GRUB install location selection during openSUSE installation

English Install/Boot/Login
1

Hi All

I’m trying to install openSUSE to my external disk.

I found that I’m unable to choose to install GRUB in the MBR of my external disk, the available option is install to boot sector of any partitions or the MBR of my internal disk.

I also installed debian, ubuntu and Mandriva to my external disk and all of them allow me to install GRUB to the MBR of my external disk.

Is is possible to add this option (install GRUB to MBR of any disk) to the installation process?

Cheers

2

Try to install, without the internal drive plugged to the system.

On the other way around, not sure if it works, test SGD to get this after doing the usual install, without plugging out the internal drive.

Hope this helps.

3

Hi KhurramM

Thank you for help, removing internal disk is a little bit hassle, it’s my laptop.

Could you tell me what’s SGD?

but anyway, why openSUSE not add this option to installation process?

Cheers

4

I don’t think this is a bad idea that you can’t install grub to the external disk.
The idea is that you don’t always have that disk connected and if you had two systems one on external and one internal then you wouldn’t be able to boot into that one. But i guess you could always copy the grub with dd?? Just install GRUB to the mbr of the internal disk then copy GRUB with dd using the command

dd if=/dev/<internal disk> of=/dev/<external disk> bs=446 count=1
It will copy GRUB to the external disk but you’d still have to adjust the menu.lst i guess.

5

Hey BenderBendingRodriguez

The situation you mention only could happen when there is no boot loader on MBR of internal disk. What’s the chances that there is no boot loader on the internal disk?

6

Assuming you have USB boot in your BIOS, which you must or you wouldn’t be asking. My guess is you will need to have this USB disc set not only as first boot device but as Primary boot HD (if that is possible) (I can’t test this ATM).
I do know that depending on the order of HD’s in BIOS, only some will be listed as available in the installation bootloader. It can get confusing sometimes when you have a mixture of different discs (ie; pata, sata).

7

Hi caf4926
I’m using HP Comapq 6910p, the BIOS allow to set boot sequence (I set my external disk as fisrt), but I’m not sure what do you mean by Primary boot HD.

All my external and internal disk are sata.

As Debian, Ubuntu and Mandriva all allow to choose which MBR to install, I guess this should not be a technical problem for openSUSE.

Cheers

8

As Debian, Ubuntu and Mandriva all allow to choose which MBR to install, I guess this should not be a technical problem for openSUSE.
You could be right. I’m not sure. Have you tried UNetbootin - Homepage and Downloads
It will install a live version to your external usb. Then boot the live session from your external usb and try the installer from there.

it’s just something you are going to have to fiddle with

9

Hi caf4926

Thank you for your help.

This solution sounds very cool.

Do you imply that openSUSE will never add the option to install GRUB to any MBR?

openSUSE is the only linux distribution which can support all my laptop hardware (debian, ubuntu and mandriva not). Why not just put a little improvement to make user’s life easy?

Cheers

10

Do you imply that openSUSE will never add the option to install GRUB to any MBR?
No.

I’m not totally clear myself on what the installer will allow in every situation, except to say, from experience, if you want grub to a specific HD, it must be configured correctly in BIOS. I think what this means is: That the installer will not offer a HD to install grub to unless it is physically possible for it to boot from that HD given the current configuration.

You can of course install grub manually.

I don’t know if there is any info here:
Installing SuSE on External USB Drive - openSUSE

11

Hi caf4926

Thank you for your information.

I did successuflly boot openSUSE from my external disk without changing my BIOS setting.

The option I chose is same as the link you gave to me, chose “Boot from Root Partition”.

So as it is it is physically possible for it to boot from that HD, but the installation still not provide the option to intall GRUB to external MBR :(.

Cheers