Debian-installer-version: 20040331-hd-media from ftp://ftp.nl.debian.org
uname -a: Linux horse 2.4.25-1-386 AMD-K6 GNU/Linux # from memory Date: 20040406 Method: hd-media, booted with loadlin from DOS, with sage-i386-businesscard.iso, either dated - 20040403 from http://people.debian.org/cdimage/testing or - 20040321 from ftp://ftp.nl.debian.org/debian/dists/unstable/main/installer-i386/20040321/images/
Machine: Clone with ASUS motherboard Processor: AMD K6-2 350MHz Memory: 80 MB Root Device: SCSI disk, /dev/sda2 Primary boot device: /dev/hda, also available /dev/hdb (2 IDE disks). Root Size/partition table: 12,8 Gb, with 24,6MB /boot on /dev/sda1 Output of lspci: not captured
Base System Installation Checklist:
Initial boot worked: [O] Configure network HW: [O] Config network: [O] Detect CD: [ ] Load installer modules: [O] Detect hard drives: [O] Partition hard drives: [0] Create file systems: [O] Mount partitions: [O] Install base system: [O] Install boot loader: [E] Save install-report: [E] Reboot: [E] [O] = OK, [E] = Error (please elaborate below), [ ] = didn't try it
Comments/Problems:
First comment: The new installer is a BIG improvement!
I started the installer with loadlin from a DOS partition containing
multiple "sarge-i386-businesscard.iso" files, from multiple dates/sites,
kernels and initial ramdisks. When looking for the .iso's the installer
couldn't find it at first, because is was not in the root-directory of
any drive, which I beleive it should be. I then let it search all
drives/partitions. Because it would take a while, I went away, expecting
to be given the choice between all iso's found when the search had
finished. When I returned however the installer had already tried to
configure the network with DHCP, and asked me whether to retry, or
manually configure the network. So I don't know which iso it used, if any.
After configuring the network everything went smooth up until the point
at which I needed to specify the grub-boot device. I am not familiar
with grub, so I entered (hd3) to have it install the MBR on the SCSI
disk sda, assuming hd1 was the first IDE disk, hd2 en second, and hd3
the SCSI disk. I was meaning to disconnect the power to the IDE disks to
test whether it would boot from /dev/sda(2). Installing Grub gave a
fatal error: no such disk and I was shown the main-menu. I then retried
installing grub assuming it would re-ask me on which device. It didn't
however, and retried installing on (hd3).
Because I saw no way out it this I tried installing Lilo, but this
wouldn't let me enter any information, and completed the step without
any messages, but it seemed to do nothing.
I then tried saving the configuration/installation information to a floppy-disk, but this failed without writing to the floppy, and without any messages. In the third (or was if fourth?) console I could see the 'floppy' module couldn't be found.
I then tried rebooting. The mbr on the first IDE disk was untouched,
because the machine booted as before the test-install. I tried using the
installation kernel and the installation ramdisk, but no SCSI disks
where detected because this kernel doesn't contain the 'megaraid' driver.
To see if a boot-block (grub or lilo) had been installed on the SCSI
disk I tried:
- booting with the IDE harddisks deleted from the BIOS.
- booting with the BIOS harddisk-bootorder changed to SCSI-IDE instead
of IDE-SCSI
- booting with the power connectors pulled from the IDE disks.
- booting with the power connectors pulled from all IDE devices.
All to no avail: the machine would not boot, and not give any messages
apart from the machine's BIOS startup-display.
After restarting the installation I could recover from this situation using the second virtual console with the following steps:
- manually loading modules for MegaRaid and SCSI disks (megaraid, scsi-mod and sd-mod).
- mount /target and /target/boot.
- manually loading modules for IDE-disks (ide-disk(?), ide-core(?) and ide-detect).
- mount the partition with loadlin on it on /mnt
- copy kernel and initrd from /target/boot to directory on /mnt.
- restart computer, and start loadlin with installed kernel and initrd.
This way I verified that had the kernel and initrd been available on /dev/sda I would have been able to continue the installation as I now did via these steps.
So the problems to be fixed are:
1) If installing Grub fails, re-ask the "Which boot device to install
the MBR on?" question so the user can correct any errors he/she made.
2) Have the lilo-install ask some questions to determine the configuration needed.
3) Don't silently fail on the lilo-installation.
Erik -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Erik C.J. Laan elaan at dds.nl Please reply below the message, please cut unrelevant pieces from a reply. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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