Hi! IMHO using dd to backup and restore CF's is a very very bad idea. Specially if these CF are from different manufacturers, often with different CHS settings.
I never had a problem with CF, as I syslinux them and copy the LRP's by hand. The last 3 or 4 updates I did on my router were even done with a CF USB adapter from Windoze... Hope this helps a bit. Luis Correia Bering uClibc Team Member PGP Fingerprint: BC44 D7DA 5A17 F92A CA21 9ABE DFF0 3540 2322 21F6 Key Server: http://pgp.mit.edu > -----Original Message----- > From: Brock Nanson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Saturday, January 08, 2005 1:01 AM > To: Erich Titl > Cc: leaf-user-lists.sourceforge.net > Subject: Re: [leaf-user] Compact Flash Boot Failure > > Hi Erich, > > I've sent this box back to the user. Not having all the hardware > available that I did when I first built the boxes was a problem... > specifically, no Linux laptop with PCMCIA. Finally pulled a > Knoppix ISO > and got an XP laptop going off the CD-ROM drive (note to anyone that > cares, an Inspiron 1150 doesn't like the default Knoppix boot. > Specifying the 2.6 kernel at boot solves that)! > > What I did: > > copied all the packages off the CF for safe keeping (had a copy from > some months ago, but wasn't sure what changes might have been > made along > the way). > > syslinux -s /dev/hde1 > > Put it back in the box. Booted to syslinux (with the BIOS > set manually > to what I *thought* was the closest settings) but not > beyond... loading > linux, loading init, then nothing. > > Copied the packages and config file back onto the CF, > overwriting what > was there. > > Back in the router. Boot was fine this time. > > During the startup screens I see the CF detected by Linux as CHS > 244/4/32 (16MB Lexar). I was set manually to 251/2/32 which > works for > the 8MB version of this card. The image on the 16 was dd'd > from an 8MB > image, so this might (?) be why it worked... If I'm honest, > I'll 'fess > up and admit I forgot to reset the CHS after messing with an > 8MB card! ;-) > > Manually changed the BIOS to 244/4/32 and rebooted several times. No > issues that I can see. > > Now, when the BIOS autodetected the card originally, it came > up with Pre > =-1, LZ=244. These parameters are blank when manually > configured. Do > they make any difference to the CF? > > Oh yeah, I also put the whole mess into a duplicate machine > (same model) > to test the power supply theory. New CF adapter too. > > Thanks to all who made suggestions! > > Brock > > Erich Titl wrote: > > Brock > > > > Brock Nanson wrote: > > > >> Hi Erich, > >> > >> Well, there isn't much I can tell you. The box in > question resides 8 > >> hours away. It worked for approximately 6 months, then I > got the call > >> from that office to tell me it wouldn't boot. They sent > the CF back > >> to me and I poked around it a little. Not much to see, it simply > >> wouldn't boot. So I assumed a bad CF, rebuilt their > system on a new > >> card and sent it back to them. They plugged the new card > into the box > >> and it has worked properly since mid-May, failing just before > >> Christmas. Same symptoms. This time I had them send the > whole box > >> back to me. I don't see anything wrong with the box. However, as > >> this happens so rarely, it could really be anything. Flakey power > >> supply, two bad CF's in a row (possible if not very likely) > > > > > > I had symptoms like that on BiWin CF's. I have a number of those > > deployed and I usually check them by writing the entire CF. If they > > report a problem back they go... > > It might be the CF adapter, yu did not change that one did you? > > > > IO at boot is conrtolled by BIOS, not a linux driver, so > this may be a > > difference too. > > > >> , maybe even an unwelcome visitor... who knows. > > > > > > Possible, or else having the CF mounted at a full back up? > you could > > write an md5sum of the contents and check regularly. > > > >> When it takes 6 or 7 months to repeat the failure, it's > difficult to > >> efficiently trouble shoot this problem. ;-) > >> > >> Unfortunately, the symptoms aren't much to go on! It > worked one day, > >> but not the next! I'm going to use a twin machine to replace this > >> one, with a new (same model PC-Engines adapter board - type 1C) CF > >> adapter and CF card. If this one fails later this year > I'll be back > >> where I started... pretty much nowhere. > >> > >> I just don't understand what could wipe the boot area > twice in a row, > >> but leave the rest of the card untouched... power spikes, > flakey IDE > >> cable, nothing really adds up to this result. My only > idea revolves > >> around the possibility that the BIOS is not auto-detecting > the card > >> properly. I've talked to Lexar, > > > > > > OK so you are using Lexar, better than BiWin IMHO. > > > > Good Luck > > > > Erich > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > The SF.Net email is sponsored by: Beat the post-holiday blues > Get a FREE limited edition SourceForge.net t-shirt from ThinkGeek. > It's fun and FREE -- well, almost....http://www.thinkgeek.com/sfshirt > -------------------------------------------------------------- > ---------- > leaf-user mailing list: [email protected] > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/leaf-user > SR FAQ: http://leaf-project.org/pub/doc/docmanager/docid_1891.html > ------------------------------------------------------- The SF.Net email is sponsored by: Beat the post-holiday blues Get a FREE limited edition SourceForge.net t-shirt from ThinkGeek. It's fun and FREE -- well, almost....http://www.thinkgeek.com/sfshirt ------------------------------------------------------------------------ leaf-user mailing list: [email protected] https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/leaf-user SR FAQ: http://leaf-project.org/pub/doc/docmanager/docid_1891.html
