Ubuntu
grub2 package

Ubuntu 9.10 will not boot with grub rescue out of disk and no such disk errors

Asked by shp.jc

I have an old Dell Optiplex GX200 desktop that used to run Windows. Yesterday I tried installing Ubuntu 9.10 and asked the install program to wipe out Windows. So I DO NOT need dual boot.

After install is complete and the system reboots I get this screen. Note that it fails so quickly I can't hold down shift to see any options and the menu never appears:

GRUB loading...
Error: out of disk
grub rescue>

After some research (I'm a PC) I assume I am running Grub2 since posts said that's what comes with Ubuntu 9.10, but I'm not sure. I found the grub 2 documentation (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2). But the only commands listed on that page that work are...

ls
which returns (hd0) (hd0,1) (fd0)
Error: no such disk

set
which returnsprefix=(hd0,1)/boot/grub
root=hd0,1

No other commands listed in the grub2 documentation actually work. They all respond Unknown command 'help' (or whatever I try)

I have installed four times:
1. First install I used all defaults (which installs boot loader to hd0).
2. Second install I went into advanced turned off boot loader, since I just want Ubuntu to run.
3. Third install I switched the boot loader to install to dev/sda which was listed as my 9.8 GB Quantum Fireball hard drive
4. Fourth installl I switched the boot loader to install to dev/sda1 which is the last option in the list and the one that gPart says has all the space on it.

All installs give me the same error message and system state when I reboot.

If I run LiveCD I can access the desktop and the file system which shows Ubuntu files everywhere. Even the partition application shows partitions. And the "dual boot" installation option prompts me to install Ubuntu alongside Ubuntu. I always decline dual boot and just say take up the whole disk.

At this point I have no idea why it won't load.

BIOS setup says the HD is Quantum Fireball AS10.2 of Drive Type 1.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Scott

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Digvijay Patankar (dbpatankar) said : 		#1

first reinstall *only grub2* with the help of this :
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2#Reinstalling%20from%20LiveCD
if its not solving your problem then look at the device.map file for the drive order.

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shp.jc (scotthpowell) said : 		#2

The first method listed in those instructions did not fix the problem.

I tried the second method and will note:
* I do have a device.map file. It has one line (hd) /dev/sda
* Both instructions said to try sudo grub-update AFTER a reboot. I followed that instruction the first time but on the second install tried it before the reboot. The error message it gave was "grub-probe: error: cannot find a device for /."

And I still get the same error message.

Any other suggestions?

* Is there a way to test that the Grub2 install is correct?
* Are there other .map or similar files to check?
* Why is it looking for device "/"?

Thanks everyone.

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Digvijay Patankar (dbpatankar) said : 		#3

Boot from LiveCD and do fsck
You can also try for super grub disk.
I think thats the better way to solve this issue.

super grub disk iso image is small. Burn it to a CD and then boot system with it. It will be helpful for solving this problem.

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shp.jc (scotthpowell) said : 		#4

What do I do after I boot from the Super Grub CD? Thanks

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Digvijay Patankar (dbpatankar) said : 		#5

get the super grub disk for *Grub 1* (i.e. Grub Legacy).
And install grub 1(legacy) to MBR. There might be problem with Grub2(since it is still in beta state).

I have never used super grub disk. But its GUI tool and hence might not be difficult to use.
And I heard that its really easy to use.

So just install Grub 1 using SGD.

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Digvijay Patankar (dbpatankar) said : 		#6

There is a bug registered in launchpad:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/grub2/+bug/477430

It might be similar to yours case.

Hence I think you should seriously consider Grub 1(Legacy).

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shp.jc (scotthpowell) said : 		#7

Digvijay

I've burned the CD and booted from SGD.

I found the option to repair Grub. The screen reported...

Booting 'trying /grub/stage1 /boot/grub/stage1'

selectfile /grub/stage1 /boot/grub/stage1

Error 15: File not found
Booting 'not lucky'
SGD has not succeeded :(

Any other suggestions?

It's been a long time since I've been this lost trying to install something.

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Digvijay Patankar (dbpatankar) said : 		#8

Don't try to repair it, just reinstall it with SGD.

Revision history for this message
shp.jc (scotthpowell) said : 		#9

Hi Digivijay

Still not clear on what menu option you want me to choose from SGD.

But I tried to reinstall XP on the system and when it rebooted XP also reported a problem.

It might just be that the hard drive is fraked in some way that's preventing the MBR from running properly.

For others who might be encountering similar issues but for whom a bad HDD is not the problem I don't know if this thread is helpful.

Thanks for your help.

Scott