Ubuntu

Installation crashed 3/4th through installation

Asked by Ryan Gordon

Hello,

I'm a newbie when it comes to linux, but not a complete one when it comes to computers so I believe I've exhausted my list of possible ways to try and fix my problem by myself.

Here's my problem: I dl'ed like ubuntu 7.04 i386 alternate distro via a torrent and burned it to a CD. I ran the installation on my external HDD (One 160 GB Hard Drive mounted on a external case with USB). Right after the step of "Installing and configuring software", it gave me a fatal error. Something about gump and "it being a required file". So I canceled the installation, re downloaded the distro from one of the official mirrors and verified it's integrity after burning the ISO. All good so far. I go to press "Install or Run Ubuntu..." (it's a phrase similar to that). But instead of installing it, it starts to Run Ubuntu and throws all sorts of ugly errors, one specifically with the camera not being able to load. And the error repeats and soon covers the whole screen.

Mean while it's getting late so I just turn off the computer. I wake up this morning and try to access my external HDD. Nothing. I can't access it on multiple computers. Something gave and I can't access it to try and wipe it for another installation of ubuntu.

And I would provide you wish error logs, if I had them on the DVD. Unfortunately there's no var/log/syslog on my ubuntu dvd. They were probably erased when I burnt the new image to it, not knowing that I might need them for later.

Anyway, I'm probably an idiot for not saving the logs, but as there are none, the best I can give is my memory, which as you can see, isn't very good :(

What I'd like to do is just try and continue from where it left off somehow without it running ubuntu (a way to override that) or a way to retrieve my hdd and make it work again so I can wipe it and try it again.

I hope there's a plausible solution that I can follow, and I'd love to be able to use ubuntu on my computer.

Cheers,
Ryan

Question information

Language:
English Edit question
Status:
Answered
For:
Ubuntu Edit question
Assignee:
No assignee Edit question
Last query:
Last reply:
Revision history for this message
Chris Rowson (christopherrowson) said : 		#1

Hello Ryan,

I've just been searching through older questions and found yours unanswered.

Can I suggest that you try to unplug everything (except of course monitor, keyboard and mouse) before running the installation DVD again on the computer you're trying to get up and running.

If you get Ubuntu installed to the internal hard drive on your computer, then connect the external usb you should be able to see it unless it's fried...

Revision history for this message
Ryan Gordon (tikitiki) said : 		#2

Hello Chris,

Thanks for the information. However, I don't want to install it on my internal hard drive because it'll overwrite all my data, right? I've got two partitions, one with Windows XP and one with Vista RC1. I'd happily use Vista RC1's partition once I upgrade my windows XP to vista (which I currently don't have). So should I wait for that, or can you recommend any low cost programs that can create more partitions on my hard drive?

Revision history for this message
Chris Rowson (christopherrowson) said : 		#3

Hey Ryan,

If you've got essential data on Windows installed on the internal
drive, you're probably best not to try and resize the partitions that
XP and Vista are installed on. I've had success doing this with XP and
Linux in the past (before I removed XP) but I'm not so sure how
Vista'll like the partition it's installed on mucking about with :-P
You may get more mileage asking this same question over at an MS
support forum.

I would perhaps wait until you upgrade your Win XP partition to Vista,
then use the VistaRC1 partition for Ubuntu if possible.

Although if you're in need of a Microsoft OS - I'd personally stick
with XP and save yourself the cash until a couple of service packs
have been out for it ;-)

Chris

Revision history for this message
Ryan Gordon (tikitiki) said : 		#4

I see your point. I'll definitely ask around and do some research. I'm expecting to get windows vista in about 2 weeks, so it shouldn't take that long. And seeing as I've been able to live pretty well with windows vista RC1 (UAC off), the final release should just improve that (bug fixes and such).

Anyway, thanks for your help.

Revision history for this message
Chris Rowson (christopherrowson) said : 		#5

No problem - Please feel free to come back again with any questions you have in the future.

Revision history for this message
Ryan Gordon (tikitiki) said : 		#6

Hello Chris,

I got Windows Vista Ultimate 2 days ago and did everything that needed to be done. And now Ubuntu works on my external HDD.

One problem though, when ever I boot up my computer "GUMP" runs. If my external HDD isn't plugged into my computer it gets error 4/12 (forgot which). Is there a way only to run "GUMP" if the external HDD is plugged in otherwise default the vista longhorn loader? Or, just have GUMP run on the HDD itself, rather than the computer.

Cheers,
Tikitiki

Revision history for this message
Ryan Gordon (tikitiki) said : 		#7

Just to clarify, I'm talking about the "GUMP" boot loader. The thing that almost immediately runs at boot

Revision history for this message
Chris Rowson (christopherrowson) said : 		#8

Hi Ryan

Did you mean GRUB ?

Sounds like GRUB is looking for disks it should be present, but is
crashing out when it doesn't find your external disk. I'd have to
check into this further ;-)

Could you note down the exact error too please?

Chris

Revision history for this message
Ryan Gordon (tikitiki) said : 		#9

Hi Chris,

first off, yes, it's GRUB. Sorry bout that.

And second here's exactly what it says on the screen:

GRUB Loading stage1.5

GRUB loading please wait
Error 21

Revision history for this message
Chris Rowson (christopherrowson) said : 		#10

Hi Ryan,

What's happened here is that you have GRUB installed on the internal
hard drive of your computer.

GRUB's job is to let you select which portion of the hard drive (or in
fact which hard drive) you wish to boot up on. Because you originally
installed GRUB with the USB drive attached, and installed GRUB to the
internal drive, the boot up process fails if GRUB fails to detect a
drive it expects to see (the USB drive).

What you needed to do was at the portion where the Ubuntu installer
asked you which drive you wanted to install GRUB on, you should have
selected to install it on the USB drive (that way, it only try's to
boot to Ubuntu when the drive containing it is present).

All is not lost however!

Super Grub Disk may help you...

Visit this link

http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/SuperGrubDiskPage.html#Boot_Master_Boot_Record

Get the Super Grub Disk Page, put it onto a CD or floppy, boot from it
(WITH THE USB DISK NOT CONNECTED) and follow the step which goes:

 I installed Windows on a first hard disk but I unplugged it and
plugged it in as a non-first hard disk. Now I want to boot it.

   1. boot your SGD floppy disk, USB disk or CD-ROM
   2. English Super Grub Disk
   3. Boot and Tools
   4. Boot Master Boot Record (MBR)

 This should (although I'm going a bit off kilter here, as this is
nowt to do with Linux etc...) get you booting from the internal hard
disk again.

To get your USB disk booting, run the Ubuntu installation CD again,
following this from the forums: Making sure this time you install to
the usb disk!

1. Boot your computer up with Ubunto CD
2. Go through all the process until you reech "[!!!] Disk Partition"
3. Select Manual Partition
4. Mount your appropriate linux partions

/
/boot
swap
.....

5. DO NOT FORMAT THEM.
6. Finish the manual partition
7. Say "Yes" when it asks you to save the changes
8. It will give you errors saying that "the system couldn't install
....." after that
9. Ignore them, keep select "continue" until you get back to the
Ubuntu installation menu
10. Jump to "Install Grub ...."
11. Once it is finished, just restart your computer

Good luck !

CHris

Revision history for this message
jrudz00 (jrudz00) said : 		#11

Hi there:

I too am new to Ubuntu.... but not computers; been with micro computers since before MSDOS and Bill Gate's Windows.

I live, eat, and breath computers day and night. I am very intrigued by using a Linux based program on one of my computers. My plan is to install it on one of the two partitions on a spare computer that I want to use to back up data from my home network.

I have downloaded both the desktop and server versions; but I guess I am doing something wrong.
The desktop version boots up nicely and allows me to install the word processor, etc. But I do not understand how to actually install the Ubuntu operating system.

Likewise with the server version... I thought I could install the server version on the second partition and use it as a server for my network.

This may seem minor to you... but I have looked at some documentation and it all seemed to be for after the operating system was installed.

Any help you could provide.... or even just pointing me in the right direction would be a great help to me.

Regards

John Rudzianski
Elk Lake PA

Can you help with this problem?

Provide an answer of your own, or ask Ryan Gordon for more information if necessary.

To post a message you must log in.