Need Help Adding Fedora to Grub

archp2008 · #1 29th July 2009, 01:10 AM

Hello,

I installed Fedora 11 but it only found one other operating sysem for the menu.lst. I decided to reinstall Linux Mint which again found all my operating systems but, unfortunately, did not detect the Fedora installation. Is there a way to add an entry to my new menu.lst for my installation of Fedora?

stoat · #2 29th July 2009, 01:34 AM

Hello archp2008,

What you wrote sounds like you allowed the Fedora 11 installer (aka Anaconda) to install GRUB in the default location which is the master boot record of the drive that boots from BIOS. Then you re-installed another Linux, and undoubtedly, its GRUB boot loader is now in the master boot record. The significance of that is that without doing anything further, your choices for adding Fedora 11 to the Mint menu.lst file are these...

Use the configfile command like this...
Code:
```
title Fedora 11
configfile (hdx,y)/grub/grub.conf
```
You change x & y to the drive & partition of the Fedora 11 boot partition.
Use the direct booting method by mounting the Fedora 11 boot partition, opening the grub.conf file, and copying the menu commands for the latest kernel to the Mint menu.lst file. Example from my grub.conf...
Code:
```
title Fedora (2.6.29.6-213.fc11.i686.PAE)
	root (hd1,6)
	kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.29.6-213.fc11.i686.PAE ro root=UUID=e471c91c-2378-49ca-ba03-144887cf6615 rhgb quiet
	initrd /initrd-2.6.29.6-213.fc11.i686.PAE.img
```
If you choose this method, remember that you will have to repeat it after every Fedora 11 kernel update

If you are willing to re-install Fedora 11's GRUB in the first sector of the Fedora boot partition, then an additional option is the chainloader command like this...

Code:

title Fedora 11
chainloader (hdx,y)+1

Again, change the x & y to the drive & partition of the Fedora boot partition.

One of these ideas should get it going.

P.S.: The configfile and chainloader ideas are immune to breakage by kernel updates.

archp2008 · #3 29th July 2009, 01:43 AM

Thanks for the reply. I would prefer to use the chain loader method. Would you please tell me exactly how I re-install Fedora 11's GRUB to the first sector of the Fedora boot partition and how I ascertain the drive & partition of the Fedora boot partition.

stoat · #4 29th July 2009, 02:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by archp2008

I would prefer to use the chain loader method. Would you please tell me exactly how I re-install Fedora 11's GRUB to the first sector of the Fedora boot partition...

If you don't already know how to do that, then I recommend that you instead do the configfile idea. Different things are happening behind the scenes, but to the eye the same exact thing happens on the screen. Plowing into re-installing GRUB has the potential to ruin your evening. Whereas you can do the configfile thing in seconds and accomplish what you want for tonight (boot Fedora from Mint). You can always learn how to re-install GRUB later. But of course, do what you want to do.

Quote:

Originally Posted by archp2008

...and how I ascertain the drive & partition of the Fedora boot partition.

You can find out the drive & partition (x & y in those examples) by using the GRUB shell's find command in Mint. Example...

Open a terminal in Mint and log in as root.
Start the GRUB shell (e.g., grub or /sbin/grub or something similar)
That produces the grub> prompt of the GRUB shell.
At the grub> prompt, enter the find command like this to locate boot partitions...
Code:
```
grub> find /grub/stage1
```
That may produce more than one result since you have multiple operating systems, but you can probably figure out which one is Fedora. If not, correlate the results with /sbin/fdisk -l and that will help you tell.
Anyway, then use that exact result in the configfile command.

archp2008 · #5 29th July 2009, 02:59 AM

I get this:

grub> find /grub/stage1
find /grub/stage1

Error 15: File not found
grub>

I have 4 SATA drives and one IDE

Can you tell the numbers from this: (I installed the Fedora in /dev/sde2)
Does sde2 mean (hd5,2)?

arch@arch-desktop ~ $ sudo fdisk -l
[sudo] password for arch:

Disk /dev/sda: 320.0 GB, 320072933376 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 38913 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x07510751

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 35120 282101368+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2 35121 35125 40162+ 17 Hidden HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda3 35126 35368 1951897+ 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda4 35369 38913 28475212+ 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 35369 35639 2176776 83 Linux
/dev/sda6 35640 38913 26298372+ 83 Linux

Disk /dev/sdb: 1000.2 GB, 1000204886016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 121601 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x09490dc5

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 1 2550 20480000 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb2 2550 66291 512000000 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb3 66291 82864 133120000 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 3 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb4 82864 88286 43548672 f W95 Ext'd (LBA)
Partition 4 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb5 82864 83125 2097144 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sdb6 83125 85736 20971512 83 Linux
/dev/sdb7 85736 88286 20479944 83 Linux

Disk /dev/sdc: 640.1 GB, 640135028736 bytes
243 heads, 49 sectors/track, 105002 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 11907 * 512 = 6096384 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x500b9b3f

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc2 1333 22631 126799060+ 5 Extended
/dev/sdc3 22631 105002 490400253 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdc5 1334 18533 102398310 7 HPFS/NTFS

Disk /dev/sdd: 1000.2 GB, 1000204886016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 121601 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x5d7d47e1

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdd1 1 3942 31662080 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdd2 * 3943 6667 21888562+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdd3 6668 48441 335548631 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdd4 48442 121601 587657700 7 HPFS/NTFS

Disk /dev/sde: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xba1a5abd

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sde1 * 1 7817 62788156 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sde2 7817 7843 204800 83 Linux
/dev/sde3 7844 9301 11711385 5 Extended
/dev/sde5 7844 9301 11711353+ 83 Linux
arch@arch-desktop ~ $

I installed the Fedora in /dev/sde2

stoat · #6 29th July 2009, 03:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by archp2008

I get this:

grub> find /grub/stage1
find /grub/stage1

Error 15: File not found
grub>

That can happen if you did not log into the terminal as root (you know... su or su -). But anyway, you can guess at the drive and partition, too. It does no harm. If /dev/sde2 is the Fedora 11 boot partition, then try (hd4,1) in the configfile command. Unlike the fdisk report, GRUB always begins numbering drives and partitions from 0.

archp2008 · #7 29th July 2009, 03:28 AM

4,1 starts the boot, but the screen goes black and the loading stops after the bar goes a few inches across the screen.

stoat · #8 29th July 2009, 03:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by archp2008

4,1 starts the boot, but the screen goes black and the loading stops after the bar goes a few inches across the screen.

Well, the GRUB stuff is behind you now. This new thing happens after GRUB is long finished with its job. Has Fedora 11 ever successfully booted on this machine? I had assumed so, but now I wonder. I hate it when this happens because it's hard to tell what the problem is (for me, anyway). You can try using Mint to edit Fedora's grub.conf and remove the rhgb and quiet parameters from the kernel command line. That causes all of the classic debug spew to fly by on the screen during booting. When it stops, you might be able to read on the screen what it was doing and get a clue to what the problem is. But sometimes, it's the next thing that would have been printed on the screen. Who knows. You can also try using Mint to look at Fedora 11's log files. Maybe somebody else has some ideas.

***Hlingler*** · #9 29th July 2009, 03:56 AM

Quote:

4,1 starts the boot, but the screen goes black and the loading stops after the bar goes a few inches across the screen.

Perfectly normal....

Try: add to kernel boot parameters the option: nomodeset

I.E. (example, your details will vary of course):

Code:

title Fedora (2.6.26.8-57.fc8)
        root (hd0,4)
        kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.26.8-57.fc8 ro root=/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00 rhgb nomodeset
        initrd /initrd-2.6.26.8-57.fc8.img

V

archp2008 · #10 29th July 2009, 04:11 AM

title Fedora (2.6.26.8-57.fc8)
root (hd4,1)
kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.26.8-57.fc8 ro root=/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00 rhgb nomodeset
initrd /initrd-2.6.26.8-57.fc8.img

gives file not found.

I don't know if this helps, but my Fedora 11 Live CD is x86-64 and I did all the updates.

***Hlingler*** · #11 29th July 2009, 04:18 AM

As I said: that was an example only, your details will of course be different, but the example shows where to place the 'nomodeset' option....

Don't add nor alter anything except the 'nomodeset' option, at the end of the kernel line, as shown in the example.

V

archp2008 · #12 29th July 2009, 04:28 AM

Are you saying that the nomodeset needs to be changed?

***Hlingler*** · #13 29th July 2009, 04:33 AM

I'm suggesting that you add the 'nomodeset' kernel boot option to the existing parameter(s).

V

archp2008 · #14 29th July 2009, 04:57 AM

That didn't change the booting. What's the next best approach?

***Hlingler*** · #15 29th July 2009, 05:03 AM

Next suggestion: remove the 'nomodeset' option and replace it with the number: 3

This should boot Fedora into text-only mode (no X11, no GUI) which may tell us if it's a graphics/video/X11 problem, plus you can then work from the text console (if it successfully boots...).

V

P.S. If Fedora successfully boots into run-level three, you can log into the text console as root user, and command:
reboot

to re-boot into another OS with a GUI. So that you can come back here and post the results.