Public bug reported:
Binary package hint: grub-pc
This is a horrible way to file a bug report and I'm aware of that, but
this needs to be considered.
Throughout various upgrade and/or update procedures in Ubuntu and it's
variants the user gets a display asking where to install grub(2). There
is a suggestion that if in doubt to install to the mbr of all drives.
Unfortunately most new (and some old) users have no idea how
drives/partitions are designated in Ubuntu, and they're clueless as to
what an mbr is!
So basically you see a screen that says, "if in doubt select all", and
you do so. Now, I'm aware those are not the exact words but I've been
following (and trying to help folks fix) these problems since Lucid was
released.
It's particularly troublesome when someone installs grub2 to an NTFS
partition with a Win OS so I'd at least suggest making grub installation
to an NTFS (or any FAT) partition very difficult.
Honestly I'm not sure what the solution should be, but I know Colin
Watson deals with a lot of these grub2 issues and I've come to trust his
judgment. Consider the following options:
#1: Display nothing but drives, that is "sda", "sdb", etc, and NO
individual partitions. But create another "advanced" tab/option to allow
installation to a partition.
#2: Increase the amount of text explaining the difference between drives
and partitions, why it's a bad idea to install to a partition etc. IMHO
that's a horrible option. (The more text the less likely a new user is
to read it.)
#3: Figure out a way to always have grub(2) install itself where it was
to begin with. (maybe a bad idea if the original install was wrong.)
While I think option #1 is great I have no idea how complicated that
would be.
Does any of that make sense?
I'd be glad to test any potential "fixes" :^)
** Affects: grub2 (Ubuntu)
Importance: Undecided
Status: New
--
Ubuntu grub2 dist-upgrades result in confusion
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/576724
You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu
Bugs, which is subscribed to Ubuntu.
--
ubuntu-bugs mailing list
ubuntu-bugs@lists.ubuntu.com
https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-bugs
