** Description changed: + take a 12.10 with XFS root partition containing the /boot/ tree + dpkg-reconfigure grub-pc ; sync + reboot (either by command, or by menu) + diverse error messages + grub rescue + /boot/ is partially accessible - On 3 essentially different Ubuntu 12.10 installations + boot UBUNTU 12.10 pendrive + choose "try Ubuntu" + open a terminal + sudo -s; mkdir foo; mount [the XFS root partition] foo; umount foo + reboot into the "original" Ubuntu is NOW successful - bios or uefi boot, - linux is alone or other system is along, - legacy or guid partiton table - - it is a regularly appearing issue since 12.10, that if the automatic - update touches a package which has some impact on the boot, - - then the next reboot get stock at either the grub rescue prompt, or - booting the new kernel hangs at the missing initial ram disk, the latter - is typical after kernel update, even just after the virgin installation - of a fresh Ubuntu. - - Grub rescue prompt is the much harder situation, I either type in the - correct grub commands to boot the previous kernel, or I use a "boot an - existing linux from a partition" menu of a SYSRESC pen drive. - - Never really clear, what was wrong and what really helped. - - Here is a list of my manual struggling and accidental solution methods: - - (1) Sometimes I do nothing, except for booting once more the system by - hand or by SYSRESC pen, and surprisingly the next time the system boots, - asif there was no kind of problem before. THIS happens more frequently - on the combination below, and less frequently on the other 2 - combinations: - - bios boot + other system along + legacy partition table - - (2) More frequent in general is that remove/reinstall grub2, and/or - remove/reinstall new kernel, and/or simply grub-install and update-grub - helps, but usually NOT IN ONE STEP, however even after a logical and - defensive - - grub-install /dev/sda - - the situation likes to become worse, usually changes between the two - possibilities below: - - "error: invalid arch-independant ELF magic." - - "error: ELF header smaller than expected." - - and naturally I have the grub rescue prompt. This time, just before - this error report, the solution appeared to be the - - removal of memtest86+ and reinstall of it, - - as first there was a normal grub menu, but memtest was missing from it - and the boot was unsuccessful, and after the usual kernel and grub - tampering I got the invalid arch-independant ELF magic, furter usual - tampering bought the ELF header smaller than expected, and finally my - desperate trial was the removal of the memtest against it's - dependencies, ... and it helped this time. - - This kind of struggling is more frequent on the 2 combination below: - - bios boot + linux alone + legacy partition table - - uefi boot + linux alone + either legacy or guid partition table - (the both yields the error) - - The latter uefi shows the problem most stable, even if I reinstall the - 12.10 back to bios, from scratch. - - I work with computers since 1972, and with linux 1994, but I still has - no firm idea which package is buggy. - - My guess is that not the grub itself is buggy, but the other packages - have a buggy configuration relation to grub. - - I suggest to rate this bug serious, if we take serious the #1 main bug, - see this site. - - I spread linux among my students at the university since the 90's, - however if their system can become unavailable due to an automatic - update, then some of then will give up learning linux. - - I understand that a usual other bug can be serious and hard. But if I - suggest the someone to switch to linux, and he/she can lost even the - booting opportunity, then it is scary for most of the average users, and - usually they have no enough skills to tackle the situtation, even to - rescue their own personal files back to a proprietary system. - - That's why I suggest to rate this bug serious. Serious in the - consequencies in public relations. - - The version of the all the packages I use are the most up to date due to - my policy to update as frequent as possible. - - ProblemType: Bug - DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10 - Package: grub2 (not installed) - Uname: Linux 3.2.34-std312-amd64 x86_64 - NonfreeKernelModules: raid10 raid456 async_raid6_recov async_pq raid6_pq async_xor xor async_memcpy async_tx raid1 raid0 multipath linear radeon r8169 mii usb_storage ttm drm_kms_helper drm i2c_algo_bit i2c_core wmi - ApportVersion: 2.6.1-0ubuntu10 - Architecture: amd64 - Date: Tue Jan 22 21:28:32 2013 - InstallationDate: Installed on 2012-10-19 (95 days ago) - InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Release amd64 (20121017.5) - MarkForUpload: True - ProcEnviron: - TERM=xterm - PATH=(custom, no user) - LANG=en_US.UTF-8 - SHELL=/bin/bash - SourcePackage: grub2 - UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install) + It appears that the kernel xfs filesystem driver leaves the fs in an + inconsistent state even after a sync. That is corrected by a journal + playback done either via having the kernel mount or running fsck, but + grub does not use the xfs journal.
** Changed in: grub2 (Ubuntu) Importance: Undecided => Medium ** Changed in: grub2 (Ubuntu) Status: Incomplete => Triaged ** Also affects: linux (Ubuntu) Importance: Undecided Status: New -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu Bugs, which is subscribed to Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1103187 Title: xfs left inconcistent after reboot, causing grub to fail To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/grub2/+bug/1103187/+subscriptions -- ubuntu-bugs mailing list ubuntu-bugs@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-bugs