[SOLVED] Boot problem

[allezstade]

Probably some stupid user error but ...
yesterday I did the kernel upgrade proposed and (due to a slow connection) did some other task while the process was running. I got the message 'You should reboot your system for the new kernel" and did just that without going back to the running upgrade screen. (user menu/shutdown/reboot).
Since then if I select boot mageia from the grub menu I get the mageia screen but no bubble pops out the pot for ages...
If I select boot 3.8.13.4 the same process is activated and I can wait hours
By chance (i'm connected on the forum) if I choose boot 3.8.13 the system goes up.

Using the rescue system, I has a look at the /boot partition and upgraded manually the soft links for config and System.map to point to the 3.8.13.4 elements instead of the 3.8.13 ones but this didn't solve the problem.

Even if I can be considered as an old linux user my competences in that domain prevent me of going further without any help...

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

Jean-Pierre

[Lebarhon]

Hello,

Boot with the kernel that works and then you can update your system:

Code: Select all

# urpmi --auto-update

It is safer to check before the repositories are OK with only core update enabled.

[allezstade]

Alas, urpmi --auto-update says «Les paquetages sont à jour». Packets are up to date ...

[chard]

I just installed the kernel update to 3.8.13.4, and when I rebooted, it didn't even get to the graphical cauldron. I get a blank, black screen and the laptop fan starts up, indicating considerable CPU activity. But nothing visible.

Power-cycled the system, same thing.

Manually selected the previous kernel (3.8.13) from the grub menu, and it boots just fine.

System is a Dell XPS 15z laptop that had previously been perfectly happy with earlier versions.

[marja]

see also https://bugs.mageia.org/show_bug.cgi?id=10836 and https://forums.mageia.org/en/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5636

[allezstade]

Thanks a lot.
As I said in the topic you mentionned, my machine is a Thinkpad W520 with an NVidia optimus aware grahic card but the BIOS has been setup in such a way that the integrated intel controler is not used. In fact this setup was incompatible with Windows 8. Windows 7 respects this setting while Windows 8 installs the NVidia driver during install and fails during reboot (wants to use the intel card with the NVidia driver). Changing the bios setting is OK for windows but prevents the use of the NVidia card with Linux.
Yesterday in order to try to remove the problematic kernel and the Virtual box dependancies in order to retrieve a fully usable system, I tried to clone my disk with the lates clonezilla version and had some trouble booting it until i added the ACPI=NO option (not sure that was the correct syntax but then the system stopped freezing when waiting for /dev to be populated.

While I do not have access to the thinkpad when in my office, I'm ready to di any test you may wish when at home..
Feel free to ask.

Thanks for your help.

Jean-Pierre

[allezstade]

It seems that the new kernel suffers the same problems than Windows 8. The BIOS setting must not disble the optimus detection. In my previous configuration that was supported by the previous kernel, I had forced the use of the NVidia card end disabled the integrated Intel 810 chip. It seems that the newes OSs (windows 8 OR kernel 3.8.13.4) insist on using the disabled chipset and are unable to boot. Restoring the BIOS default values (Optimus enabled and Optimus detection by OS) allow the system to boot correctly.
The xorg.conf file is modified and references both card with intel and nouveau driver (not the NVidia proprietary one).

For the time being I'm unable to say is the graphics device switching is or not performed but I can conform that the kernel boots correctly.

A lot of discussions have been help in the other topic mentionned by marja so I think that I can close this one makinmg it as SOLVED.

Hope this may help other mageia users.