How To Create A Boot Floppy (tested In Suse 10/2)

Here is how to make a grub boot floppy in Suse 10/2

fdformat /dev/fd0
mke2fs -m 0 /dev/fd0
mount -t ext2 /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy
mkdir -p /mnt/floppy/boot/grub
cp -pa /boot/grub/* /mnt/floppy/boot/grub
umount /mnt/floppy

make sure </mnt/floppy> exists

Create a text file called /home/stuff then add these lines to that file:

##
root (fd0)
# the following is all one line
install /boot/grub/stage1 d (fd0) (fd0)/boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 p (fd0)/boot/grub/menu.lst
#
quit

Now install grub to the floppy with this command

grep -v ^# /home/stuff | grub --batch

I've followed your guide step by step. But the last step doesnt work (@ least in openSUSE 10.3):

Dixie7:/home/ssenryo # grep -v ^# /home/ssenryo/stuff | grub --batch


****GNU GRUB**version 0.97**(640K lower / 3072K upper memory)

 [ Minimal BASH-like line editing is supported.**For the first word, TAB
** lists possible command completions.**Anywhere else TAB lists the possible
** completions of a device/filename. ]
grub> root (fd0)
 Filesystem type is ext2fs, using whole disk
grub> install /boot/grub/stage1 d (fd0) (fd0)/boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 p (fd0)/boot/grub/menu.lst

Error 15: File not found
grub> quit

As you can see the file stuff:
[attachmentid=1881]

... is in the pointed path (/home/ssenryo/stuff):

Dixie7:/home/ssenryo # ls
.DCOPserver_Dixie7_:0**.fontconfig******.local****** .xim.template
.DCOPserver_Dixie7__0**.fonts********** .macromedia**.xinitrc.template
.ICEauthority**********.gconf********** .mcop********.xsession-errors
.Xauthority************.gconfd**********.mozilla**** .xtalkrc
.bash_history**********.gnome2**********.muttrc******Desktop
.bashrc****************.gnome2_private**.profile**** Documents
.beagle****************.gstreamer-0.10**.qt**********Pictures
.config****************.gtk-bookmarks** .skel********bin
.dmrc******************.inputrc******** .urlview**** public_html
.dvipsrc************** .java************.wapi********stuff
.emacs**************** .kde************ .xcoralrc****stuff~
.exrc******************.kermrc**********.xemacs

What's wrong in the commands ??? :blink:

Also in case is useful I'm posting the contents of /boot/grub/:

Dixie7:/home/ssenryo # ls /boot/grub/
default********ffs_stage1_5******minix_stage1_5**** ufs2_stage1_5
device.map**** iso9660_stage1_5**reiserfs_stage1_5**vstafs_stage1_5
e2fs_stage1_5**jfs_stage1_5******stage1************ xfs_stage1_5
fat_stage1_5** menu.lst**********stage2

I've followed your guide step by step. But the last step doesnt work (@ least in openSUSE 10.3):[/code]
[/b]

rax369, I copied garyg's method, and posted guidance how to do this in 10.3 here. ...
http://forums.suselinuxsupport.de/index.ph...st&p=251169

Note the mount points are different. Perhaps compare that to what you tried.

Also .....

As you can see the file stuff:
[attachmentid=1882][/b]

It appears to me there is a syntax error in your file "stuff".

I see a space between fd(0) and /boot/grub .... in the first instance of it, where there should be none.

Nice it worked thanks for your GREAT HELP! oldcpu. I really appreciate that.

Finally I was able to create the bootable flopppy. Now let clear in my head something... what is going to do exaclty this floppy ??

1) This will allow the PC to boot from the floppy so it will contain a copy of GRUB

or

2) This will generate/copy the existing copy of GRUB to your MBR

I case the 2nd. opcion is not true, once I boot from the floppy and gain access to openSUSE, how could I rebuild a new GRUB loader and copy it to the MBR to avoid using always the floppy to boot the system ???

1) This will allow the PC to boot from the floppy so it will contain a copy of GRUB[/b]

YES

2) This will generate/copy the existing copy of GRUB to your MBR[/b]

Indirectly. YES.

I case the 2nd. opcion is not true, once I boot from the floppy and gain access to openSUSE, how could I rebuild a new GRUB loader and copy it to the MBR to avoid using always the floppy to boot the system ???
[/b]

The floppy will allow you to boot your SuSE. Then you can run your YaST from your SuSE. Now presumeably this version of YaST will have the code for creating an updated MBR fixed (where as the version of YaST on the installation CD/DVD (both GM & retail) are broken).

At least that is the theory. ... Having typed that, I am not convinced 100% that the version of YaST that is now avaiable for openSUSE-10.3 is completely fixed (despite there having been an update not too long ago).

Oldcpu, Rax369 ---
I don't believe that boot floppy will do anything other than allow you to boot the pc.
Nothing gets updated during the boot procedure. This is useful if, as in the present case, the mbr got bent, or if one managed to screw up /boot/menu.lst

I don't believe that boot floppy will do anything other than allow you to boot the pc. Nothing gets updated during the boot procedure. This is useful if, as in the present case, the mbr got bent, or if one managed to screw up /boot/menu.lst
[/b]

Garyg, thats also my understanding.

IMHO the real utility of this boot floppy, is because the CD/DVD provided by Novell is broken for fixing the MBR.

But the version of YaST on one's hard drive MIGHT have a fix. Hence if one can run that, WITH the correct kernel version, one might be able to upgrade their MBR using YaST.

Hence indirectly the boot floppy puts one on a path to fixing their MBR. At least that is the theory.

Of course, it does mean one needs to prepare the boot floppy BEFORE one has a problem.

Guys, let me tell you something. I suffered this weekend a 2nd. crash on my PC (the energy is going crazy here... I know, I know, I gonna have to buy a UPS, I dont have 1 for now), well... the point is that I lost the GRUB loader again, so I tried to use the floppy created previously.

BUT IT DIDNT WORK. It did not allow me to boot again the system, but it screwed up deeply my system (@ that point I didnt know that). So w/out any other option I had to put my faith again in the nice utility recommended by oldcpu (Super Grub Disk). So it fixed partially the boot loader.

I guess the floppy disk damaged any or all of the files:
/boot/grub/device.map
/boot/grub/menu.lst
/etc/grub.conf

Anyway, once I was able to boot again my system I tried to regenerate the GRUB loader by going into the YaST's section "Boot Loader". I guessed it was going to be able to regenerate or create a new clean and working copy of GRUB. I chose the option /Other/Start from Scratch AND THEN /Other/Propose New Configuration. I guessed that was the correct order to follow in order to create a new boot like the 1 created @ installation time. But it finished the previous work of the floppy. I was not even able to boot into init 5 I felt myself that I was in the middle of nothing. I finished with a non-working OS. Remember that I'm still a newbie in Linux. I know u guys would have probably know what to do there to solve the **** problem once @ all.

I really put my hopes on the floppy but after watching it didnt work, I entered into desperation, since I couldnt boot not even into "Crashes and Bugs (aka Windows)". So I did not have other option than restoring my linux partition to a previous state from 1 of my images. And this time GRUB read correctly the files required to boot I guess, since this time the files were not being changed, they were there untouched because of the restoration.

Now I'd like to ask you for any future damages 2 things:
1) The files read by GRUB are these ???? (All of them ???)
/boot/grub/device.map
/boot/grub/menu.lst
/etc/grub.conf

2) If the previous answer is YES, then could I fix a damaged system by replacing these files by other working files, saved previously for this kind of cases ???

3) If the order I chose in YaST is not the correct order to recreate a new Boot Loader, what should I choose there and in what order, to create a new loader if the only options there are these:

• Edit Configuration Files
• Propose New Configuration
• Start from Scratch
• Reread Configuration from Disk
• Propose and Merge with Existing GRUB Menus
• Restore MBR on Hard Disk
• Write bootloader Boot code to disk

PD: Man! These time Novell really ***** up the installation disk. The less **** they could do to correct this is to release a new disk containing the damaged part of the original disc, to fix damaged systems. Do u know if they are planing for real to correct their "oblivion", or if there is something already released by them to really unbend this forgetfulness ??? These had ocurred lot of times when I was using SLED 10 but all the times I fixed my system with the utilities coming in the installation disk. I guess that I wont be able to correct similar problems using that old disk right ???

I guess the floppy disk damaged any or all of the files:
/boot/grub/device.map
/boot/grub/menu.lst
/etc/grub.conf[/b]

I do not believe this is the case. The boot floppy just boots. It does not write to the disk.

If there was damage done it was during:
a. your initial crash/problem, and
b. your subsequent efforts to repair it (due to buggy novell YaST grub software).

The problem would not be with the boot floppy.

Glad to read you did manage to recover in the end. ... That is better than what happened to me, as I ended up doing a re-install when the MBR was over-written (my first openSUSE re-install (after a successful installatiom) since I first started using SuSE in 2001.

I see there is now a Live CD out for SUSE-10.3. .... I'm wondering if this could end up being the work around rescue CD ? (to replace the non-functioning "repair installed system").

Thanks for clarifying what the floppy does. Then if it doesnt write @ all into the HD I've to have damaged myself the files in my desperation for saving my system, or after suffering the crash it damaged the boot files.

I really recommend u to take more serious measures in order to backup at least your partitions containing the OSes of ur PC. Sometimes the only way to go back is restoring FROM IMAGES your system, after all is better to lost hours of work than months. Using a decent software to create images, can give u the option to restore ur system after a crash of any magnitude. Obviously if the place where u R storing ur images has not suffered any damage.

Please answer the 3 above questions. I really would like to know the answers to all of them, to increase my knowledge and to be better prepared for any future crash.

TIA!

PD: I create my images using Acronis True Image. That's an excellent piece of SW. I'd really recommend u to give it a try. Even when that's commercial SW. Probably there are other free options, but for now, I do not know them. Would be nice to know if there is a powerful SW like this, but from an open source flavor.

* EDIT *
By reading this post I've know of these 2 open source options to create images in linux... in case u R interested on them:

• Clonezilla
• Mondo