Re: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux
In a message dated 10/14/2000 9:19:38 PM Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Hello All: I think my Master Boot Record is corrupt. My system only sees 2 gigs of 6.4 gig HD. Do I have to take it in too shop and get a low level format? I can create an extended file, but cannot load anything into it. snip First, take comfort in the fact that Fujitsu drives have a reputation for being good drives. They are more common in network settings used in SCSI configuration [performance reliability]. In these days of IDE and EIDE drives there is very seldom any need to low level format a drive. It's seldom necessary to even high level (re)format a hard drive (because of bad sectory or whatever) these days (which is much more likely than needing low leveling). DO NOT low level that drive. Do not high level format (the regular "format") that drive, especially before everything is fully backed up! BACK UP EVERYTHING ON THE DRIVE NOW, as any change in configuration may render what you can see now invisible in the new configuration. [Yes, you can go back, and the data will be there as long as you have not written to the drive in any way, but booting can be enough to cause problems with lost data.] Anything you do (like formatting or installing--any writing to the drive) may distroy your data existing in another configuration on the drive! Only one configuration is in use at any one time but they all exist in the same physical space, so any writing done in one can distroy something that you may have put on the drive when another configuration was active. [If you had SCSI you wouldn't be reporting a problem with not seeing the full drive capacity, so this discussion focuses on IDE type drives.] Is this drive connected to an older motherboard? Full drive capacity not seen is usually a motherboard limitation. This is where shim programs come in [avoid these "disc managers" if at all possible]. Flash upgrades of the motherboard bios usually fix problems not expand capability. Buying new bios chips for the motherboard isn't too practical to do. I am wondering about a bad address line (read: wire) in your controller to drive cable and other physical problems with the drive installation (assuming this drive is new to this motherboard), but this is not likely the cause of you not seeing the full drive capacity. Has the full capacity of this drive ever been seen [a previous install?] ? Has this motherboard ever seen more than 2GB of drive capacity? Is the drive new, and/or is this a new installation of this drive with this motherboard? What does CMOS (motherboard bios) show for the drive capacity. Do you know how to get in, and more importantly how to get out of the CMOS without changing anything? If CMOS has an "auto" hard drive configuration setting it's generally best to use that rather than specify the Cylinder-Heads-Sectors of the drive in the CMOS. Sometimes having a hard CHS configuration set on the first page creates a problem but "auto" works fine. This is the case with the FIC motherboard I'm currently using. That could be enough to create your problem. Set hard drive "mode" to "auto" also [a separate setting]! This could likely be the problem. After checking that the general information page drive configuration is "auto", open any CMOS page about "detect hard drive" you might have and run it to check what the CMOS can actually see. Do not be surprised if you get a list of three configurations for a drive. The question is: "Does one of them show the entire capacity of the drive?" Exit this CMOS page, without selecting anything if you can, and DO then go back and doublecheck (likely needing to reset) the first page configuration is still auto (it will usually get values plugged in when you use the detect function). Remember to reset "mode" to "auto" also![see other things I've written about CMOS for background about how to get in, get out without saving (BEWARE THIS IS NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE), etc.] Sorry if this has been too general, but CMOS vary widely and it's difficult to be specific. -Gary-
RE: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux
I have a program that I can send you called Efdisk. It is awesome and you will be able to use to create real linux partitions. If you want, I can send it to you off-list. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Monday, October 16, 2000 12:09 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux In a message dated 10/14/2000 9:19:38 PM Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Hello All: I think my Master Boot Record is corrupt. My system only sees 2 gigs of 6.4 gig HD. Do I have to take it in too shop and get a low level format? I can create an extended file, but cannot load anything into it. snip First, take comfort in the fact that Fujitsu drives have a reputation for being good drives. They are more common in network settings used in SCSI configuration [performance reliability]. In these days of IDE and EIDE drives there is very seldom any need to low level format a drive. It's seldom necessary to even high level (re)format a hard drive (because of bad sectory or whatever) these days (which is much more likely than needing low leveling). DO NOT low level that drive. Do not high level format (the regular "format") that drive, especially before everything is fully backed up! BACK UP EVERYTHING ON THE DRIVE NOW, as any change in configuration may render what you can see now invisible in the new configuration. [Yes, you can go back, and the data will be there as long as you have not written to the drive in any way, but booting can be enough to cause problems with lost data.] Anything you do (like formatting or installing--any writing to the drive) may distroy your data existing in another configuration on the drive! Only one configuration is in use at any one time but they all exist in the same physical space, so any writing done in one can distroy something that you may have put on the drive when another configuration was active. [If you had SCSI you wouldn't be reporting a problem with not seeing the full drive capacity, so this discussion focuses on IDE type drives.] Is this drive connected to an older motherboard? Full drive capacity not seen is usually a motherboard limitation. This is where shim programs come in [avoid these "disc managers" if at all possible]. Flash upgrades of the motherboard bios usually fix problems not expand capability. Buying new bios chips for the motherboard isn't too practical to do. I am wondering about a bad address line (read: wire) in your controller to drive cable and other physical problems with the drive installation (assuming this drive is new to this motherboard), but this is not likely the cause of you not seeing the full drive capacity. Has the full capacity of this drive ever been seen [a previous install?] ? Has this motherboard ever seen more than 2GB of drive capacity? Is the drive new, and/or is this a new installation of this drive with this motherboard? What does CMOS (motherboard bios) show for the drive capacity. Do you know how to get in, and more importantly how to get out of the CMOS without changing anything? If CMOS has an "auto" hard drive configuration setting it's generally best to use that rather than specify the Cylinder-Heads-Sectors of the drive in the CMOS. Sometimes having a hard CHS configuration set on the first page creates a problem but "auto" works fine. This is the case with the FIC motherboard I'm currently using. That could be enough to create your problem. Set hard drive "mode" to "auto" also [a separate setting]! This could likely be the problem. After checking that the general information page drive configuration is "auto", open any CMOS page about "detect hard drive" you might have and run it to check what the CMOS can actually see. Do not be surprised if you get a list of three configurations for a drive. The question is: "Does one of them show the entire capacity of the drive?" Exit this CMOS page, without selecting anything if you can, and DO then go back and doublecheck (likely needing to reset) the first page configuration is still auto (it will usually get values plugged in when you use the detect function). Remember to reset "mode" to "auto" also![see other things I've written about CMOS for background about how to get in, get out without saving (BEWARE THIS IS NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE), etc.] Sorry if this has been too general, but CMOS vary widely and it's difficult to be specific. -Gary-
Re: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux
I have a 20Gb drive in a an old P100. I had to do a BIOS upgrade (as the hdd manual suggested) which made it able to understand the huge drive a little better. Then it offered a special program that made Windows able to see the entire drive but Linux could see it all even without that program. I have some 40Gb drives in some newer machines and haven't had any problems with them either. *^*^*^* Have the courage to take your own thoughts seriously, for they will shape you. -- Albert Einstein On Sun, 15 Oct 2000, Larry Marshall wrote: My system only sees 2 gigs of 6.4 gig HD. Do I have to take it in too shop and get a low level format? What does "my system" mean? Windows, Linux? Via what method? I can create an extended file, but cannot load anything into it. How are you trying to do this? What do you mean by "extended file"? I checked the fujitsu web site and nothing there on formating. Have read all the newbie ultimate format etc. and older newbie files, and cannot find solution. Sounds like you need to read something about partitioning. What does fdisk report? Any chance you've got Partition Magic to look at your partitions? Cheers --- Larry
Re: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux
Larry Marshall wrote: My system only sees 2 gigs of 6.4 gig HD. Do I have to take it in too shop and get a low level format? What does "my system" mean? Windows, Linux? Via what method? I can create an extended file, but cannot load anything into it. How are you trying to do this? What do you mean by "extended file"? I checked the fujitsu web site and nothing there on formating. Have read all the newbie ultimate format etc. and older newbie files, and cannot find solution. Sounds like you need to read something about partitioning. What does fdisk report? Any chance you've got Partition Magic to look at your partitions? Cheers --- Larry I recently purchased a fujitsu drive. Navigate to the fujitsu web site, and download DiskGo. I used it to run low level formatting, partitioning etc. -- Roman Registered Linux User #179293
Re: [newbie] Bad mbr-cannot load or boot linux
My system only sees 2 gigs of 6.4 gig HD. Do I have to take it in too shop and get a low level format? What does "my system" mean? Windows, Linux? Via what method? I can create an extended file, but cannot load anything into it. How are you trying to do this? What do you mean by "extended file"? I checked the fujitsu web site and nothing there on formating. Have read all the newbie ultimate format etc. and older newbie files, and cannot find solution. Sounds like you need to read something about partitioning. What does fdisk report? Any chance you've got Partition Magic to look at your partitions? Cheers --- Larry