** Summary changed:
- ubuntu karmic alpha 4 - possible partition editor bug
+ PC freezes during install caused by Dell A920 printer
** Description changed:
I downloaded the alpha 4 CD image, checked MD5, burned a CD, and run it.
I did not go far. After choosing language, location, keyboard, it says
it is starting the partition manager, and that is it. Nothing happens
after, so I had to press the power button to switch the PC off.
Nothing much special with my PC. It is a 4.5 year old Dell Dimension. It
has two hard disks, the master with two partitions, Dell Utility, and
Windows XP. The second disk however, has 12 partitions with a number of
empty spaces in between. Some partitions have Ubuntu or Kubuntu (ext4),
others are empty, one is for Windows swapping. Also the partition
numbers are not in order, for example, after sdb10 comes sdb5. My guess
is that the partition editor got confused and lost!
Today I installed jaunty for a different test and all went well. So this
is a karmic bug.
-----------------
Today (17/Aug) I tried again to install alpha 4, and got exactly the
same error, so this is a repeatable issue (on my PC).
I paid a bit more attention to what happened. After step 4 of the
installation where I chose the keyboard, a dialogue box appeared, titled
"Starting up the partitioner". Below it said - I believe - scanning
disks, and a few other things, very quickly. There was a progress bar
which went fast from 0 to 100%. Then the dialogue box disappeared and
the PC froze. The cursor would still move, but clicking on the Quit
button had no effect. Also tried ^C, ^D, Escape, nothing worked. So I
had to power off the PC.
It appears that there is a bug on that part of the installer where a
list of options with respect to partitions is created. The screen was
never updated to show step 5.
I offer to try again to install alpha 4 if someone takes an interest in
this bug. I would need instructions on how to enable diagnostics and on
how to unfreeze the PC without powering it off, in order to save the
diagnostics somewhere, for example, on the USB drive.
I am attaching below the list of partitions on my PC.
António
---------------
Disk /dev/sda: 80.0 GB, 80000000000 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9726 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xd0f4738c
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 1 7 56196 de Dell Utility
/dev/sda2 * 8 9726 78067867+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
Disk /dev/sdb: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 60801 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000c9a37
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 1 522 4192933+ 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sdb2 * 523 2089 12586927+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb3 2612 7833 41945715 83 Linux
/dev/sdb4 13054 60801 383535810 5 Extended
/dev/sdb5 26762 27283 4192933+ b W95 FAT32
/dev/sdb6 27284 30677 27262273+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb7 54274 60801 52436128+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb8 30678 32635 15727603+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb9 33289 35246 15727603+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb10 24151 26761 20972826 83 Linux
/dev/sdb11 13055 18276 41945683+ 83 Linux
/dev/sdb12 18277 20887 20972826 83 Linux
/dev/sdb13 20888 23498 20972826 83 Linux
Partition table entries are not in disk order
Disk /dev/sdc: 4009 MB, 4009754624 bytes
51 heads, 51 sectors/track, 3010 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 2601 * 512 = 1331712 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x04030201
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 1 3011 3915204 b W95 FAT32
+
+
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+ Update 25/Aug/2009.
+
+ Did some more tests and narrowed down the bug.
+
+ I have a Dell All-in-One printer, model A920. If I disconnect the USB
+ cable of the printer, the PC does not freeze between steps 4 and 5. Note
+ that normally the printer is off, so even though off it causes problems.
+
+ This is just speculation. What may happen is that the partition editor
+ tries to find pen drives or USB external hard disks, then it gets
+ confused when it gets a printer and thinks it is a disk, or it may
+ perhaps try to find its partitions, who knows.
+
+ Dell All-in-One printers are rebranded Lexmark printers. This bug might
+ also manifest with other Dell or Lexmark printers (again I am
+ speculating).
+
+ The fact though is that I installed Ubuntu 9.04 four times, and Kubuntu
+ 9.04 twice, and it went smoothly, so this is a Karmic (alpha 4) issue.
+
+ António
** Tags added: a920 freeze printer
--
PC freezes during install caused by Dell A920 printer
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/413949
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