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gordonski
05-16-2005, 12:21 AM
Hello!

I'm running a WinXP-Machine and recently installed Knoppix 3.8 on my hdd. Everxthing's fine except for one weird thing: LILO always sets the hda2 partition to "hidden" so when booting Windows (which is installed on hda1) I can't access this partition anymore. I tried to unhide the partition with QTParted in Knoppix and with Partition Magic under windows. But after a reboot it appeared as hidden again.
I'm pretty sure that LILO causes this problem because I removed it from the mbr and the hiding stopped.
Can anyone tell me how to make LILO stop hiding my partitions??

Thank you for your replies!
gordonski

UnderScore
05-16-2005, 03:00 PM
Just a guess: did you check the /etc/lilo/conf file? There may be a setting in there.

gordonski
05-17-2005, 10:37 AM
Well, I tried to check that but didn't find anything that's related to doing something to hda2. It might well be that I just didn't recognize it...
So here's the entire content of my lilo.conf:

# /etc/lilo.conf - See: 'lilo(8)' and 'lilo.conf(5)',
# --------------- 'install-mbr(8)', '/usr/share/doc/lilo/',
# and '/usr/share/doc/mbr/'.

# +---------------------------------------------------------------+
# | !! Reminder !! |
# | |
# | Don't forget to run 'lilo' after you make changes to this |
# | conffile, '/boot/bootmess.txt', or install a new kernel. The |
# | computer will most likely fail to boot if a kernel-image |
# | post-install script or you don't remember to run 'lilo'. |
# | |
# +---------------------------------------------------------------+

# Support LBA for large hard disks.
#
lba32

# Overrides the default mapping between harddisk names and the BIOS'
# harddisk order. Use with caution.
#disk=/dev/hde
# bios=0x81

#disk=/dev/sda
# bios=0x80

# Specifies the boot device. This is where Lilo installs its boot
# block. It can be either a partition, or the raw device, in which
# case it installs in the MBR, and will overwrite the current MBR.
#
boot=/dev/hda

# Specifies the device that should be mounted as root. ('/')
#
root=/dev/hda5

# Enable map compaction:
# Tries to merge read requests for adjacent sectors into a single
# read request. This drastically reduces load time and keeps the
# map smaller. Using 'compact' is especially recommended when
# booting from a floppy disk. It is disabled here by default
# because it doesn't always work.
#
# compact

# Default menu for Debian. (Using the images from debian-bootscreen)
# from Philipp Wolfer <phil@newswriter.org>.
bitmap=/usr/share/lilo/debianlilo.bmp
bmp-colors=1,,0,2,,0
bmp-table=120p,173p,1,15,17
bmp-timer=254p,432p,1,0,0

# Install the specified file as the new boot sector.
# LILO supports built in boot sectory, you only need
# to specify the type, choose one from 'text', 'menu' or 'bitmap'.
# new: install=bmp old: install=/boot/boot-bmp.b
# new: install=text old: install=/boot/boot-text.b
# new: install=menu old: install=/boot/boot-menu.b or boot.b
# default: 'menu' is default, unless you have a bitmap= line
# Note: install=bmp must be used to see the bitmap menu.
# install=menu
# install=bmp
install=bmp

# Specifies the number of _tenths_ of a second LILO should
# wait before booting the first image. LILO
# doesn't wait if DELAY is omitted or if DELAY is set to zero.

delay=20

# Prompt to use certaing image. If prompt is specified without timeout,
# boot will not take place unless you hit RETURN
prompt
timeout=50

# Specifies the location of the map file. If MAP is
# omitted, a file /boot/map is used.
map=/boot/map

# Specifies the VGA text mode that should be selected when
# booting. The following values are recognized (case is ignored):
# NORMAL select normal 80x25 text mode.
# EXTENDED select 80x50 text mode. The word EXTENDED can be
# abbreviated to EXT.
# ASK stop and ask for user input (at boot time).
# <number> use the corresponding text mode. A list of available modes
# can be obtained by booting with vga=ask and pressing [Enter].
vga=791

# You can set a password here, and uncomment the 'restricted' lines
# in the image definitions below to make it so that a password must
# be typed to boot anything but a default configuration. If a
# command line is given, other than one specified by an 'append'
# statement in 'lilo.conf', the password will be required, but a
# standard default boot will not require one.
#
# This will, for instance, prevent anyone with access to the
# console from booting with something like 'Linux init=/bin/sh',
# and thus becoming 'root' without proper authorization.
#
# Note that if you really need this type of security, you will
# likely also want to use 'install-mbr' to reconfigure the MBR
# program, as well as set up your BIOS to disallow booting from
# removable disk or CD-ROM, then put a password on getting into the
# BIOS configuration as well. Please RTFM 'install-mbr(8)'.
#
# password=tatercounter2000

# You can put a customized boot message up if you like. If you use
# 'prompt', and this computer may need to reboot unattended, you
# must specify a 'timeout', or it will sit there forever waiting
# for a keypress. 'single-key' goes with the 'alias' lines in the
# 'image' configurations below. eg: You can press '1' to boot
# 'Linux', '2' to boot 'LinuxOLD', if you uncomment the 'alias'.
#
# message=/boot/bootmess.txt
# prompt
# single-key
# delay=100
# timeout=100

# Kernel command line options that apply to all installed images go
# here. See: The 'boot-prompt-HOWO' and 'kernel-parameters.txt' in
# the Linux kernel 'Documentation' directory.
#
# append=""
# Boot up Linux by default.
#
default="WinXP/2K(hda1)"

image=/boot/vmlinuz
label="Linux"
initrd=/boot/initrd.img
append="ramdisk_size=100000 lang=de apm=power-off nomce "
read-only
image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.11
label="Linux(2.6)-1"
initrd=/boot/initrd.img-2.6.11
append="ramdisk_size=100000 lang=de apm=power-off hda=scsi hdb=scsi hdc=scsi hdd=scsi hde=scsi hdf=scsi hdg=scsi hdh=scsi nomce "
read-only

# If you have another OS on this machine to boot, you can uncomment the
# following lines, changing the device name on the 'other' line to
# where your other OS' partition is.
#
# other=/dev/hda4
# label=HURD
# restricted
# alias=3
other=/dev/hda1
label="WinXP/2K(hda1)"
other=/dev/hda2
label="WinXP/2K(hda2)"
other=/dev/hdc1
label="Windows(hdc1)"


I can boot Knoppix with the floppy disk that was created during hd-installation without hda2 being hidden. Using the disk instead of lilo in the mbr would be OK for me, but then I don't know how to disable the ide-scsi emulation for my cd-drives at startup...

gordonski

Peppo
05-17-2005, 12:06 PM
Try to delete


other=/dev/hda2
label="WinXP/2K(hda2)"
other=/dev/hdc1
label="Windows(hdc1)"

This may help to prevent hiding your drive hda2...

So long,

Peppo

gordonski
05-17-2005, 02:08 PM
Hi Peppo!
Thanks for the advice! I deleted those files from lilo.conf, but the problem still remains.
Any ohter ideas?

MfG,
gordonski

ottosykora
05-17-2005, 11:23 PM
Question:

what is on the hda2 ? Is this a bootable partition of windows like the one on hda1? (2 win partitons?)

If the partition is bootable, then a bootmanager has to hide it, this is his job. Yo are not supposed to have more then one active and bootable partition at one time.

Harry Kuhman
05-17-2005, 11:39 PM
If the partition is bootable, then a bootmanager has to hide it, this is his job. Yo are not supposed to have more then one active and bootable partition at one time.
It might be nice to know what the partition is, but it's not at all true that it has to be hidden. Knoppix or any version of Linux can boot and be able to read from other bootable partitions on the hard disk just fine. I can certainly boot my Debian system and see all of the Windows partitions including the boot partition just fine. You might have to hide one bootable windows partition from another bootable windows partition but that's about it. (I install lilo to the Linux partition and use SBM to boot the system and avoid Knoppix hard disk installs just to avoid problems like this if anyone wants the details on how my system is configured. And I even have two bootable windows partitions on my C and D drives on my main system and can boot either one of them just by changing which I boot in the BIOS, no hiding and each can read the other just fine with no problems.)

ottosykora
05-18-2005, 12:03 PM
Yes Kuhmann, this was somehow what I meant.
If the win partitions are both bootable one then one of them has go sleep for that moment, this will do the bootmanager.
For Linux it seems not to be important wheater the partitions are hidden or not. I have 3 bootable partitions with win and linux in the extended in a logic grive. Linux can access all the bootable partition hidden or not.
Just the bootmanager does not leave two bootable win partitions active. it will rather active the one which is selected on boot and hidethen the rest.

gordonski
05-18-2005, 04:17 PM
Hey Guys!
Thanks for xour replies!
My hda2 partition is not a bootable one, it contains just data I need to access in windows. I realized that linux can read any partition, hidden or not, my problem is that windows just ain't that clever ;)
I'm slightly ashamed to say that, yes, I still use some programs that would only run in windows, and that's why I need to keep my windows installation.
I will now follow Harry's example and try installing lilo to the linux partition and see what it does then...

So long,
gordonski

gordonski
05-19-2005, 06:22 PM
Ok, I could solve the problem by installing Knoppix 3.8.2, which uses grub instead of lilo. Now Knoppix and Windows both boot perfectly fine.

Gordonski 8)