Can't boot up Windows using Dual Boot

Hi,
I am running Dual Boot with Windows Vista 64bit and Suse Linux.
I have just restored my system using Paragon Hard Disk Manager and reinited grub afterwards. With this done, I am able to boot into Linux. I then edited /boot/grub/menu.lst adding

title Windows Vista
    root (hd0,1)
    makeactive
    chainloading +1

to the file as I found it. With this update, my menu.lst is as follows:

# Modified by YaST2. Last modification on Mon Apr  9 14:51:52 EDT 2012
default 0
timeout 8
gfxmenu (hd0,7)/boot/message
##YaST - activate

title Windows Vista
    root (hd0,1)
    makeactive
    chainloaded +1

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: linux###
title SUSE LINUX
    root (hd0,7)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-ST31000528AS_9VP771VT-part8    repair=1 resume=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-ST31000528AS_9VP771VT-part7 splash=silent showopts vga=0x31a
    initrd /boot/initrd

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: failsafe###
title Failsafe -- SUSE LINUX
    root (hd0,7)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-ST31000528AS_9VP771VT-part8 showopts ide=nodma apm=off noresume edd=off powersaved=off nohz=off highres=off processor.max_cstate=1 x11failsafe vga=0x31a
    initrd /boot/initrd

When I execute fdisk -l, I see –

Disk /dev/sda: 1000.2 GB, 1000204886016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 121601 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x0fff07e1

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sda1               1        1959    15728640    7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2   *        1960       41155   314841870    7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda3           41156       70294   234059017+   f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/sda4           70295       79218    71682030    7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda5           41156       54171   104550988+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda6           54172       60477    50652913+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda7           60478       60739     2104483+  82  Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda8           60740       61841     8851783+  83  Linux
/dev/sda9           61842       70294    67898691   83  Linux

Disk /dev/sdb: 1500.2 GB, 1500299395072 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 182401 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000fda12

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sdb1   *           1      182402  1465136096    7  HPFS/NTFS

Disk /dev/sdd: 2047 MB, 2047681024 bytes
64 heads, 63 sectors/track, 991 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 4032 * 512 = 2064384 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x00000000

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sdd1               1         991     1997733+   6  FAT16

With this in place, I boot and come up to the green screen, where it lists my option as Windows Vista, Suse, and Failsafe. Again, if I chose Suse, everything is ok; however, if I select Windows, I see a black and white version of my boot menu within a window and, if I chose Windows, the system hangs.

Thanks in advance for any help on this matter,
s660117

On 2012-04-10 01:16, s660117 wrote:
>
> Hi,
> I am running Dual Boot with Windows Vista 64bit and Suse Linux.

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Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.
(from 11.4 x86_64 “Celadon” at Telcontar)

it is curious that /dev/sda2 is set active, but be that as it may, you must have installed grub into the MBR, which is why grub and openSUSE work. Normally, Windows 7 has a small, 100 MB, Primary boot partition that is first. So, I would try to boot Windows from the first partition like this:

title Windows Vista
    rootnoverify (hd0,0)
    chainloader +1

or

title Windows Vista
    rootnoverify (hd0,1)
    chainloader +1

Now, if this works, great. If not, you may not have backed up the boot partition along with the Windows partition as you really need both to get Windows to start up.

Thank You,

James,
Thanks for your reply.
I tried booting from (hd0,0), but the system still hangs.
I’m wondering whether the Windows partition is corrupted.
s660117

Exactly. But there is no advantage in using makeactive with Grub in MBR and of course only inconvenience if Grub is installed in a VBR.

I note that you have another NTFS primary partition. You might try to boot that one too. That would be (hd0,3).

  • sda4 = (hd0,3)

I don’t know who puts the extended partition in the middle, but it might be what confuses Windows.

Thanks for the reply.
Tried (hd0,3), with the same result. Am starting to think that maybe my OS partition at hd0,1 is corrupted.

Wait a minute! This is neither “chainloading” nor “chainloaded” but chainloader !

title Windows Vista
    rootnoverify (hd0,0)
    chainloader +1

You are so right there please_try_again and a good catch for sure!!

THank You,

Thanks for catching that chainloader error, jdmclean.
Unfortunately, correcting it did not fix the problem.
I have tried hd0,0 through hd0,3, just for grins but always get the same thing - a message that says

makeactive
Error 12: Invalid device requested.

I take it to mean that none of the partitions I selected is bootable.
?
Thanks,
s660117

Run findgrub and post the output here. Let’s see if it detects the Windows bootloader: http://forums.opensuse.org/english/other-forums/development/programming-scripting/447138-looking-grub-windows-bootloader-all-partitions-16.html#post2443550

title Windows Vista
    rootnoverify (hd0,0)
    chainloader +1
title Windows Vista
    rootnoverify (hd0,1)
    chainloader +1

So note that niether of the two new suggestions say makeactive, root changed to rootnoverify and the name chainloader is different from your orginal setup.

Thank You,