12.1 - Emergency repair

English Install/Boot/Login
1

Hello.

I would like to know what to copy on usb key to be able to restart a linux box in case it refuse to boot ( just for example a black screen with message : NO SYSTEM ); and what tools to use.

Is there any SDB on the subject.

I just got it after an update of libreoffice.

As I decided to reboot, my box don’t stop.
I opened a console and type “shutdown -r now” and then never restart ==> no system.

Booting with a live CD I saw that some files have disappear from /boot folder.

I have reinstalled my system but it take some time.

2

On Fri, 07 Sep 2012 21:06:02 +0000, jcdole wrote:

> I would like to know what to copy on usb key to be able to restart a
> linux box in case it refuse to boot ( just for example a black screen
> with message : NO SYSTEM ); and what tools to use.

Absolute easiest solution is to use one of the LiveCDs prepped for the USB
drive.

As to what tools to include, though, that depends a lot on the problem
you’re having. If the problem is hardware related, there really aren’t
any tools that will fix the problem, though some like the SMART tools
will help diagnose (for example) hard drive issues.

A LiveCD/USB will include the grub tools so if you need to fix an MBR
problem, you should be able to do that.

Jim

–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C

3

We forget any serious hardware problem.

So If I copy whole /boot folder to an usb stick, I suppose I get all what I need.

But there is a copy of the MBR ( file named backup_mbr ).
What tools to use to copy it to the wright place, (or perhaps a dd command with the good parameters ?)

2°)
By the way, have you any idea of what happens after my very bad decision for stoping the system :

As I decided to reboot, my box don’t stop.
I opened a console and type “shutdown -r now” and then never restart ==> no system.

3°)
Reading boot.readme

Q: Kernel upgrade break my tuned bootloader settings, I want edit it manually.
A: set LOADER_TYPE=“none” in /etc/sysconfig/bootloader. Hint is used /boot/vmlinuz and /boot/initrd symlinks as files which is already point to actual kernel. WARNING after kernel upgrade you must update also configuration manually, otherwise you cannot boot.

What is the action when settingLOADER_TYPE=“none” in /etc/sysconfig/bootloader

Thank you for taking time to answer.

4

On Sat, 08 Sep 2012 09:26:02 +0000, jcdole wrote:

> So If I copy whole /boot folder to an usb stick, I suppose I get all
> what I need.

Assuming it’s not something in the kernel modules in /lib/modules
hierarchy. The boot folder may get you to some sort of booted state, but
this isn’t really the best way to plan DR for a system. That stuff can
be reinstalled fairly trivially if the system has an unrecoverable error.

> But there is a copy of the MBR ( file named backup_mbr ).
> What tools to use to copy it to the wright place, (or perhaps a dd
> command with the good parameters ?)

Probably, yes, but again, that’s fairly easy to fix if you have a rescue
system without the specific MBR that’s backed up there.

It seems kinda like you’re starting with a solution rather than a problem

  • stating that the problem is “if I need to recover my system, how do I
    do that?” would be better than stating “I’ve determined that backing up
    some bits of the system are the way to recover it - but which bits do I
    need?” - if your goal is disaster recovery planning, then let’s start
    with that rather than a solution that may not be the best way forward. :slight_smile:

> 2°)
> By the way, have you any idea of what happens after my very bad decision
> for stoping the system :
>> As I decided to reboot, my box don’t stop.
>> I opened a console and type “shutdown -r now” and then never restart
>> ==> no system.

We’d need more information on this, I’d suggest a separate thread that
describes the situation in detail, including hardware details and openSUSE
versions, patches applied, etc.

>>
> 3°)
> Reading boot.readme
>> Q: Kernel upgrade break my tuned bootloader settings, I want edit it
>> manually.
>> A: set LOADER_TYPE=“none” in /etc/sysconfig/bootloader. Hint is used
>> /boot/vmlinuz and /boot/initrd symlinks as files which is already point
>> to actual kernel. WARNING after kernel upgrade you must update also
>> configuration manually, otherwise you cannot boot.
>>
> What is the action when setting LOADER_TYPE=“none” in
> /etc/sysconfig/bootloader

I’d suggest a separate thread starting with a problem statement - what is
it that you’re trying to accomplish? This sounds like you’re applying a
solution to a problem - but you haven’t explained what the problem is
that you’re trying to solve.

Jim

Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C

5

OK. Noted.

6

Until now I have not found a procedure to be used in case of incident, serious or not. I used to reinstalled the system completely.
I think there is more simple method if the incident is just a boot problem.
Hence my question:
When you have a system in operating condition, what software should I use and what should I backup on an USB stick to reset the system in working condition.
So If you have some reading to recommend me.

PS : I am not speaking about bare metal recovery.

7

On Wed, 12 Sep 2012 20:46:02 +0000, jcdole wrote:

> Until now I have not found a procedure to be used in case of incident,
> serious or not. I used to reinstalled the system completely.
> I think there is more simple method if the incident is just a boot
> problem.
> Hence my question:
> When you have a system in operating condition, what software should I
use
> and what should I backup on an USB stick to reset the system in working
> condition.

I would be inclined to reinstall the system, because if an incident takes
the boot process out, the chances are good that it’s affected other parts
of the system as well.

It would be an incredible stroke of luck if a system failure only took
out the boot partition or corrupted the boot sector.

As someone with a long history of IT experience, I would treat a system
that had experienced such an incident as I would a compromised system,
and I would rebuild the OS installation and restore the data from backup
if necessary.

Otherwise, what ends up happening is you have some other unknown issues
that you’ve avoided by just restoring the boot partition and not other
critical system files, and are more likely to have inexplicable problems
that continue to plague the system.

That’s not good for user confidence or system stability.

Back up the /etc directory and any other configuration-related files so
you can recover the setup, but reinstall the system if you have a crash
that results in data loss in critical system areas. That’s my
professional advice, and how I would handle it myself as an IT
professional. :slight_smile:

Jim

–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C

8

That exactly what I need to know.

Thank you for your patience.

9

On Wed, 12 Sep 2012 21:36:01 +0000, jcdole wrote:

> That exactly what I need to know.
>
> Thank you for your patience.

No problem, glad to help out. :slight_smile:

Jim

–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C

10

On 2012-09-12 22:46, jcdole wrote:

> Until now I have not found a procedure to be used in case of incident,
> serious or not. I used to reinstalled the system completely.
> I think there is more simple method if the incident is just a boot
> problem.

For boot problems there is the supergrub disk, but with 12.2 having grub 1 and grub 2, I don’t
know.

> Hence my question:
> When you have a system in operating condition, what software should I
> use and what should I backup on an USB stick to reset the system in
> working condition.

Backup all :slight_smile:

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 12.1 x86_64 “Asparagus” at Telcontar)

11

Well, there are options for grub2 support

Super Grub Disk