Hi everyone,
how can I install the OpenSUSE 11.0 bootloader (LILO) on a floppy disk?
With SUSE 10.2, I used this feature to start Linux instead of Vista by introducing the Start-up-floppy, which contained the bootloader. In 10.2, it was possible to choose the location where to install the bootloader (only LILO permitted to install it on a floppy, GRUB didn’t), but in version 11.0, this option doesn’t appear in the installation menu.
I don’t want to overwrite the Vista MBR, because I’m using a USB keyboard which is not detected during the booting phase, so I can’t switch between the different OSs.
Thank you for your hints…
I don’t remember re LILO, but grub can certainly be installed to floppy, although not with YaST. Also, there is an excellent method of booting linux using Vista’s new bootmgr boot loader along with the hugely popular (and free) EasyBCD tool.
Here is a copy/paste from another thread I posted instructions to:
*First, in openSUSE go to YaST/System/Boot Loader, and on the Boot Installation screen check the “Boot from Root Partition” box (or Boot Partition, if you are using a separate partition for /boot). Deselect any other boxes. Click OK and Finish. You have now installed grub to the root (/) partition (or /boot) boot sector. Before exiting openSUSE, be absolutely positive you know the device-name (e.g., sdb1) of the root (or boot) partition. The YaST Partitioner can tell you this.
Second, the Vista setup. This solution uses Vista’s bootmgr. Unfortunately, Microsoft only provides a cryptic command-line editor to set up bootmgr. But no problem: There is a very popular free gui tool for bootmgr. It is EasyBCD and you can download it here EasyBCD 1.7.2. On the same web page there is a documentation link to a tutorial; review the linux section, this tool is very easy to use. Install it and run it. Go to Add. Follow the tutorial, but all you are doing is adding a linux entry and - this is the critical part - there is a pull-down which lists all the partitions on both disks. This is where you select the root partition from the first step. Give the entry a title of your choice. Then reboot (this tripped me up at first; in the list above you won’t see what you just added until you reboot).
When you boot you will now be shown a menu with Vista and the entry you just added with EasyBCD. Select openSUSE and Vista will load the SuSE boot sector you installed in the first step, which will in turn run grub and you will see the openSUSE boot menu. Vista boots as always when you select it from the menu. This is all using vanilla Vista bootmgr; handling multi-boot chainloading like this is what it was designed for.*
If you would like to install grub to floppy, post back and I’ll give you the instructions.
Well, thank you for this first reply.
I don’t mind if it’s GRUB or LILO. With Suse 10.2 I used LILO because YAST permitted to install it on a floppy disk, but apparently this feature has been dropped in the new version.
So, if there’s a way to install GRUB on a floppy, it would be fine for me too.
Everything as root from the terminal (be precise):
mke2fs /dev/fd0
mount /dev/fd0 /media/floppy
cd /media/floppy
mkdirhier boot/grub
cd /boot/grub
cp stage1 stage2 device.map menu.lst /media/floppy/boot/grub
cd /boot
cp message /media/floppy/boot
Now, start the grub shell:
grub
In the shell, do the following
device (fd0) /dev/fd0
root (fd0)
setup (fd0)
quit
You now have a grub boot floppy. 
the problems won’t stop…
I finally succeeded to install Suse 11, but when I go to the terminal, I can’t go to the ‘root’-directory…it says I’ve no permission…
perhaps I’m making a stupid error, I rarely use the terminal…
So, the system doesn’t recognize the ‘mke2fs’-order …
what shall I do?
Another problem:
I tried to install the KDE4-desktop. First it worked, but after rebooting, the system stopped after the grub screen giving the message: “could not start kdeinit4”.
KDE3 seems to work…
What’s the problem here? How can I fix it?
Thanks for your help-…
You do not need to go to the root directory, you need to have root privileges. In the terminal simply do:
su
and you will be prompted for the root password. Then you will be able to issue all the commands.
Re KDE 4 . . . KDE 4 is very new and still immature. In particular, 4.0 lacked a lot. The error you got is almost assuredly due to this. If you want to use KDE 4 at all, you need to update it to 4.1.x. There is a 1-click install here KDE/KDE4 Be sure you are using the 1-click under “Factory KDE Project (KDE 4.1.x)” for 11.0. This will also add a repository for you. The packages in this repo are under-going development towards 4.2, so what you will install will be a snapshot in time, and should be periodically updated via Software Management. Or, you can stay with 3.5.9 which is very stable, until 4.2 is released.
Well, thanks for the tip with the password, but the second code “mount /dev/fd0 /media/floppy” gives me the error note :
“mount: Mount Point /media/floppy doesn’t exist”.
The floppy isn’t even recognized by the system (konqueror) afterwards…
Here are the messages from the terminal (unfortunately in german, sorry):
linux-6faj:/home/wa # mke2fs /dev/fd0
mke2fs 1.40.8 (13-Mar-2008)
Dateisystem-Label=
OS-Typ: Linux
Blockgröße=1024 (log=0)
Fragmentgröße=1024 (log=0)
184 Inodes, 1440 Blöcke
72 Blöcke (5.00%) reserviert für den Superuser
Erster Datenblock=1
Maximale Dateisystem-Blöcke=1572864
1 Blockgruppe
8192 Blöcke pro Gruppe, 8192 Fragmente pro Gruppe
184 Inodes pro Gruppe
Schreibe Inode-Tabellen: erledigt
Schreibe Superblöcke und Dateisystem-Accountinginformationen: erledigt
Das Dateisystem wird automatisch alle 39 Mounts bzw. alle 180 Tage überprüft,
je nachdem, was zuerst eintritt. Veränderbar mit tune2fs -c oder -t .
linux-6faj:/home/wa # mount /dev/fd0 /media/floppy
mount: Mount Point /media/floppy doesn’t exist
masterandservant wrote:
> Well, thanks for the tip with the password, but the second code “mount
> /dev/fd0 /media/floppy” gives me the error note :
> “mount: Mount Point /media/floppy doesn’t exist”.
the problem is that in order to mount /dev/fd0 to /media/floppy the
latter must exist…so, to do that start over with
su - <and give root password when asked]
mkdir /media/floppy <and press enter and wait for prompt]
mount /dev/fd0 /media/floppy <again, press enter and wait]
exit <changes from root to normal user]
exit <closes terminal/console]
and if you and i both typed right, it should do what you want!!
–
see caveat: http://tinyurl.com/6aagco
DenverD (Linux Counter 282315) via NNTP, Thunderbird 2.0.0.14, KDE
3.5.7, SUSE Linux 10.3, 2.6.22.18-0.2-default #1 SMP i686 athlon
Sorry about the /media/floppy problem . . . I thought that by default /media/floppy was created by the installation.
However, do not “exit” as suggested above. The rest of the commands need to be done as root, too.
Thanks Mingus and DenverD,
finally it worked. lol! In deed, once the /media/floppy directory installed, I could create the desired start-up floppy and re-install the Vista-MBR. As I wrote, I’m using a USB-keyboard, which is not detected during the start-up phase, so I can’t choose between different OS right in the beginning. Now, when I want to use Linux, I just insert the floppy…
Just a question concerning KDE4, which I had installed first and didn’t work. After installing KDE3.5, there was a choice-menu during the booting routine (left bottom of the screen), where I could choose the desktop. Now this menu doesn’t appear anymore …is there a specific key during the booting sequence (like ESC, F1 or so) to get access to this menu?
> After installing KDE3.5, there was a choice-menu during the
> booting routine (left bottom of the screen), where I could choose the
> desktop. Now this menu doesn’t appear anymore …is there a specific key
> during the booting sequence (like ESC, F1 or so) to get access to this
> menu?
what is going on is your machine is set to automatically boot to the
“default” window manager…the default being the last one you used…
sorry, there is no F1 or whatever to get you there…BUT, a couple
of ways to do what you wanna do:
- don’t automatically boot without needing to sign in…to change
it to that way:
open personal settings configure desktop click on
-> System Administration
-> Login Manager > Convenience (tab)
-> Administrator Mode (button)
-> give root password
-> click “Enable Auto-Login” off (remove the X), then
-> Apply etc
next time you boot you will see the login screen AND the place in the
lower left corner where you can switch to the other environments you
have installed (caution: i got into one about a month ago and took me
FOREVER to figure out how to get back out…in fact, if i recall
correctly i got out with the power switch!!)
CAUTION TWO: when you log in you will see the opportunity to log in
as ROOT…do NOT do that! ever…read: http://tinyurl.com/6ry6yd
- the other way to get to the log in screen:
→ right click on desktop
→ choose “Log out [user]”
→ choose “End current session”
→ X will shut down and up will pop that log in screen, where you can
select the window manager and then log back in…
enjoy,
–
see caveat: http://tinyurl.com/6aagco
DenverD (Linux Counter 282315) via NNTP, Thunderbird 2.0.0.14, KDE
3.5.7, SUSE Linux 10.3, 2.6.22.18-0.2-default #1 SMP i686 athlon