file not found error using poor mans install method that worked on another box

**mrbojangles** · 10-04-2010, 11:24 PM

I tried another poor mans install using the same methods that worked on another box. The kernel would not boot no matter what partition and grub entry was used. The error was 'file not found, error 15'. The box is a dual boot, win 98se and opensuse 11.3 32bit os. The knoppix version is 6.2 dvd iso. I mounted the iso and copied the files from it. All the knoppix files were listed in the iso. Could the iso be corrupt? The box does not have a dvd burner.

**kl522** · 10-05-2010, 02:28 AM

The first thing to tell us if whether it is a case of

1. Bootloader could not find kernel ( knoppix 'linux' file ), or
2. Bootloader could not find initrd ( knoppix 'minirt.gz' file ), or
3. Kernel could not find knoppix files ( knoppix 'KNOPPIX/knoppix' file.

According to your 'words', it is a case of (1), could not find 'linux' file or possibly the 'linux' file is corrupted. It is easy to confirm that, just do a file comparison of the file with the original. 'cmp', 'diff' or 'md5sum' or 'sha1sum' will also work.

The detail of boot messages will tell you if it is a case of (1), (2) or (3).

**ICPUG** · 10-05-2010, 06:06 PM

Assuming it cannot find the linux file and it is not corrupt please check that it is spelt correctly in the place that grub menu is calling it from and that the filename is in lower case and NOT CAPITALS.

If, after that, it is still not being found then maybe it cannot see the partition for some reason.

As always, a description of your partition structure, partition formats and your menu.lst may help us to isolate the problem.

**mrbojangles** · 10-06-2010, 02:53 AM

To make sure that there is no problem with the iso file, I have copied the known good knoppix iso to a usb flash drive for use on the box in question. I am not sure if the original iso was bad because the download stopped a few times and had to be restarted. I will provide a more detailed post.

**Harry Kuhman** · 10-06-2010, 04:12 PM

Originally Posted by mrbojangles

To make sure that there is no problem with the iso file, I have copied the known good knoppix iso to a usb flash drive for use on the box in question. I am not sure if the original iso was bad because the download stopped a few times and had to be restarted. I will provide a more detailed post.

I suggest learning to use the md5 checksum. May take you only a minute or two of searching the web or reading the downloading FAQ, the test itself only takes about a minute (depending on system speed). If it passes then you know for certain that the download is good, if it fails then the download was bad.

If you downloaded by bittorrent then you likely have a good download, in spite of the restarts, as long as you let the download complete (and didn't rush to stop it as soon as you saw 100%). Bittorrent is self correcting that way. You could even deliberately corrupt the part that you have, restart bittorrent, and it will fix the damage as it completes the file. Still, is is a good idea to do the md5 test, it is simple and fast and beats fighting with problems created by a corupt ISO. If you didn't use the torrent then it is extremely likely that the download is bad. Heck, I was getting aboout 50% bad downloads from the mirrors before the torrents were available, even without any restarts!

md5 checksums are handy for several things. Once you are used to using them you may find additional uses than just verifying an ISO download.

**mrbojangles** · 10-07-2010, 03:46 AM

As a test, I did the knoppix poor mans install on another box and it works. This install does not seem to have 3-d acceleration. No compiz fuzion at startup, no exploding windows when closed out. This box has the nvidia geforce 5200 card. Is a manual install of the nvidia driver necessary? I looked up md5 checksum in wikipedia. Is there another reference on its usage? Also, I did not use bit torrent. I always relied on the http or ftp download method.

**Harry Kuhman** · 10-07-2010, 03:55 AM

Your "test" just isn't conclusive, although it seems likely that itwill give a good answer. But I have no understanding of why anyone would resist doing a simple and definitive md5 test. Just makes no sense to me not to use the right tool.

**kl522** · 10-07-2010, 07:40 AM

Old habits die hard. People tend to be back to the old ways of doing things.

**mrbojangles** · 10-08-2010, 02:03 AM

It is now conclusive, I ran the md5 checksum and here it is in all its glory. A copy/paste from my shell: c29e505256e84ccb1943d92b6e6c5b24 KNOPPIX.iso
(I renamed the iso). Next, I will revisit the problem box.....

**kl522** · 10-08-2010, 05:35 AM

How come in one of the website which I come across the published md5 sum is not the same as yours ?

http://iso.linuxquestions.org/knoppix/knoppix-6.2/