[SOLVED] Dual boot with 2 HDD's

[Garthhh]

I have Mageia1 on a HDD with all my content, music & Pictures
I have a 2nd HDD with Xp which I want to be able to boot
on MCC it looks like an either or choice

this is a
HP DC5000 sff
2.2ghz
1g ram
master HDD WD 160g
slave HDD seagate 40g

[doktor5000]

on MCC it looks like an either or choice

Sorry, don't understand that, please rephrase.

Did the Mageia installer not pick up your windows installation, and put it in Bootloader selection?
If not, you'd simply have to add a Chainloader entry to grub:

In MCC -> Boot -> Set up boot system -> Next

If there is no entry for Windows, click Add -> Other OS (Windows ...) give it a title and select on which partition your Windows is installed.
That should do it.

[Garthhh]

Well that didn't work
on the set up boot
I had to switch to looking at sdb which is were XP is installed
when I restart
GNU GRUB version 0.97
an aqua colored box
linux
linux-nonfb
failsafe
2.6.7-desktop586-1.mga
2.6.8-desktop586-4.mga
windows
any selection gives me
grub loading stage 1.5
grub loading, please wait
(hd1,0) /boot/gfxmenu: file not found

sometimes error21

now that I think about it makes sense
the HDD with xp doesn't have the right files...
so how do I fix?
I can't get there from a live CD through MCC

[John66]

Windblows "expect" that are installed in the first bootable hard disk and in the first partition of that disk.
Since you have Windows installed on a separate disk (that is the 2nd disk in the boot order, in BIOS), you need to perform a "virtual swap" between hard disks.
It worked for me, some long time ago, when I had win xp in my machine.
As I can remember, in mageia's /boot/grub/menu.lst file, you need to add (as root) these lines:

title windows
map (hd0) (hd1)
map (hd1) (hd0)
chainloader (hd1,0)+1

I think it's worth trying.

EDIT
It might also work these lines, instead of the above:

title Windows
map (hd0) (hd1)
map (hd1) (hd0)
rootnoverify (hd1,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1
boot

[Garthhh]

How would I get to that file?

the main goal is get my Magiea install working again
but this is my test box so every mistake is a learning experience

[John66]

In mageia, open the terminal and write: su - (notice, that there's a "space" and a "dash" after su)
You' ll be asked for your root password, write it (you won't see annything while you write, it's normal and common for the terminal, it is for security reasons).
Then write the name of your file manager and hit enter.
Your file manager will open with root privileges, then you can go to your "root directory" (/) and in /boot/grub.
There, you should see the menu.lst file, right-click on it and choose open with >> your text editor (kwrite for KDE, gedit for Gnome, etc).
Add the lines needed, save your changes.

[John66]

Wait a minute !!!
You mean you can't even boot in Mageia?

[Garthhh]

No I can't boot anything
even if I unplug either HDD

[John66]

I saw earlier today, this post:
https://forums.mageia.org/en/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=847#p6096
I think it might help in your case too.

[John66]

Another thing that I would try (may sound a bit crazy, but I'm almost sure I did it a couple of times in the past and worked):
Boot with a live-cd of mageia. Well, any other live-cd of a distro should be OK.
When you'll be logged-in, open the file manager (as root):
Find the first partition of the first hard disk (it should be sda1, where your mageia is installed, correct?).
Go to /boot/grub/menu.lst file and open it with a text editor (as root again).
See what is wrong.
As you wrote in your second post, there was an error message

(hd1,0) /boot/gfxmenu: file not found

So, it is looking -for gfxmenu- in the wrong disk, it should be: (hd0,0).

If I'm right you must see for each entry for mageia, first: title linux and below, two lines like these:
kernel (hd1,0)/boot/vmlinuz BOOT_IMAGE=linux root=UUID=7622244a-ccd8-49d0-aaf1-a0d0ee23d257 nokmsboot resume=UUID=fe122cda-b207-44df-9794-30cd8e50c8d0 splash=silent vga=788
initrd (hd1,0)/boot/initrd.img
*** Don't pay attention to the letters in blue above, I wrote them as an example, they're from my menu.lst file. Yours are different***
Replace (hd1,0) with (hd0,0)

Hopping that you'll be able to save the changes, reboot.

[John66]

Just tested my previous suggestion and it works.

[Garthhh]

How would I open the file manager as root?
I'm assuming /boot is in lost & found

[John66]

Did you boot your machine with a live cd?
Then, open a terminal and write:

Code: Select all

su -

(That was: su, space, dash)
You 'll be asked for the root password (probably it's: root)
But if, instead of the root password prompt, you get an error: "there's no su user" or something like that (that actually happened with my test earlier, I used a PCLinuxOs live-cd), then write:

Code: Select all

su

Now you'll be prompted for the root password, write it, hit ENTER, then you'll see that you are with root "privileges".
Then write:

Code: Select all

su -

Hit ENTER
Then write the name of the file manager: dolphin (if you're using KDE like me, otherwise, the one you use), hit ENTER.
Now the file manager opens.
Go to the root directory: /. On the left side of the file manager ("places") if you're using KDE is the red file called Root (in Gnome, Nautilus file manager, I think it's called File System).
Now, in the main window of your file manager, you must see the directory: /boot (it's the second in the list of the directories), it should not be in the lost & found. Correct?
Go into /boot, then into the sub-folder /grub, find the file menu.lst, right-click on it and continue as I wrote in my previous post.

PS. I allready started writing a third solution, when noticed your reply...
I hope the current one, with the live-cd, works.

EDIT: If all went well and you found the file menu.lst, where it should be (in /boot/grub/), copy the contents of the file in a new text file
somewhere else (in your /home/your-user-name, or in a usb flash memory, or email it -as an attachment- to yourself, whatever is easier).
Maybe it will be needed later, to post it here (if what you're trying fails).

[Garthhh]

Problem is
I'm root of the live
I tried a bunch of different commands
none of which were found
File System
Nautilus
Lost+Found

[Garthhh]

To continue
I can go to content, that's on the HDD
but not any of the system files
Lost+Found is greyed out
I don't have permission
I changed the view so I can see the hidden files

[John66]

OK, I'm back. I'm not sure I understand completely your 2 last posts.
Is it possible, that you don't understand something of what I wrote?
So, please, answer the following questions, all of them:

1. Your Mageia installation is on the first partition of the first Hard Disk: master HDD WD 160g?
2. Your Xp installation is on the second hard disk: slave HDD seagate 40g?
3. In BIOS: master HDD WD 160g is the 1st HDD boot device and slave HDD seagate 40g is the 2nd HDD boot device?
(I believe, booting from a CD, is the 1st choice, above everything else, but I'm interesting in BIOS boot order after the CD, the BIOS boot order of the Hard Disks).
4. As I understand, your system is 32-bit (since you have entries in your Mageia GRUB like: 2.6.7-desktop586-1.mga & 2.6.8-desktop586-4.mga). Correct?
5. Which Desktop Environment you use? Gnome, KDE, LXDE, something else?
6. What Live-CD you used, to boot your machine, in your last attempt that didn't work, as you wrote in your 2 last posts?

Please, answer the above, all of them.
Meanwhile, I'll start writing the third "solution".

[Garthhh]

OK, I'm back. I'm not sure I understand completely your 2 last posts.
Is it possible, that you don't understand something of what I wrote?
So, please, answer the following questions, all of them:

1. Your Mageia installation is on the first partition of the first Hard Disk: master HDD WD 160g?
yes
2. Your Xp installation is on the second hard disk: slave HDD seagate 40g?
yes
3. In BIOS: master HDD WD 160g is the 1st HDD boot device and slave HDD seagate 40g is the 2nd HDD boot device?
(I believe, booting from a CD, is the 1st choice, above everything else, but I'm interesting in BIOS boot order after the CD, the BIOS boot order of the Hard Disks).
the boot order is
USB
CD
HDD
4. As I understand, your system is 32-bit (since you have entries in your Mageia GRUB like: 2.6.7-desktop586-1.mga & 2.6.8-desktop586-4.mga). Correct?
yes 32 bit
5. Which Desktop Environment you use? Gnome, KDE, LXDE, something else?
Gnome
6. What Live-CD you used, to boot your machine, in your last attempt that didn't work, as you wrote in your 2 last posts?
a Gnome live CD
I have a few different distros I can try
including a
Mageia KDE

Please, answer the above, all of them.
Meanwhile, I'll start writing the third "solution".

[John66]

Garthhh
Thanks for your answers.
There were important, in case I misunderstood something.
In fact, you answered as I expected, so it's difficult to see why you have trouble with the "2nd solution" I posted.
Anyway, I'm downloading now, mageia Live CD (gnome & KDE).
After 1 hour or so, I'll be back, hopefully booted in one of these.
Maybe I can upload some screenshots, if it's necessary. We'll see.

Bye for now
John66

[John66]

1. I didn't manage to boot on Gnome Live CD, so I started burning the KDE one.
If it also fails, Ι'll login in a Mageia 64-bit Gnome installation I have, and post from there.
I hope it is not so different from the Live CD, in "live mode".


2. Well, since that is your test box, and the KDE Live CD is burning, I'll write about the third solution.
In fact, this should be the first that someone should think of, but I had a "senior moment".

So:
When you are in the Mageia GRUB, hit immediately the down arrow in your keyboard, to stop GRUB counting down the seconds until the default boot.
Then, with the up arrow in your keyboard, to return to the first entry in GRUB, the default one.
Hit Caps Lock
Hit letter E
Now you must see 2 lines.
The first one (according to the error you posted) must start with: kernel (hd1,0)/boot/vmlinuz ... etc etc
The second one must be: initrd (hd1,0)/boot/initrd.img
Am I correct?
Then, the numbers in brackets: ( ) are wrong. They should not be (hd1,0). The correct is (hd0,0).
To change it, highlight the first line (well it should be allready highlighted), hit letter e again.
Go with the left arrow in your keyboard, to the beginning of the line, and make the correction of the number in brackets: from hd1,0 to hd0,0.
* Maybe you need to press Cups Lock key in your keyboard to be able to write numbers (it's a strange thing that happens with my keyboard, I don't know if it is normal).
When the correct number is written, hit ENTER.
Then highlight the second line. Same here, hit e letter, go and change the number in brackets, hit ENTER.
Now you see the lines corrected.
Hit letter b.
You should be able to boot...
...unless something else is wrong (that's why I wanted a copy of the contents in menu.lst file).

I hope that you'll be able to boot. But remember, that these above corrections are not permanent. After you login, you must correct the menu.lst file (manually),
or go to the Mageia Control Center in boot section to make the changes.

- The KDE Live CD is ready. Rebooting now...

[John66]

Nope! Couldn't boot from KDE live CD either.
Something strange is happening between Mageia Live CDs and my hardware, but that's a question for another topic.
I am logged in a Mageia 64-bit Gnome installation now. I want to believe it's not so different from the Live CD you have.
I'll take some screen-shots. Since I never posted any screen-shots before, I'll upload them in http://postimage.org/.
I saw recently a post here, they were using this image hosting site. I hope it's OK.

* In file manager (Nautilus) screen-shots, you see that I use the list view (I like it better), not the icon view of files & folders.

[doktor5000]

You can also upload the pictures here as attachments and place them In-line (into the post) after uploading.

[Garthhh]

Ding ding ding
a winner

when I had been to that spot before & tried to edit the entry for Kernel [location?] I didn't understand the entry was so long it spilled off the page when I backed up to the beginning of the line it made sense

back to the original question
no worries about breaking it though

[doktor5000]

You changed the wrong thing in bootloader configuration. I suppose you changed the installation place (first windows in drakboot) from /dev/sda to /dev/sdb.
Now either you change it back, or you edit directly /boot/grub/menu.lst, where you want to change every mention of (hd1,0) in your linux entries to (hd0,0)
like you did now on GRUB command line.

Then follow John66's instructions as per viewtopic.php?p=6135#p6135

[Garthhh]

that is exactly what I did
I just went to MCC>Boot set up & changed it back to sda1, it's showing the windows on sdb1 on the boot menu list

right this minute
I'm making another run at a virtual box install of XP
I don't really want to do a dual boot, just so I can sync my Ipods
I'll report back once that finishes up & I can restart

[John66]

I'm glad you found a solution!
I suppose, it was easier -finally- than it seemed at the beginning.

I'll keep the screen-shots (of the '2nd solution") for future use.

Bye
John66