menu.lst script ?

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 6:06pm

Hi Everybody,
well I finally returned to suse. It was the very first linux distro that I tried way back in 2001 or 2002. But I digress!
What script or code should be used in /boot/grub/menu.lst when the grub bootloader is located in another partition, on the same HD, to enable opensuse 11.2 lxde to boot ? Thanks and am excited to check out my old green lizard friend.

caf4926 · March 20, 2010, 6:25pm

You need to disable autologin on your user account
and at the login screen choose lxde from here:
http://public.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pLvSL2ukTMUS51zIRfOGxgJxPBwxWbQxpAvhpCT7UbyvmkM3Gtq1ZwoJrReHZJJiQtgNOHbbT580jEhopX6TFMg/session.type.png

Disable Auto-Login - openSUSE Forums

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 6:46pm

autologin was disabled. also this is opensuse 11.2 lxde LIVE. it is already installed on my HD.

caf4926 · March 20, 2010, 7:38pm

OK so you mean you installed it, but it won’t boot to the desktop?

And you think this is because *the grub bootloader is located in another partition, on the same HD
*
You can re-install grub with a live cd, here is a good method
Re-Install Grub Quickly with Parted Magic - openSUSE Forums

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 8:11pm

Yes it’s installed. however I opted not to install any bootloader, as the grub is already installed in the boot sector of the first partition ( on another linux OS ). I want the code you enter into the menu.lst so it will boot suse from the boot sector. looks like this:
title
root
kernel
initrd

does this make any sense to you ?

caf4926 · March 20, 2010, 8:17pm

What is the other Linux OS

But something like this:

title openSUSE 11.2
root (hd0,?)
configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 8:45pm

the other OS is…#!.
also need the exact script, else it will not boot suse properly.
Do you know the exact script ?

knurpht · March 20, 2010, 9:00pm

The /boot/grub/menu.lst is not a script, it’s merely a config file, used by GRUB. It tells GRUB where the files to boot an OS are located.

Here’s the one from my server:


# Modified by YaST2. Last modification on Fri Mar 12 22:22:44 CET 2010
# THIS FILE WILL BE PARTIALLY OVERWRITTEN by perl-Bootloader
# Configure custom boot parameters for updated kernels in /etc/sysconfig/bootloader

default 0
timeout 8
gfxmenu (hd4,0)/boot/message

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: linux###
title openSUSE 11.2 - 2.6.31.12-0.1
    root (hd4,0)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31.12-0.1-default root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-OCZ_CORE_SSD_MK01090307F0C001C-part1 splash=silent quiet vga=0x346 acpi_enforce_resou
rces=lax showopts
    initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.31.12-0.1-default

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: failsafe###
title Failsafe -- openSUSE 11.2 - 2.6.31.12-0.1
    root (hd4,0)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31.12-0.1-default root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-OCZ_CORE_SSD_MK01090307F0C001C-part1 showopts apm=off noresume edd=off powersaved=off
 nohz=off highres=off processor.max_cstate=1 x11failsafe vga=0x346
    initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.31.12-0.1-default

By now you have no bootloader for openSUSE, the install told you that this may leave you with an unbootable system, I’m sure, just tested ( I’m doing some installs right now).

AFAICS, your problem is that *buntu uses GRUB2, openSUSE still uses GRUB. Since your bootloader config files reside in *buntu’s /boot/grub, you may better find out how to add openSUSE to your *buntu’s GRUB2

Correct me if I’m wrong, no hard feelings. Welcome back anyway.

caf4926 · March 20, 2010, 9:25pm

OK. Whatever OS that is I don’t know

Please open a terminal and get me the output of

fdisk -l

If the other OS is Ubuntu as my colleague suggests, then getting SUSe to boot is a doddle.
In ubuntu all you need to do is run

sudo update-grub

then

sudo grub-install /dev/sda

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 9:33pm

title openSUSE 11.2 - 2.6.31.12-0.1
root (hd4,0)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31.12-0.1-default root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-OCZ_CORE_SSD_MK01090307F0C001C-part1 splash=silent quiet vga=0x346 acpi_enforce_resou
rces=lax showopts
initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.31.12-0.1-default

THIS IS what I’m looking for ! Thanks !
in the kernel description, does part1 mean partition 1, where you installed opensuse ? also i assume the need to replace your HD description with what I use ?

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 9:34pm

#! is crunchbang linux !!

caf4926 · March 20, 2010, 9:45pm

Which is Ubuntu based, surely you know what grub version
It seems likely to be grub2

skweezit · March 20, 2010, 10:04pm

version of grub is 0.97-29ubuntu45 (intrepid)

caf4926 · March 21, 2010, 4:04am

Then use Cruchbang to read the contents of the SUSE menu.lst, it will be in the SUSE root partition at /boot/grub/menu.lst

fdisk -l
Will give us your partition layout (post it here with the SUSE menu.lst)

With that info we can then work out what needs to go in the menu entry to boot SUSE

skweezit · March 21, 2010, 8:34pm

fdisk -l :

Disk /dev/sda: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000db0b5

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 669 5373711 83 Linux
/dev/sda2 670 797 1028160 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda3 798 4931 33206355 83 Linux
/dev/sda4 4932 9729 38539935 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 4932 8361 27551443+ 83 Linux
/dev/sda6 8362 9729 10988428+ 83 Linux

Disk /dev/sdb: 20.0 GB, 20020396032 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 2434 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x9f749f74

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 1 1022 8209183+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdb2 1023 2174 9253440 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sdb3 2175 2434 2088450 7 HPFS/NTFS

/boot/grub/menu.lst :

title #!CRUNCHBANG
uuid 6ded8f51-902b-413d-b289-f7f36177def3
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27-11-generic root=UUID=6ded8f51-902b-413d-b289-f7f36177def3 ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.27-11-generic
quiet

This is a divider, added to separate the menu items below from the Debian

ones.

title VectorLinux 6.0
root (hd0,4)
kernel (hd0,4)/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27.29 root=/dev/hda5 vga=791 splash=silent ro
initrd (hd0,4)/boot/initrd
boot

title openSUSE 11.2
root (hd0,5)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-WDC_WD800JB-00FMA0_WD-WCAJ91558414-part6 resume=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-WDC_WD800JB-00FMA0_WD-WCAJ91558414-part2 splash=silent quiet showopts vga=0x31a
initrd /boot/initrd

This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for a non-linux OS

on /dev/sdb1

title Microsoft Windows XP Professional
root (hd1,0)
savedefault
makeactive
map (hd0) (hd1)
map (hd1) (hd0)
chainloader +1

skweezit · March 22, 2010, 12:44am

with the above configuration openSUSE-LXDE 11.2 begins to boot. However, when it reaches Starting HAL daemon…DONE
It hangs the boot process. That’s it for now.

gogalthorp · March 22, 2010, 4:56am

I’m confused at which Linux is controlling the boot? Is the menu.lst from the Suse or CRUNCHBANG or VectorLinux.

There is a difference how the lines are written.

caf4926 · March 22, 2010, 5:57am

So am I
Though I was going crazy:)

Please clarify…

skweezit · March 22, 2010, 3:26pm

CRUNCHBANG is controlling the boot from the boot sector. There is no MBR. the menu.lst is from CRUNCHBANG.
Also the Master HD is Linux only. The Slave drive is Windows XP only. As it should be, huh ?

gogalthorp · March 22, 2010, 4:43pm

OK so this is not the Suse menu.lst

Does CRUNCHBANG understand

/dev/disk/by-id/ata-WDC_WD800JB-00FMA0_WD-WCAJ91558414-part6

ie can you go to that location in the file system? May be better to use /dev/hda6 notation instead. hmmm looking closer all three entries use entirely different and inconsistent methods to describe the partition where the linux kernel for that distro is found. Also fdisk names the partitions ‘sdX’ and the Vector line uses ‘hdX’. Maybe they are all linked but you could not prove that by me.