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View Full Version : Unable to boot live cd Knoppix 6.2



vhradice
04-14-2010, 04:36 AM
I have downloaded and created the disks to load Knoppix - both the DVD and the Live CD. When I try to boot either of these disks, both get to the same point and stop. I get 'Searching' and 'Waiting' messages with what appear to be disk addresses like /dev/sr0 and others. They go by so fast I can't read them. Both eventually end with the same message -
could not mount disk to /mnt-system Starting debugging shell

I have found posts that imply the cd/dvd burn was bad. In my case, the cd/dvd will boot in 3 other pc's and boot up. Other cd's - UBCD and Fedora and windows - read just fine. The disks are good. The dvd reader is good. I have determined that valid devices are /dev/sr0, /dev/sr1, and /dev/sda1. The first 2 are dvdrw and dvdrom. The other is the hard drive I want to install Knoppix on. What do I do next in the debugging shell to figure out what is wrong?
Thanks, Vince Radice

OErjan
04-14-2010, 09:39 AM
sounds like a high speed burn, or bad download, if you have not checked the MD5 do so, here is how.
http://www.knoppix.net/wiki/Downloading_FAQ#Q:_What_are_these_strange_MD5_file s_that_accompany_the_ISO_CD_images.3F
yes it is important, I have even had a Torrent download corrupted.

also i would try burning the disk at lowest speed you can, yes it frequently does make the difference.
To give you the why means we will need to go into how CD and DVD disks are made and how they work together with how the filesystem works, waaay of topic and VERY technical, let us just accept it.

another common thing is bad compatability between disk and burner, not as frequent as it once was but...

vhradice
04-14-2010, 05:17 PM
I have tried the same Cd/DVD in 3 other pcs and both boot fine and run. Other CDs will run in this pc. The Media is good. The drives are good.

What can I run in the debugging window that will tell me what is wrong?

I have looked at the cheat codes, tried some, same result.

OErjan
04-14-2010, 11:25 PM
uhm, as I said that it works in 100 computers only mean that the disk is a marginal burn that can be read in a "good" reader, it is frequent reply on this forum when we say it might be a "bad disk", and when the poor burn/image is replaced it suddenly works.
try burning it slow and pleeeeese check the MD5sum, before you do that we STILL have two possible faults that have these precise symptoms.
the third is a bad drive and there are others that are unlikely.

EDIT
also a "bad" burn is slower that it should sometimes marginally sometimes crawling
/EDIT

Capricorny
04-15-2010, 11:15 PM
Tried 6.2.1 or 6.3?
There is a remote possibility the trouble is hardware-related, though I too have Oerjan's suggestion as my first guess. I had kernel trouble with 6.2.

vhradice
04-19-2010, 03:50 AM
I took the dvd drive and the hd out of the pc and put them into a different pc. I used the dvd that I had been using and I was able to install Knoppix onto the hd. I booted several times and ran for a while. I then took the dvd drive and the hd and put them back into the original pc. When I tried to boot, it failed. I got the following messages:
error: Driver 'pata_platform' is already registered, aborting
Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on unknown-block(8,1)

I booted UBCD and ran memory check for about 4 hours with no errors.

Memory is OK.
DVD drive is OK
DVD is OK.

What now? I have tried mounting the dvd drive, the hd, the floppy drive. All returned error - invalid option. Could there be a BIOS option I need to change? Is there a log created during initalization that I can somehow get at? I would realy hate having to leave it running windows because I can't get a Linux system loaded.

krishna.murphy
04-20-2010, 02:44 PM
I took the dvd drive and the hd out of the pc and put them into a different pc. I used the dvd that I had been using and I was able to install Knoppix onto the hd. I booted several times and ran for a while. I then took the dvd drive and the hd and put them back into the original pc. When I tried to boot, it failed. I got the following messages:
error: Driver 'pata_platform' is already registered, aborting
Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on unknown-block(8,1)

I booted UBCD and ran memory check for about 4 hours with no errors.

Memory is OK.
DVD drive is OK
DVD is OK.

What now? I have tried mounting the dvd drive, the hd, the floppy drive. All returned error - invalid option. Could there be a BIOS option I need to change? Is there a log created during initalization that I can somehow get at? I would realy hate having to leave it running windows because I can't get a Linux system loaded.

What I hear you saying is that the DVD itself and the DVD drive, plus the HD work fine in another system. Sounds like the original system has a hardware problem; I just got through sending my stepson's motherboard back to ASUS for a similar issue, and they replaced a couple of chips and his boot problem went away. Sorry to say it, but maybe you can get a working system under warranty, too.

Hope this helps!
Krishna :)

vhradice
04-22-2010, 03:39 PM
It's an older Dell and out of warranty. Windows runs just fine. So I don't think the mb is bad. I would like some help trying to figure out what Knoppix is trying to do at this point. Hdparm -i works fine and responds with what seems like valid info on the dvd drive, the cd drive and the hd drive. I have tried to mount the devices but all come back with an error. Fdisk lists all of the partitions on the hd. I have tried the cheatcode 'Debug' but that only works until I get the error. Is there a log created by default? If not, is there a way to force one to be created? Do the developers look at this forum? If not, is there a way to bring this to their attention? I would like to get this system working so my grand kids can use it and not mine. Thanks

krishna.murphy
04-22-2010, 05:00 PM
It's an older Dell and out of warranty. Windows runs just fine. So I don't think the mb is bad. I would like some help trying to figure out what Knoppix is trying to do at this point. Hdparm -i works fine and responds with what seems like valid info on the dvd drive, the cd drive and the hd drive. I have tried to mount the devices but all come back with an error. Fdisk lists all of the partitions on the hd. I have tried the cheatcode 'Debug' but that only works until I get the error. Is there a log created by default? If not, is there a way to force one to be created? Do the developers look at this forum? If not, is there a way to bring this to their attention? I would like to get this system working so my grand kids can use it and not mine. Thanks

I highly recommend re-burning; re-writable media may be better, and slower speed, too. If you have a marginal DVD drive, and a marginal power supply, that would explain it. Another option is to try a different DVD drive in the system, perhaps an external one, or even a different power supply. Sometimes the BIOS will have an option to check the hardware, e.g. power supply voltages. You can also boot on a different system and do an install to a flash drive or to the hard drive in question. However, if it's to be a system your grandkids can boot and use without having any troubles left after they shut down, install may not be the way to go, and on older BIOS, boot-from-flash can be an issue.

Hope that helps!
Krishna:mrgreen:
p.s. Developers won't be involved in this fix - it's clearly something in your hardware, or the DVD media.

vhradice
04-29-2010, 03:14 AM
I tried to install on a different system. Please see post #6. I tried a different dvd drive.
Here are the messages received when trying to boot:

error: Driver 'pata_platform' is already registered, aborting
Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on unknown-block(8,1)


BIOS will not allow boot from flash. I agree that it is probably something in the hardware, but what?

Is the mount command fully functional at this point during the boot process?

Is there a log file being created at this point during the boot process?

Is there any way to get more information out during the failed mount commands?

Capricorny
04-29-2010, 10:06 AM
Just 3 suggestions:
1. Again, tried 6.2.1 or 6.3? Trouble may have to do with the kernel version in 6.2. Also, other live distros running without problems?
2. Checked for BIOS upgrades for the computer model?
3. Tried booting with GRUB? When you are able to swap drives, you could try with a drive with GRUB installed.

Because the kernel seems to panic so early, I'm not sure you can get so much useful information from it. I always find it much easier to start from something working that from something that doesn't.

klaus2008
04-29-2010, 04:18 PM
Kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on unknown-block(8,1)
If I install Knoppix to the first partition of an HDD then I use a command line for the boot loader with a cheat code root=/dev/sda1.
Did you check that the root boot parameter corresponds with the device with the root filesystem? If you use GRUB legacy as a boot loader then you have the opportunity to edit the command line.

vhradice
05-03-2010, 12:31 AM
Capricorny, In response to your suggestions:
1. Where do I download a copy of 6.3 or 6.2.1? This site only has 6.2 avaliable
2. Check already. I am at the latest level.
3. I plan to install GRUB if/when I can get KNOPPIX loaded. I need to install it first.

Klaus2008, There is only 1 hd installed. I loaded KNOPPIX onto it on a different pc and moved the hd. I got those messages when I tried to boot it.

Here is where I stand at this moment: I truly believe that there is something strange with the hardware. I have found several posts on many web sites referencing the hardware I have and not being able to load any version of LINUX. None of them gave the final resolution of how they got it to work. From what I have been able to determine, the mount command is failing to mount the cd/dvd and throwing me into debugging mode. When I try to issue what appear to be valid mount commands, the response back is usually 'Invalid parameter' with no indication of what is wrong. How can I get more detailed information of why mount fails? I have tried the -v which is supposed to be verbose and give more info. Nothing more than 'invalid parameter'. I can run hdparm and get results the conform to what the drive is. ANy more suggestions/requests? Thanks in advance.

Capricorny
05-03-2010, 11:13 AM
Capricorny, In response to your suggestions:
1. Where do I download a copy of 6.3 or 6.2.1? This site only has 6.2 avaliable
2. Check already. I am at the latest level.
3. I plan to install GRUB if/when I can get KNOPPIX loaded. I need to install it first.

Klaus2008, There is only 1 hd installed. I loaded KNOPPIX onto it on a different pc and moved the hd. I got those messages when I tried to boot it.

Here is where I stand at this moment: I truly believe that there is something strange with the hardware. I have found several posts on many web sites referencing the hardware I have and not being able to load any version of LINUX. None of them gave the final resolution of how they got it to work. From what I have been able to determine, the mount command is failing to mount the cd/dvd and throwing me into debugging mode. When I try to issue what appear to be valid mount commands, the response back is usually 'Invalid parameter' with no indication of what is wrong. How can I get more detailed information of why mount fails? I have tried the -v which is supposed to be verbose and give more info. Nothing more than 'invalid parameter'. I can run hdparm and get results the conform to what the drive is. ANy more suggestions/requests? Thanks in advance.

1. "Available"?. Follow the link to knopper.net, look at the download mirrors, e.g. ftp://knoppix.ftp.fu-berlin.de/ has got 6.2.1.
2. Fine.
3. No, you don't. In fact IMHO KNOPPIX isn't a good route of installing GRUB if you aren't a very experienced Linux user. You could use Mandriva, Suse or just about any live distro except for Knoppix to get GRUB installed in a safe and simple way. Myself, I used Mandriva 2009.

The main gripe with installing Linux on another PC and then moving the disk, is that you should not try to bring up the graphical interface after moving the disk. There are always booting options for this.

If you are not able to mount the CD at all on your PC, you can just copy the ISO image onto the harddisk, and loop-mount it, or simply copy the necessary files to a FAT32-partition and use GRUB for starting it. I have described a method elsewhere here.

krishna.murphy
05-03-2010, 12:46 PM
If you are not able to mount the CD at all on your PC, you can just copy the ISO image onto the harddisk, and loop-mount it, or simply copy the necessary files to a FAT32-partition and use GRUB for starting it. I have described a method elsewhere here.

I agree; in fact, this seond option is great with Knoppix, as Knoppix is very well-suited for this more or less "brute-force" approach. No partitioning required, really, and it can done under Windows or (probably) even on a PowerPC Mac. You could also use an external hard-drive case to make (fairly) sure that the power supply issue is eliminated, using the same PC hardware (not even needing a second system, just a good burn.)

Krishna:mrgreen:

vhradice
05-05-2010, 08:29 PM
I checked and i was wrong. I have 6.2.1. This is what I have been trying. Also GRUB is installed on the hd.

I don't think you quite understand the problem I am having. The KNOPPIX INIT script is trying to do a logical mount of the dvd to /mnt-system/KNOPPIX. This command is failing. I have tried to issue mount commands and they have failed. I have a picture of the failure. I took it with a digital camera. How can I upload the file so you can get a better look at what it happening?

krishna.murphy
05-06-2010, 04:33 PM
I checked and i was wrong. I have 6.2.1. This is what I have been trying. Also GRUB is installed on the hd.

I don't think you quite understand the problem I am having. The KNOPPIX INIT script is trying to do a logical mount of the dvd to /mnt-system/KNOPPIX. This command is failing. I have tried to issue mount commands and they have failed. I have a picture of the failure. I took it with a digital camera. How can I upload the file so you can get a better look at what it happening?

When you start to post, there's a button marked "Go Advanced" - click it, and you'll have a couple of lines of icons above the text area where you'll find "Insert Image" center-right on the second row.:cool::D

If Knoppix isn't mounting that folder correctly, then it's nearly a certainty that you got a marginal burn on the media. Try again, using a slower speed, or use different media. Re-writable media seems more reliable, FWIW, and you can always use flash if you have it - let us know if you need help booting flash, or search these forums (I have posted on it several times,) as this is often troublesome, especially with older PCs.

Cheers!
Krishna:mrgreen:

krishna.murphy
05-06-2010, 04:47 PM
Oops - I noticed a correction needed, but it was too late to edit, so I'm re-posting.

I checked and i was wrong. I have 6.2.1. This is what I have been trying. Also GRUB is installed on the hd.

I don't think you quite understand the problem I am having. The KNOPPIX INIT script is trying to do a logical mount of the dvd to /mnt-system/KNOPPIX. This command is failing. I have tried to issue mount commands and they have failed. I have a picture of the failure. I took it with a digital camera. How can I upload the file so you can get a better look at what it happening?

When you start to post, there's a button marked "Go Advanced" - click it, and you'll have a couple of lines of icons above the text area where you'll find "Insert Image" center-right on the second row.:cool::D

Edit - there's also that icon on the Quick Reply that is third from the right side of the row of icons.

If Knoppix isn't mounting that folder correctly on this sytem, but it works on others, then it's nearly a certainty that you got a marginal burn on the media. Try again, using a slower speed, or use different media. Re-writable media seems more reliable, FWIW, and you can always use flash if you have it - let us know if you need help booting flash, or search these forums (I have posted on it several times) as this is often troublesome, especially with older PCs.

Cheers!
Krishna:mrgreen:

vhradice
05-07-2010, 04:31 PM
http://www.knoppix.net/forum/http://www.knoppix.net/forum/album.php?albumid=1&attachmentid=8As I was reading through some posts, it was mentioned that KNOPPIX was not really intended to be loaded onto a hd, but to use Debian instead. Ok, I put KNOPPIX on hold, downloaded the Debian Install through the net iso, burned it to a cd and tried that. The install went fine. All of the necessary files were downloaded (bypassing bad burn possibilities) and installed. When I tried to boot the new install, it failed. I got some sort of error that flashed by on the screen so fast I could not catch it. I found a cheat code - vga=ext - which puts more lines on the screen. I took a picture of the screen,created an album here and uploaded the picture. Here is the picture.

http://www.knoppix.net/forum/album.php?albumid=1&attachmentid=8

If you need more information to figure out what it is, please let me know how to obtain it.

I will not be available to supply anything for the next week due to other commitments and lack of access to the pc. Thank you, Vince Radice

klaus2008
05-08-2010, 07:30 AM
How can I see the picture? I always get a message "you do not have permission to access this page."

Capricorny
05-08-2010, 08:09 AM
http://www.knoppix.net/forum/http://www.knoppix.net/forum/album.php?albumid=1&attachmentid=8As I was reading through some posts, it was mentioned that KNOPPIX was not really intended to be loaded onto a hd, but to use Debian instead. Ok, I put KNOPPIX on hold, downloaded the Debian Install through the net iso, burned it to a cd and tried that. The install went fine. All of the necessary files were downloaded (bypassing bad burn possibilities) and installed. When I tried to boot the new install, it failed. I got some sort of error that flashed by on the screen so fast I could not catch it. I found a cheat code - vga=ext - which puts more lines on the screen. I took a picture of the screen,created an album here and uploaded the picture. Here is the picture.

http://www.knoppix.net/forum/album.php?albumid=1&attachmentid=8

If you need more information to figure out what it is, please let me know how to obtain it.

I will not be available to supply anything for the next week due to other commitments and lack of access to the pc. Thank you, Vince Radice

When you do a full HD install, what you get is basically a functionally and mentally retarded Debian variant. That's why so many of us advice against it. I do a poor man's install instead, just using partitions on the HD (extrenal or internal) instead of CD/DVD/Flash. Then I get both the advantages of HD install (mostly) and of Knoppix. Booting is done either via GRUB or syslinux - setting up with GRUB is a less error-safe, but better overall solution IMHO. But to avoid any effects of a full HD install, I don't use that mechanism to install GRUB.

I have found that for general use, this solution works better for me than a full Debian install. YMMV - there are good efficiency and system administrative reasons to go the full Debian way, but I'm amazed at how little reason there is program-wise in Knoppix 6.X. And it only gets better.

If you do a poor man's install to an external USB HD, you can check that this works on another machine before trying out your problem baby computer. I would have gone the whole way, installing GRUB on the internal HD, setting it up to boot the external HD, checking that everything works properly. And then moved everything over, trying to boot the problem computer. Without graphics at first. If this doen't work, I would have tried if ANY Linux distro could be started, and if so, simply used that.

The HW detection/automatic setup does not work so flawlessly in the recent Knoppix versions as it used to. It has become much more versatile, but seemingly much more bug-laden too. Your Debian experience, could indicate that this may have to do not with Knoppix tweaks, but with upstream bugs.