. You have to make the partitions ready first before running setup.

There's no need to dd just to wipe the disk. cfdisk will take care of that for you.

Hi xmeson

You'll have a choice after youve partitioned with cfdisk - whether to use:

ext2
ext3
reiserfs

Its up to you.

Azmeen, You see i have done all of that, you are right the CD lets you log in as root without a password, this also works. I normally use fdisk to create partitions.

Even when i use the fourth console to check installation, i run slow format with the default i-nodes, everything seems to work well. It checks out - as i see it.

Skyline, i use the ext2 b`cos it is traditional linux.

The problem starts when i need to configure the new installation there is a part where i need to set the root password so that when i reboot, i can login proper. But this does not work b`cos the file does not exist .

I am also trying to point that when i am checking progress/messages on the fourth console it says, mount: bad option, bad super block on dev/hda2 , bad option or too many mounted file systems. It seemingly completes installation though, all the packages i want are installed. But when i restart the system it says operating system is missing .

I am really really confused now...thanks for the suggestions so far...

Which partition is /dev/hda2? Your swap or your root? Is /dev/hda2 a really, really old disk? Or a very, very new disk?

Do you have any other partition beyond /dev/hda1 and /dev/hda2? Are you using something beyond Slackware?

Try this:
1. Wipe out your HDD with cfdisk & recreate /dev/hda1 and /dev/hda2. The device /dev/hda1 should be set as "Linux Native" and "Primary Partition".
2. Format /dev/hda1 with "ext2fs", using the smallest possible inode and a "slow/check" formatting type. Indicate that "/" should be the mount point of "/dev/hda1".
3. Make sure that Slackware can initialize your swap space (/dev/hda2).
4. Make sure you install Lilo on MBR of "/dev/hda1", and that you have chosen and installed a kernel!

Most of the time, that kind of message appears because you got confused in some of these options.

Do read the Slackware Essentials book, and make sure you understand it, before trying to install Slackware:

http://www.slackware.com/book/

Sorry if this seems very basic, but disk problems are the hardest to solve through this forum...

Hope this helps!

/dev/hda2 is my root partition. I think it is more likely to be quite an old disk.

I am not using anything beyond slackware, and i have only two partitions dev/hda1 & 2.

1. I am going to use cfdisk to do as you have advised, but the book says dev/hda1 should be "primary- linux swap".Code type 82 but i will do as you have said.

2. I do not understand this- "Indicate that "/" should be the mount point of "/dev/hda1".

3. How do i achieve this ? "Make sure that Slackware can initialize your swap space (/dev/hda2)."

4. The choice of installing a kernel and LiLo comes from set up but set up does not present the option doing that.Can i do this manually without "set up" ?

Thanks , I am going to try as you have said in points 1 to 4.

Don't try to auto install lilo. Manually configure it. And cfdisk is a bit easier than fdisk both dos and linux. I say easier, but I really mean smarter. You pretty much set everything up before it does a thing then scroll to write and write the disk.

Any noobies using cfdisk like I am should note that I did not find an option to change the drive you are working on. I had to exit cfdisk and then tell it from prompt what disk I wanted.

:-# cfdisk /dev/hdb