Help Configure GRUB

[Calum]

quote:My current concern is getting back into Windows, for now...

!!! yes, i'd be concerned about that too, best to make 100% sure that you won't be getting back into windows ...

Sorry, i would help, but i don't know anything about grub.

[voidmain]

Well I don't know what to tell you unless you answer my questions about the output of "/sbin/fdisk -l /dev/hda" and "/sbin/fdisk -l /dev/hdb".

[NESnerd]

hda and hdb do nothing, it only works as hdf and hde. But here's what I got. And I put in the grub.conf file too. (When I try to go into Windows, it's doing the thing about the file system is FAT, partition type 0xc, and then I have to reset my machine...)


Disk /dev/hdf: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 784 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes

   Device Boot    Start       End    Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hdf1   *         1         6     48163+  83  Linux
/dev/hdf2             7       687   5470132+  83  Linux
/dev/hdf3           688       784    779152+  82  Linux swap

Disk /dev/hde: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 1870 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes

   Device Boot    Start       End    Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hde1   *         1      1870  15020743+   c  Win95 FAT32 (LBA)


Here's my grub.con  ile

# grub.conf generated by anaconda
#
# Note that you do not have to rerun grub after making changes to this file
# NOTICE:  You have a /boot partition.  This means that
#          all kernel and initrd paths are relative to /boot/, eg.
#          root (hd1,0)
#          kernel /vmlinuz-version ro root=/dev/hdf2
#          initrd /initrd-version.img
#boot=/dev/hde
default=0
timeout=10
splashimage=(hd1,0)/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title Red Hat Linux (2.4.18-3)
   root (hd1,0)
   kernel /vmlinuz-2.4.18-3 ro root=/dev/hdf2 hdc=ide-scsi
   initrd /initrd-2.4.18-3.img

title Windows
   root (hd0,0)
   makeactive
   chainloader +1

...hope that helps. I was tired last night and getting frustrated easily, so if I sounded like an ass or anything I'm sorry.

[Master of Reality]

i am confoozled now.

[NESnerd]

Me too. Heheh.

[voidmain]

The naming of your hard drives is very strange.  It looks like you must have them hooked up on the secondary IDE channel.  You have nothing on the primary IDE channel, like your CD-ROM drive(s)?  I've never seen it put the first and second drives on anything other than /dev/hda and /dev/hdb, but then I always hook up my drives as the first items on the primary channel and hook the CDs up to the secondary so I am not sure what they would do otherwise.

However, it should not be a problem. It appears that your Linux drive is indeed the second hard drive and you have grub properly set up to access it as hd(1) so your Win drive should be accessed as hd(0) which you do. However, you do not have the Windows settings like I said:

rootnoverify (hd0,0)
chainloader +1

You shouldn't need the "makeactive" tag.

Now, if it just plain will not boot with the above settings you can try a couple of things to get back to your WIN system.

1) Try accessing your Win files from your Linux installation by:

# mkdir /windows
# mount -t vfat /dev/hde1 /windows -o ro

This will mount your Windows drive under the "/windows" directory so you can see if you can see your files.  The "-o ro" option makes the mount "read only" so you can't accidentally erase anything from your Windows drive.  You can browse around under the "/windows" directory to see if your files are in tact.

2) Remove the second Linux hard drive and set your jumper on your first drive so it is configured for a "single drive". You may have to put the jumper on the "cable select" jumper depending on the drive.  Then see if it will boot.  If it does not make sure your Windows parition is set "active" in FDISK.  If that does not work, you can restore your boot sector by booting from a Win95 floppy with a copy of FDISK.EXE on it and type "FDISK /MBR" (it will restore the master boot record for the drive).  The MBR is a 512 byte boot sector. It actually copies the second good Win copy of the MBR and overwrites the first copy, the one that GRUB/LILO would have overwritten when installed.

NOTE: You may also have to turn off the second drive in your CMOS/BIOS configuration on your computer.

Then see if it will boot.  It should, as long as you can see all of your files when you mounted the partition in Linux from the first step.

[ July 23, 2002: Message edited by: VoidMain ]

[NESnerd]

Just changing it to rootnoverify and taking out makeactive, it takes me to a screen that says...

Booting 'Windows'

rootnoverify (hd0,0).
chainloader +1

GRUB

And doesn't let me type anything, and won't let me escape out and it just sits there. I'll have to try the rest of that tomorrow or someting.

And uhm, I'm only 14. I just got this computer when the family got a new one. So I don't know how it's set up or anything. I'm pretty ignorant on the whole topic.

[choasforages]

after the chainloading thing in the grub.conf file
add

boot

and it should work

[choasforages]

and i a started using linux like several years ago, and im only about 16

[NESnerd]

I'll try it.

Also I'm not using my age as an excuse for my lack of knowledge on the subject...well yeah, I am. But in all honesty I don't know much about how computers work, I just ask a lot of questions.

Anyway I'll go see if I get that to work right, and then probably head to bed for the night. I'll post an update tomorrow.

[sporkme]

quote:Originally posted by Calum:
!!! yes, i'd be concerned about that too, best to make 100% sure that you won't be getting back into windows ...

Sorry, i would help, but i don't know anything about grub.

CLASSIC!!!!!! CALUM YOU RULE!

[sporkme]

i would just plug that sucker into your other pc, save the files, put it back, reinstall winders (or don't) and put yer linux distro.

breaking it is how you learn.  stupid people don't ask.

[NESnerd]

I mounted the hard drive, and my files are all still there. I haven't done anything else Void. But I appreciate all your help. Thank you much.