I've spent hours and hours searching the web and news groups, and still
haven't licked this one.

Specs:
RH9
Kernel: 2.4.20-8
FIC AN19C Mobo
Athlon XP 1700+
256 MB RAM
10 Gig 5400 RPM IDE
Dual boot w/ Windows XP
XP on /dev/hda
RH9 on /dev/hdc1

I've got my WinXP controlling the MBR on /dev/hda, and it correctly
passes control to LILO.  LILO boots, but RH crashes early in the boot
with "Error 6 mounting ext3" and then "kernel panic, no init found".  I
CAN boot the system fine using the RH9 Emergency boot disk.  I'd like to
get my boot record working because that boot disk is to stinking slow!  

I've researched the 'no init found' tons, and people say you get this
error with any boot problems.  I think the real problem lies in the
first error.  To elaborate:

I do have /initrd, and I do have /sbin/init.  I've run fsck from
single-user mode on /dev/hdc1, no errors, reports clean.

I've reinstalled LILO about 575 times, and installed GRUB about 453
times.  Each time I reinstall, I do the dd command to get a new boot
image, and dump that in XP so that XP knows what's going on.  None of
this has helped.

The weird thing I've noticed is when I run fdisk -l /dev/hdc1:

-----------------
Disk /dev/hdc1: 9722 MB, 9722248704 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 1181 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

Device Boot    Start       End    Blocks   Id  System
-----------------

No partition information is displayed!  This drive has / taking the
whole thing (only one partition, / ).  Is that why it doesn't show
partition info?  Not sure if that's part of my problem, but I'd think it
should at least display the one partition I have.

Thanks in advance for any help.

If replying directly, remove '_nospam'

yacoubean

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 16:47:19 -0700, yacoubean typed:
quote:

> I've spent hours and hours searching the web and news groups, and still
> haven't licked this one.


<snip>
quote:

> I've reinstalled LILO about 575 times, and installed GRUB about 453
> times.


Tell us where and how you installed either LILO or GRUB not how many
times. And the dd command you used.

<snip>
quote:

> The weird thing I've noticed is when I run fdisk -l /dev/hdc1:


<snip>
quote:

> No partition information is displayed!


Because you have no partition info to show by the command you used. Try;

fdisk -l /dev/hdc

More than likely you will see two partitions, your root (/dev/hdc1)
partition and a swap partition unless you installed the swap partition
some where else.


--
SCO + RICO Act = Justice

Hi!  I'm a .sig virus!  Copy me to your .sig!

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

Lenard wrote:
quote:

> On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 16:47:19 -0700, yacoubean typed:


<snip>
quote:

> Because you have no partition info to show by the command you used. Try;
>
> fdisk -l /dev/hdc
>
> More than likely you will see two partitions, your root (/dev/hdc1)
> partition and a swap partition unless you installed the swap partition
> some where else.
>


Thanks for setting me straight.  I see my partitions when I do it on the
correct device!  

With that in mind, I ran fsck with /dev/hdc instead of /dev/hdc1, and it
tells me something interesting:

-----------------------
fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
e2fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
Couldn't find ext2 superblock, trying backup blocks...
fsck.ext2: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/hdc

The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
e2fsck -b 8193 <device>
-----------------------

I ran their suggestion, and got the same result as before (same message
I pasted here).  I did some research and found it sometimes helps to try
32768 instead of 8193.  That didn't help either (returned the same error
message).  I guess I have a trashed superblock, beyond repair (unless I
format the drive or something).  I just can't figure out how the boot
disk works, but the boot from LILO fails...maybe I can find a way to
copy what works from the boot disk to the hard drive...probably not, but
I'll hit the books.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

yacoubean wrote:
quote:

> Lenard wrote:
>

<snip>
quote:

> Thanks for setting me straight.  I see my partitions when I do it on the
> correct device!  
>
> With that in mind, I ran fsck with /dev/hdc instead of /dev/hdc1, and it
> tells me something interesting:
>
> -----------------------
> fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
> e2fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
> Couldn't find ext2 superblock, trying backup blocks...
> fsck.ext2: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/hdc
>
> The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
> filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
> filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
> is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
>     e2fsck -b 8193 <device>
> -----------------------
>
> I ran their suggestion, and got the same result as before (same message
> I pasted here).  I did some research and found it sometimes helps to try
> 32768 instead of 8193.  That didn't help either (returned the same error
> message).  I guess I have a trashed superblock, beyond repair (unless I
> format the drive or something).  I just can't figure out how the boot
> disk works, but the boot from LILO fails...maybe I can find a way to
> copy what works from the boot disk to the hard drive...probably not, but
> I'll hit the books.


Ahh, never mind.  I realized you shouldn't run fsck on the entire device
as its supposed to check a 'file system', not a disk.  So my theory was
wrong...

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 16:47:19 -0700, yacoubean typed:
quote:

> I've spent hours and hours searching the web and news groups, and still
> haven't licked this one.


<snip>
quote:

> I've reinstalled LILO about 575 times, and installed GRUB about 453
> times.


Tell us where and how you installed either LILO or GRUB not how many
times. And the dd command you used.

<snip>
quote:

> The weird thing I've noticed is when I run fdisk -l /dev/hdc1:


<snip>
quote:

> No partition information is displayed!


Because you have no partition info to show by the command you used. Try;

fdisk -l /dev/hdc

More than likely you will see two partitions, your root (/dev/hdc1)
partition and a swap partition unless you installed the swap partition
some where else.


--
SCO + RICO Act = Justice

Hi!  I'm a .sig virus!  Copy me to your .sig!

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

Lenard wrote:
quote:

> On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 16:47:19 -0700, yacoubean typed:


<snip>
quote:

> Because you have no partition info to show by the command you used. Try;
>
> fdisk -l /dev/hdc
>
> More than likely you will see two partitions, your root (/dev/hdc1)
> partition and a swap partition unless you installed the swap partition
> some where else.
>


Thanks for setting me straight.  I see my partitions when I do it on the
correct device!  

With that in mind, I ran fsck with /dev/hdc instead of /dev/hdc1, and it
tells me something interesting:

-----------------------
fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
e2fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
Couldn't find ext2 superblock, trying backup blocks...
fsck.ext2: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/hdc

The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
e2fsck -b 8193 <device>
-----------------------

I ran their suggestion, and got the same result as before (same message
I pasted here).  I did some research and found it sometimes helps to try
32768 instead of 8193.  That didn't help either (returned the same error
message).  I guess I have a trashed superblock, beyond repair (unless I
format the drive or something).  I just can't figure out how the boot
disk works, but the boot from LILO fails...maybe I can find a way to
copy what works from the boot disk to the hard drive...probably not, but
I'll hit the books.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

yacoubean wrote:
quote:

> Lenard wrote:
>

<snip>
quote:

> Thanks for setting me straight.  I see my partitions when I do it on the
> correct device!  
>
> With that in mind, I ran fsck with /dev/hdc instead of /dev/hdc1, and it
> tells me something interesting:
>
> -----------------------
> fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
> e2fsck 1.32 (09-Nov-2002)
> Couldn't find ext2 superblock, trying backup blocks...
> fsck.ext2: Bad magic number in super-block while trying to open /dev/hdc
>
> The superblock could not be read or does not describe a correct ext2
> filesystem.  If the device is valid and it really contains an ext2
> filesystem (and not swap or ufs or something else), then the superblock
> is corrupt, and you might try running e2fsck with an alternate superblock:
>     e2fsck -b 8193 <device>
> -----------------------
>
> I ran their suggestion, and got the same result as before (same message
> I pasted here).  I did some research and found it sometimes helps to try
> 32768 instead of 8193.  That didn't help either (returned the same error
> message).  I guess I have a trashed superblock, beyond repair (unless I
> format the drive or something).  I just can't figure out how the boot
> disk works, but the boot from LILO fails...maybe I can find a way to
> copy what works from the boot disk to the hard drive...probably not, but
> I'll hit the books.


Ahh, never mind.  I realized you shouldn't run fsck on the entire device
as its supposed to check a 'file system', not a disk.  So my theory was
wrong...

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]