[SOLVED]Need help with problems creating Mageia 3 Inst. DVD

[LarryDan]

I've been trying to download the ISO and create an Mageia 3 RC installation DVD for some time without any success.
I believe the problem has to do with not being able to get the correct md5 and sha1 signatures on the ISO downloaded.

The DVD I'm trying to create is the Installer version: Mageia-3-RC-x86_64-DVD.iso.
I'm experienced at downloading ISO images, checking signatures, and burning DVD's, and have done so, many times without problems.
My DVD Writer is a good one, and I'm using fairly good quality media that hasn't given me any problems in the past.
I set the writing speed in K3b to only 4x even though the media is rated at 16x and the writer capable of faster speeds.
But I've been unable to get the correct signatures after 8 attempts to download the ISO (6 on 29 April and 2 today, 1 May).
In desperation, I tried to burn the DVD anyway today, and when the write was completed and verified,
K3B signaled a writer error with the message: "Written data on track 1 differs from the original" (K3b had automatically created its own md5sum on the ISO prior to beginning the write).

1. When I select the Mageia 3 RC download mirror, the download starts, but either it stops for no reason I can see at exactly 2.0 GB (and I discard those versions immediately),
or it downloads completely, but when it reaches "time remaining: 0 secs", it seems to stall at that point,
and the downloaded file name has a .crdownload suffix following the .iso suffix of the file name I've indicated above.

2. Then, I rename the downloaded file, dropping the .crdownload suffix after the .iso suffix, and when I run md5sum and sha1sum in a terminal,
the signatures are not the same as indicated on the Mageia download page; and as I mentioned,
in desperation after the 8th attempt at downloading and checking signatures and not knowing what else to do to produce a different result, I tried K3b anyway.
The first attempt at producing a DVD was all the proof I needed that unless I can get good signatures after the download, there isn't any point in trying to burn my way to success!
However, I don't have the foggiest notion of how I can get better download results.
So, I would be ever-so-grateful if somebody could please help me solve the download problem.
Thank you.

[Ken-Bergen]

Have you tried downloading via torrent?
Your torrent client will check the md5sum of each of the 1,933 chunks as they are downloaded and re-download any that fail the check making a bad download very unlikely.

As there are currently 43 seeders and only 3 downloading it should go fast.

[LarryDan]

Thank you for the speedy reply Ken-Bergen.
No, I haven't tried via torrent, but I will right now, and I'll post my results as soon as I have some.

Thanks again!

[LarryDan]

Ken-Bergen:
Sorry, but I'm still having problems with the download; however this time, it's the result of my inexperience using BitTorrent. (Truth be told, I knew what it was, but never used it before.)

On my first try, I "assumed" Chrome could handle the FTP Torrent download without any help; but when all that happened after I clicked on the 64-bit Torrent link was a brief beginning to a download and not much more, I did the research on BitTorrent and discovered I needed an extension in Chrome. So I deleted what was in my Download folder, and went shopping at the Chrome store, and came away with the "BitTorrent Surf (Beta)" extension; and after I configured it and turned it on, I tried again.

This time when I browsed to the Mageia 3 RC download page and clicked on the FTP BitTorrent 64-bit download link (as opposed to searching and downloading through the BitTorrent Surf extension),
it started as before; and again as before, with the exception of the initial 1-second indication of the beginning of a download, there wasn't any sign of additional activity (no timing diagnostics that usually accompany a Chrome download). For all intents and purposes, it appeared to be "dead in the water" as in my first try.

After giving it a little while (10 minutes) and without seeing any indication of activity, I opened Dolphin to see what was in my Download folder,
and the only thing there was one file named "Mageia-3-RC-x86_64-DVD.torrent with a file size of 38.5 KiB. I'm aware that torrents are a bit of magic, but I don't think that includes waving a wand to make a file shrink in size. So I'm obviously not driving this car correctly. Can you please tell me how to steer it the right way?

Many Thanks again.

[Ken-Bergen]

What operating system are you using and do you have a torrent program installed on it?

I don't use Chrome but for what it's worth no browser will know what to do with a torrent if there's no torrent program installed on the system.

[LarryDan]

Thanks!

I'm using KDE 4.4.5 on Mandriva 2010.2, and I just checked to see what's installed on my system.
According to the Mandriva Linux Control Center Software Management, I have the following Torrent files "installed" (as opposed to "available"):

ktorrent version 4.0.1, release 3mdv2010.1
libktorrent1 version 1.0.1 release 1mdv2010.1

They were installed automatically when I installed the PWP version of Mandriva 2010.2.
So all the parts are there, but they don't seem to be talking, or I'm not pressing the right buttons.

Thank you again.

[Ken-Bergen]

As I said I don't use Chrome but you say you're using Mandriva 2010.2.
If so Firefox should be installed.
Could you try with Firefox instead of Chrome and see what happens?

[LarryDan]

While I was waiting for your reply, and since with your help I discovered that I had the ktorrent and libktorrent files installed, indicating I had all the necessary components, I tried downloading by using the Chrome BitTorrent Surf extension this time.
When the extension indicated it was downloading and completed in less than a minute, but I didn't see any indication of a download, I went to Dolphin to see what was in my Download folder.
And again, just as in my previous try by clicking on the BitTorrent download link on the Mageia 3 RC download Web page, it was the same 38.5 KiB torrent file. Both methods acted exactly alike and produced identical results.

So there was only one thing to do. Out of desperation, in the Dolphin window, I clicked on the icon of the 38.5 KiB file that was download, and in so doing, I learned how to use Torrent.
Clicking on that little file acted the same was as clicking on any file with a file suffix the system recognizes (.pdf, and etc.).
It launched ktorrent; and as I'm typing this, ktorrent is downloading the DVD iso and several other associated files (md5, sha1, and etc.).

In the past, when downloading a file in either Chrome, Firefox, or other browsers I've tried, it was only necessary to click on the link to the file. Apparently, with a torrent, you only download the torrent "starter", and then have to launch it with a torrent program, in my case ktorrent.

If that hadn't worked, sure, I would have gladly tried Firefox as per your suggestion. I've used FF a lot in the past, but more recently have preferred Chrome; although FF is perfectly good also.

Thank you very much for the speed with which you replied to my calls for help, and that you stayed with me until I found a resolution. Your suggestions were excellent. They led me to trying Torrent and discovering ktorrent on my system. It was only shear desperation that caused me to click on the small file, which turned out to be the very thing I needed to do. This was my first attempt to use torrent (a big thanks to you), and since now I'm an expert at it (not really!), I will be using it much more in the future.

Now, I have to hope that the signatures will check-out okay when the downloads are done. I have a feeling they will. I'll post the results either way. Thank you for your suggestions.

[LarryDan]

YES!!! Success.

When the torrent download was complete, I let it run a little longer to help with the seeding, and then tested both the md5 and sha1 checksums; and this time, they both indicated "OK".
So thanks to your suggestion and help, and a little dumb luck on my part, I can burn an installation DVD and help with the RC testing.
I just completed building a new computer a few days ago and without a Linux distribution to install, could only look at the BIOS hardware monitor to see that all was well temperature and volts-wise, and that it was firing on all cylinders. Now, I'll be able to install Mageia 3 RC and use my new build.

I'm grateful for all of your help.

[Ken-Bergen]

Good show.

As the problem seems to be solved please mark it so by editing the title of the first post and prefixing it with [SOLVED].

[LarryDan]

Thanks Ken. I realized I should modify the subject to indicate it was solved, but was waiting until I did the installation, which was planned for this morning, but... Hopefully, I will be able to tomorrow.

Thanks again for all your help.