two boot login menus

English Install/Boot/Login
#1

I installed openSuse 11.1 on a multiboot pc with XP and other distros. I installed grub to the mbr of my single hard drive (sda).
Previously the grub menu.lst was on /dev/sda6. OS 11.1 is installed on /dev/sda8.

Anyhoo… I now have two log in menus. The first is the one that I was using before installing OS 11.1. After I make a choice on the first menu then the second menu comes up and make the same choice again and the distro loads.

I looked at the OS 11.1 /boot files and there is /grub folder and a link to a /boot folder in the /dev/sda8/boot folder. I have never dealt with links before so I am at a loss as to how to resolve this problem. It seems that the link only has root priviledges. If I open the /dev/sda8/boot/grub folder and look at the menu.lst file it doesn’t match either grub menu I am seeing when I log into the system.

How do I get to the second grub menu (the one that OS 11.1 that was supposed to be written to the MBR? It is not the menu.lst file that is in the /dev/sda8/boot/grub folder.

#2

First we need to clarify a bit about how grub works. The menu.lst is not written to the MBR. What is written is a grub stage1 file in which is embedded a pointer to the partition where you want it to find its stage2 program (the actual loader) plus the menu.lst the loader will use.

I wasn’t entirely clear on your description of your actual setup. But it sounds like one stage2 is chaining to another (as defined in its menu.lst) which is chaining to another or looping back. This kind of problem isn’t unusual - typically the default in any OS installation is to take control of the boot process and, in the case of grub to the MBR, put the pointer there to its own menu.lst. When you have multiple installs, and the methods sometimes differ (and openSUSE has its own, Mint uses the Debian/Ubuntu method, Mepis used to but may do it differently now). So to sort this out, I suggest you post back:

fdisk -lu

telling us which distro is on which partitions. Then copy/paste the /boot/grub/menu.lst from all three back here. This may seem like a lot of info, but it will save posting back-and-forth guessing on the details. Finally, from openSUSE please also do this and post it back here:


cat /etc/grub.conf

That will tell us how openSUSE actually installed grub and what pointer it used.

#3

Thanks, mingus725. Here is the output.

fdisk -lu


Disk /dev/sda: 250.0 GB, 250059350016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 30401 cylinders, total 488397168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x14c814c8

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sda1              63    42765029    21382483+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2        42765030    49110704     3172837+  82  Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda3   *    49110705   363647339   157268317+   5  Extended
/dev/sda5        49110768    70075529    10482381   83  Linux
/dev/sda6        70075593    91040354    10482381   83  Linux
/dev/sda7        91040418   112005179    10482381   83  Linux
/dev/sda8       112005243   132970004    10482381   83  Linux
/dev/sda9       132970068   153934829    10482381   83  Linux
/dev/sda10      153934893   363647339   104856223+  83  Linux

cat /etc/grub.conf from inside openSuse

cat /etc/grub.conf
setup --stage2=/boot/grub/stage2 --force-lba (hd0) (hd0,7)
quit
#4

OK, good start. However, I also asked to see the /boot/grub/menu.lst from each installation. That will tell us how the chaining is being done. And, I can see that openSUSE’s grub was installed to the MBR and its root is on sda8; please list what is on sda5, 6, 7, 9, and 10.

#5

Sorry, I missed the part about the menus. Hard to help a guy that can’t follow instructions.
sda5 menu.lst

# menu.lst - See: grub(8), info grub, update-grub(8)
#            grub-install(8), grub-floppy(8),
#            grub-md5-crypt, /usr/share/doc/grub
#            and /usr/share/doc/grub-legacy-doc/.

## default num
# Set the default entry to the entry number NUM. Numbering starts from 0, and
# the entry number 0 is the default if the command is not used.
#
# You can specify 'saved' instead of a number. In this case, the default entry
# is the entry saved with the command 'savedefault'.
# WARNING: If you are using dmraid do not change this entry to 'saved' or your
# array will desync and will not let you boot your system.
default		5

gfxmenu=/etc/grub/message.elyssa

## timeout sec
# Set a timeout, in SEC seconds, before automatically booting the default entry
# (normally the first entry defined).
timeout		20

# Pretty colours
color cyan/blue white/blue

## password '--md5'] passwd
# If used in the first section of a menu file, disable all interactive editing
# control (menu entry editor and command-line)  and entries protected by the
# command 'lock'
# e.g. password topsecret
#      password --md5 $1$gLhU0/$aW78kHK1QfV3P2b2znUoe/
# password topsecret

#
# examples
#
# title		Windows 95/98/NT/2000
# root		(hd0,0)
# makeactive
# chainloader	+1
#
# title		Linux
# root		(hd0,1)
# kernel	/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 ro
#

#
# Put static boot stanzas before and/or after AUTOMAGIC KERNEL LIST

### BEGIN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST
## lines between the AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST markers will be modified
## by the debian update-grub script except for the default options below

## DO NOT UNCOMMENT THEM, Just edit them to your needs

## ## Start Default Options ##
## default kernel options
## default kernel options for automagic boot options
## If you want special options for specific kernels use kopt_x_y_z
## where x.y.z is kernel version. Minor versions can be omitted.
## e.g. kopt=root=/dev/hda1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8=root=/dev/hdc1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8_2_686=root=/dev/hdc2 ro
# kopt=root=/dev/sda6 ro

## default grub root device
## e.g. groot=(hd0,0)
# groot=(hd0,5)

## should update-grub create alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. alternative=true
##      alternative=false
# alternative=true

## should update-grub lock alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. lockalternative=true
##      lockalternative=false
# lockalternative=false

## additional options to use with the default boot option, but not with the
## alternatives
## e.g. defoptions=vga=791 resume=/dev/hda5
# defoptions=quiet splash

## should update-grub lock old automagic boot options
## e.g. lockold=false
##      lockold=true
# lockold=false

## Xen hypervisor options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenhopt=

## Xen Linux kernel options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenkopt=console=tty0

## altoption boot targets option
## multiple altoptions lines are allowedtitle MEPIS 8.0 at sda8, newest kernel
root (hd0,7)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda8 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot
## e.g. altoptions=(extra menu suffix) extra boot options
##      altoptions=(single-user) single
# altoptions=(recovery mode) single

## controls how many kernels should be put into the menu.lst
## only counts the first occurence of a kernel, not the
## alternative kernel options
## e.g. howmany=all
##      howmany=7
# howmany=all

## should update-grub create memtest86 boot option
## e.g. memtest86=true
##      memtest86=false
# memtest86=true

## should update-grub adjust the value of the default booted system
## can be true or false
# updatedefaultentry=false

## should update-grub add savedefault to the default options
## can be true or false
# savedefault=false

## ## End Default Options ##

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=/dev/sda6 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=/dev/sda6 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel memtest86+
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin

### END DEBIAN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST

# This is a divider, added to separate the menu items below from the Debian
# ones.
title		Other operating systems:
root


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for a non-linux OS
# on /dev/sda1
title		Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
root		(hd0,0)
savedefault
makeactive
chainloader	+1


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS 7.0, newest kernel (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS 7.0, kernel 2.6.22-1-mepis-smp (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-1-mepis-smp root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEMTEST (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin  
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, memtest86+ (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin  
savedefault
boot

title		Kubuntu 8.10, kernel 2.6.27-7-generic
root		(hdo,7)
uuid		0ba9e1ab-b6f8-4937-b519-1ad43162f3b6
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27-7-generic root=UUID=0ba9e1ab-b6f8-4937-b519-1ad43162f3b6 ro quiet splash 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.27-7-generic
quiet

title		MEPIS 7.9.91, kernel 2.6.27-1-mepis-smp (on /dev/sda9)
root		(hd0,8)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27-1-mepis-smp root=/dev/sda9 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot

sda10 is my /home partition for all the distros.

I looked for a way to upload files but didn’t find it. All the text can’t be posted at one time. I will have to do it in several posts.

thanks,

#6

sda6 menu.lst

# menu.lst - See: grub(8), info grub, update-grub(8)
#            grub-install(8), grub-floppy(8),
#            grub-md5-crypt, /usr/share/doc/grub
#            and /usr/share/doc/grub-legacy-doc/.

## default num
# Set the default entry to the entry number NUM. Numbering starts from 0, and
# the entry number 0 is the default if the command is not used.
#
# You can specify 'saved' instead of a number. In this case, the default entry
# is the entry saved with the command 'savedefault'.
# WARNING: If you are using dmraid do not change this entry to 'saved' or your
# array will desync and will not let you boot your system.
default		14

gfxmenu=/etc/grub/message.elyssa

## timeout sec
# Set a timeout, in SEC seconds, before automatically booting the default entry
# (normally the first entry defined).
timeout		20

# Pretty colours
#color cyan/blue white/blue
## Splash image!
splashimage /boot/grub/images/mars.xpm.gz

## password '--md5'] passwd
# If used in the first section of a menu file, disable all interactive editing
# control (menu entry editor and command-line)  and entries protected by the
# command 'lock'
# e.g. password topsecret
#      password --md5 $1$gLhU0/$aW78kHK1QfV3P2b2znUoe/
# password topsecret

#
# examples
#
# title		Windows 95/98/NT/2000
# root		(hd0,0)
# makeactive
# chainloader	+1
#
# title		Linux
# root		(hd0,1)
# kernel	/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 ro
#

#
# Put static boot stanzas before and/or after AUTOMAGIC KERNEL LIST

### BEGIN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST
## lines between the AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST markers will be modified
## by the debian update-grub script except for the default options below

## DO NOT UNCOMMENT THEM, Just edit them to your needs

## ## Start Default Options ##
## default kernel options
## default kernel options for automagic boot options
## If you want special options for specific kernels use kopt_x_y_z
## where x.y.z is kernel version. Minor versions can be omitted.
## e.g. kopt=root=/dev/hda1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8=root=/dev/hdc1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8_2_686=root=/dev/hdc2 ro
# kopt=root=/dev/sda6 ro
nglayout.initialpaint.delay
## default grub root device
## e.g. groot=(hd0,0)
# groot=(hd0,5)

## should update-grub create alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. alternative=true
##      alternative=false
# alternative=true

## should update-grub lock alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. lockalternative=true
##      lockalternative=false
# lockalternative=false

## additional options to use with the default boot option, but not with the
## alternatives
## e.g. defoptions=vga=791 resume=/dev/hda5
# defoptions=quiet splash

## should update-grub lock old automagic boot options
## e.g. lockold=false
##      lockold=true
# lockold=false

## Xen hypervisor options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenhopt=

## Xen Linux kernel options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenkopt=console=tty0

## altoption boot targets option
## multiple altoptions lines are allowedtitle MEPIS 8.0 at sda8, newest kernel
root (hd0,7)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda8 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot
## e.g. altoptions=(extra menu suffix) extra boot options
##      altoptions=(single-user) singlenglayout.initialpaint.delay
# altoptions=(recovery mode) single

## controls how many kernels should be put into the menu.lst
## only counts the first occurence of a kernel, not the
## alternative kernel options
## e.g. howmany=all
##      howmany=7
# howmany=all

## should update-grub create memtest86 boot option
## e.g. memtest86=true
##      memtest86=false
# memtest86=true

## should update-grub adjust the value of the default booted system
## can be true or false
# updatedefaultentry=false

## should update-grub add savedefault to the default options
## can be true or false
# savedefault=false

## ## End Default Options ##

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=/dev/sda6 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=/dev/sda6 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title		Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel memtest86+
root		(hd0,5)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin

### END DEBIAN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST

# This is a divider, added to separate the menu items below from the Debian
# ones.
title		Other operating systems:
root


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for a non-linux OS
# on /dev/sda1
title		Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
root		(hd0,0)
savedefault
makeactive
chainloader	+1


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS at sda5, newest kernel (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS at sda5, kernel 2.6.22-1-mepis-smp (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-1-mepis-smp root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEMTEST (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin  
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single 
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic
savedefault
boot

# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda7.
title		Kubuntu 8.04.1, memtest86+ (on /dev/sda7)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin  
savedefault
boot

title		Mint6 Debian, kernel 2.6.26-1-686
root		(hd0,7)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.26-1-686 root=/dev/sda8 ro quiet
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.26-1-686

title MEPIS 8 Beta 6, newest kernel
root (hd0,8)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda9 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot
#7

sda7 menu.lst

# menu.lst - See: grub(8), info grub, update-grub(8)
#            grub-install(8), grub-floppy(8),
#            grub-md5-crypt, /usr/share/doc/grub
#            and /usr/share/doc/grub-doc/.

## default num
# Set the default entry to the entry number NUM. Numbering starts from 0, and
# the entry number 0 is the default if the command is not used.
#
# You can specify 'saved' instead of a number. In this case, the default entry
# is the entry saved with the command 'savedefault'.
# WARNING: If you are using dmraid do not use 'savedefault' or your
# array will desync and will not let you boot your system.
default		7

## timeout sec
# Set a timeout, in SEC seconds, before automatically booting the default entry
# (normally the first entry defined).
timeout		20

## hiddenmenu
# Hides the menu by default (press ESC to see the menu)
#hiddenmenu

# Pretty colours
color cyan/blue white/blue
foreground ffffff
background 0639a1

## password '--md5'] passwd
# If used in the first section of a menu file, disable all interactive editing
# control (menu entry editor and command-line)  and entries protected by the
# command 'lock'
# e.g. password topsecret
#      password --md5 $1$gLhU0/$aW78kHK1QfV3P2b2znUoe/
# password topsecret

#
# examples
#
# title		Windows 95/98/NT/2000
# root		(hd0,0)
# makeactive
# chainloader	+1
#
# title		Linux
# root		(hd0,1)
# kernel	/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 ro
#

#
# Put static boot stanzas before and/or after AUTOMAGIC KERNEL LIST

### BEGIN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST
## lines between the AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST markers will be modified
## by the debian update-grub script except for the default options below

## DO NOT UNCOMMENT THEM, Just edit them to your needs

## ## Start Default Options ##
## default kernel options
## default kernel options for automagic boot options
## If you want special options for specific kernels use kopt_x_y_z
## where x.y.z is kernel version. Minor versions can be omitted.
## e.g. kopt=root=/dev/hda1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8=root=/dev/hdc1 ro
##      kopt_2_6_8_2_686=root=/dev/hdc2 ro
# kopt=root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro

## Setup crashdump menu entries
## e.g. crashdump=1
# crashdump=0

## default grub root device
## e.g. groot=(hd0,0)
# groot=(hd0,6)

## should update-grub create alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. alternative=true
##      alternative=false
# alternative=true

## should update-grub lock alternative automagic boot options
## e.g. lockalternative=true
##      lockalternative=false
# lockalternative=false

## additional options to use with the default boot option, but not with the
## alternatives
## e.g. defoptions=vga=791 resume=/dev/hda5
# defoptions=quiet splash

## should update-grub lock old automagic boot options
## e.g. lockold=false
##      lockold=true
# lockold=false

## Xen hypervisor options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenhopt=

## Xen Linux kernel options to use with the default Xen boot option
# xenkopt=console=tty0

## altoption boot targets option
## multiple altoptions lines are allowed
## e.g. altoptions=(extra menu suffix) extra boot options
##      altoptions=(recovery) single
# altoptions=(recovery mode) single

## controls how many kernels should be put into the menu.lst
## only counts the first occurence of a kernel, not the
## alternative kernel options
## e.g. howmany=all
##      howmany=7
# howmany=all

## should update-grub create memtest86 boot option
## e.g. memtest86=true
##      memtest86=false
# memtest86=true

## should update-grub adjust the value of the default booted system
## can be true or false
# updatedefaultentry=false

## should update-grub add savedefault to the default options
## can be true or false
# savedefault=false

## ## End Default Options ##

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-22-generic
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-22-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-22-generic
quiet

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-22-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-22-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-22-generic

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-21-generic
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-21-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-21-generic
quiet

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-21-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-21-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-21-generic

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic
quiet

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic
quiet

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (recovery mode)
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-16-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro single
initrd		/boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-16-generic

title		Ubuntu 8.04.1, memtest86+
root		(hd0,6)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin
quiet

### END DEBIAN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST

# This is a divider, added to separate the menu items below from the Debian
# ones.
title		Other operating systems:
root


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for a non-linux OS
# on /dev/sda1
title		Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
root		(hd0,0)
savedefault
makeactive
chainloader	+1


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS at sda5, newest kernel (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEPIS at sda5, kernel 2.6.22-1-mepis-smp (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-1-mepis-smp root=/dev/sda5 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
savedefault
boot


# This entry automatically added by the Debian installer for an existing
# linux installation on /dev/sda5.
title		MEMTEST (on /dev/sda5)
root		(hd0,4)
kernel		/boot/memtest86+.bin  
savedefault
boot
#8

sda8 menu.lst

# Modified by YaST2. Last modification on Thu Dec 18 21:26:33 CST 2008
default 2
timeout 20
##YaST - generic_mbr
gfxmenu (hd0,7)/boot/message
##YaST - activate

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: linux###
title openSUSE 11.1
    root (hd0,7)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27.7-9-default root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part8 resume=/dev/sda2 splash=silent showopts vga=0x317
    initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.27.7-9-default

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name:  MEPIS 7.0, newest kernel (on /dev/sda5) (/dev/sda5)###
title MEPIS 7.0, newest kernel (on /dev/sda5) (/dev/sda5)
    root (hd0,4)
    configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name:  MEPIS 8 Beta 6, newest kernel (/dev/sda6)###
title MEPIS 8 Beta 6, newest kernel (/dev/sda6)
    root (hd0,8)
    configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name:  Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (recovery mode) (/dev/sda7)###
title Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-16-generic (recovery mode) (/dev/sda7)
    root (hd0,6)
    configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

title Mint 5 KDE
    root (hd0,5)
    configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: windows###
title Windows
    rootnoverify (hd0,0)
    chainloader +1

###Don't change this comment - YaST2 identifier: Original name: failsafe###
title Failsafe -- openSUSE 11.1
    root (hd0,7)
    kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27.7-9-default root=/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part8 showopts ide=nodma apm=off noresume nosmp maxcpus=0 edd=off powersaved=off nohz=off highres=off processor.max_cstate=1 x11failsafe vga=0x317
    initrd /boot/initrd-2.6.27.7-9-default
#9

sda9 menu.lst

timeout 15
color cyan/blue white/blue
foreground ffffff
#background 0639a1
## Splash image!
#splashimage (hd0,5)/boot/grub/images/mars.xpm.gz

gfxmenu /boot/grub/message

title MEPIS at sda9, newest kernel
root (hd0,8)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda9 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot

title MEPIS at sda9, previous kernel (if any)
root (hd0,8)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz.old root=/dev/sda9 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot

title MEPIS at sda9, kernel 2.6.27-1-mepis-smp
root (hd0,8)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27-1-mepis-smp root=/dev/sda9 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2 
boot

title Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition at sda1
rootnoverify (hd0,0)
chainloader +1

title 
root (hd0,4)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda8 nomce quiet splash vga=791 resume=/dev/sda2

title Linux Mint 5 KDE CE, kernel 2.6.24-19-generic
root (hd0,5)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic root=/dev/sda6 ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-19-generic

title Ubuntu 8.04.1, kernel 2.6.24-21-generic
root (hd0,6)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.24-21-generic root=UUID=30eb3366-85df-405d-9862-49caef651620 ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.24-21-generic

title Ubuntu 8.10, kernel 2.6.27-7-generic
root (hd0,7)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.27-7-generic root=UUID=0ba9e1ab-b6f8-4937-b519-1ad43162f3b6 ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.27-7-generic

title MEMTEST
kernel /boot/memtest86+.bin
#10

My goodness, what a mess :wink: There’s a lot here to digest, and a couple decisions for you to make.

Still missing this piece of data: “please list what is on sda5, 6, 7, 9, and 10.” I know sda10 is /home and sda8 is openSUSE.

The menu.lst files from both sda5 and sda6 are from Mint, pointing to it being on sda6. The files are nearly identical, but not exactly so. And in both there are pointers to Mepis being on sda5, sda8, and sda9 - so I’m presuming you’ve been doing some moving around and re-installing, and these files haven’t been kept current. There are also pointers to Kubuntu; you removed that, right?

The sda7 menu.lst is from an Ubuntu installation, which I also presume you do not have any longer? So what is on sda7 now?

Mepis is actually on sda9, right? It’s menu.lst points to Mint being on sda6, which agrees with the files from sda5 and sda6 - leaving the question then, what is on sda5?

Summary, please fill in and correct if wrong:

sda5 - what is this?
sda6 - Mint
sda7 - what is this?
sda8 - openSUSE
sda9 - Mepis

The next question is, which distro do you want to control the boot? Right now, openSUSE’s grub is in the MBR, and so it would be much easier - and cleaner - to use it as the primary. OK?

openSUSE built its menu.lst by reading all the others, which of course have some errors. So besides the 2 stanzas for booting openSUSE in regular and failsafe modes, the following is what you have and what I propose you do:

  • There is a stanza booting Mepis from sda5; remove it.
  • Another stanza booting Mepis from sda9; fix the title and keep it.
  • A stanza booting Ubuntu from sda7; remove it.
  • A stanza booting Mint from sda6; keep it.
  • A stanza booting Windows on sda1; keep it.

Next, you need to decide what type of stanza to use for booting Mint and Mepis from openSUSE (there are multiple methods). The way it is set up now, when you choose Mint from the openSUSE menu, grub actually loads the sda6 menu.lst, which is full of invalid stanzas for Kubuntu, Mepis, and another Mint. When you choose Mepis from the openSUSE menu, it loads the sda9 menu.lst, which also has several invalid stanzas. If you choose to continue with this method of openSUSE loading the menu.lst from Mint and Mepis, we should clean up the sda6 and sda9 files. Keep in mind that whenever the kernel is updated in Mint, it runs a script which rebuilds the menu.lst file, and it will modify it according to all the customization settings you see in the sda6 file. Mepis used to do this the same way but it doesn’t appear so any longer; still, the file is being automatically updated every kernel update.

The alternative to having the openSUSE grub load from its menu the menu.lst’s from Mint and Mepis, is to use what’s called “direct” booting. Look at the main openSUSE boot stanza, and the same for Mint in the sda6 file and Mepis in the sda9 file. The structure of the stanzas are:

title
root
kernel
initrd

except that Mepis does not use an initrd, so that command is not used (the boot line in the Mepis stanza is redundant and unnecessary). Note that the kernel and initrd lines use specific filenames (e.g., “vmlinuz-2.6.24-19-generic”). You can copy the boot stanzas from Mint and Mepis into the openSUSE menu.lst, and then openSUSE will boot Mint and Mepis just like it boots itself - it will not load the other menu. The downside to this is that, when a kernel update is done while in Mint or Mepis, and the file names change and their menu.lst stanzas are updated with the new file names, you need to copy that to openSUSE’s menu.lst. You can do that with a text editor. Or, you can do it through openSUSE’s YaST Boot Loader module, too.

So in the first method, you are maintaining each menu.lst separately, calling the Mepis and Mint menu’s from the openSUSE menu, and needing to keep all the files clean. In the second method, you use one openSUSE menu.lst and boot Mepis and Mint directly from there, but need to update the openSUSE file when the kernel filename changes in Mepis or Mint. So . . . which method do you want to use?

Whichever you choose, I can post back for here for you the revised openSUSE, Mint, and Mepis menu.lst files to use.

#11

I knew it was a mess. I was not allowed for an unknown reason to upload files. I guess I haven’t been a member long enough. I wouldn’t blame anyone from just throwing up their hands and quitting with all that I sent in. I realize that a lot of the menu.lst files are commented out but I didn’t want to start removing stuff. I might have removed the wrong thing.

Still missing this piece of data: “please list what is on sda5, 6, 7, 9, and 10.” I know sda10 is /home and sda8 is openSUSE.[/quoter][quote]sda5 - what is this?
This is Mepis 7.0

sda6 - Mint
correct

sda7 - what is this?
Kubuntu 8.04

sda8 - openSUSE
correct

sda9 - Mepis
correct but Mepis 8.0 beta

The menu.lst files from both sda5 and sda6 are from Mint, pointing to it being on sda6. The files are nearly identical, but not exactly so. And in both there are pointers to Mepis being on sda5, sda8, and sda9 - so I’m presuming you’ve been doing some moving around and re-installing, and these files haven’t been kept current.

Correct

There are also pointers to Kubuntu; you removed that, right?
At one time I had Kubuntu 8.04 and 8.1 installed. I removed 8.1 and kept 8.4.

The sda7 menu.lst is from an Ubuntu installation, which I also presume you do not have any longer? So what is on sda7 now?

Kubuntu 8.04 is on sda7

Mepis is actually on sda9, right? It’s menu.lst points to Mint being on sda6, which agrees with the files from sda5 and sda6 - leaving the question then, what is on sda5?

Mepis 7.0 is on sda5. It was my main distro but is being repalced by Mepis 8.0 on sda9. I still keep it just in case I screw up Mepis 8.

The next question is, which distro do you want to control the boot? Right now, openSUSE’s grub is in the MBR, and so it would be much easier - and cleaner - to use it as the primary. OK?

That will be fine. As I keep learning openSuse I might like it better than Mepis

openSUSE built its menu.lst by reading all the others, which of course have some errors. So besides the 2 stanzas for booting openSUSE in regular and failsafe modes, the following is what you have and what I propose you do:

  • There is a stanza booting Mepis from sda5; remove it.

This is my fall back if Mepis 8 gets messed up. I would like to keep it.

  • Another stanza booting Mepis from sda9; fix the title and keep it.

Will do.

  • A stanza booting Ubuntu from sda7; remove it.

This is kubunt 8.04 in good working order. I probably won’t ever use it to do a lot of work but will remove it later.

  • A stanza booting Mint from sda6; keep it.
  • A stanza booting Windows on sda1; keep it.

Will do.

Next, you need to decide what type of stanza to use for booting Mint and Mepis from openSUSE (there are multiple methods). In the second method, you use one openSUSE menu.lst and boot Mepis and Mint directly from there, but need to update the openSUSE file when the kernel filename changes in Mepis or Mint. So . . . which method do you want to use?

It sounds simplier to use the second method.

The menu.lst for openSuse is stored in the /boot/grub folder, isn’t it?
Also, I wonder why there is a boot folder link inside the /boot folder in openSuse?

mingus725, I appreciate your wading through all this and taking the time to help me.

Thanks

#12

OK, I understand what you have. We need to have the openSUSE menu set up to boot the installations you have on sda5, sda6, sda7, and sda 9. And you have decided to use the “direct” booting method. All of that is fine.

Rather than giving you editing instructions, I will just modify all of the menu.lst files for you and put that up on nopaste.com. You need to make backup copies of each current menu.lst. Then you can just open each menu.lst in a text editor (as root) and copy/paste from the nopaste page, writing over the entire file. That should get everything cleaned up and working as desired. OK? If so, I’ll try to get that done later today.

Re the boot directory inside of openSUSE /boot. That is a recursive symlink. That is an old Unix technique designed for when a user puts /boot on its own separate partition - when doing so, users frequently fail to modify the grub stanza as is required; this symlink makes grub work even if the user made that error. Just leave it, untouched.

#13

Thanks, that sounds good. I will post back when all is done to let everyone know how it went.

Harold

#14

OK, the 5 revised menu.lst files are here sda8 - nopaste.com. It is a single file, starting with openSUSE’s; you’ll see the banner separator. Just copy paste each section into each distro’s menu.lst (less the banner I added), completely overwriting the current contents.

Upon another look, I realized that the method that the openSUSE installer had used to set up the stanzas, is what you need to use after all. The direct method I had suggested previously does work, but you will not get the other distros splash screens properly. So you need to call from openSUSE the entire menu.lst file from each of the others. The basic syntax for such a stanza is:

title
root (hdx,y)
configfile /boot/grub/menu.lst

With this method you will not need to make changes to the master menu.lst in openSUSE when there are changes in the other menu.lst files.

I cleaned up the other menu.lst’s and changed some of the control parameters. But I need to alert you to the Kubuntu sda7 file - it was actually an Ubuntu menu.lst; there were no Kubuntu stanzas - and there were quite a few Ubuntu stanzas, going back ~4 kernel generations. I did find a Kubuntu stanza in the Mint file, which indicates that when the Mint file was last generated, Kubuntu was in the sda7 file, not Ubuntu. And it is for a recent kernel, named vmlinuz-2.6.27-7-generic. At any rate, all I could do for the sda7 file was to presume that the Kubuntu stanza in Mint was correct, so I copied it. But I have no idea if that kernel file name is correct at this time. So, I suggest that in openSUSE you mount sda7, check the kernel and initrd filenames in its /boot directory, and if it does not match the above, then open the sda7 /boot/grub/menu.lst with a text editor (as root) and change the boot stanza to the correct kernel and initrd file names - and if there is more than one kernel, I suggest using the latest revision.

Good luck.

#15

Thanks, mingus725 for all you did working with my mess.

So, I suggest that in openSUSE you mount sda7, check the kernel and initrd filenames in its /boot directory, and if it does not match the above, then open the sda7 /boot/grub/menu.lst with a text editor (as root) and change the boot stanza to the correct kernel and initrd file names - and if there is more than one kernel, I suggest using the latest revision.

I haven’t been spending a lot of time in openSuse but I haven’t found a way to access the system with gui. Does what you say above have to be done from the command line?

I can do it but I was just wondering.

I have gotten the data from nopaste and will begin using it and post back.

#16

Sorry, I don’t understand. What do you mean “haven’t found a way to access the system with gui”.

#17

Say if I am in openSuse and want to edit the menu.lst file that is on sda9 (openSuse is on sda8). How do I do that not using the command line?

In Mepis I can click on my computer and then system and then choose the different partitions. When I choose a partition it is mounted. I can then open my file manager with root access and edit the menu.lst file as needed.

I am sure it is a lot quicker for those that use the command line a lot but I am coming from 20+ years of Windows and I am more comfortable with point-and-click.

Thanks,

#18

This is easy. But first, post back here the output of:

cat /etc/fstab
#19 
hal-os111@linux-uhkw:~> cat /etc/fstab
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part2 swap                 swap       defaults0 0
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part8 /                    ext3       acl,user_xattr1 1
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part10 /home                ext3       defaults 1 2
proc                 /proc                proc       defaults              0 0
sysfs                /sys                 sysfs      noauto                0 0
debugfs              /sys/kernel/debug    debugfs    noauto                0 0
devpts               /dev/pts             devpts     mode=0620,gid=5       0 0

I went to open Firefox and got this message:

Firefox is already running, but is not responding. To open a new window, you must first close the existing Firefox process, or restart your system.
I hadn’t started it running so wanting to quickly post back I just re-booted into another distro and posted back the results of cat /etc/fstab.

#20

Assuming you have KDE 3 in Mepis, all you probably have is the KDE desktop already configured to display unmounted partitions, as you can in Konqueror. The mount points have default user read/write permissions, so you click on the partition icon and the file manager opens and you can read/write. Friendly, but some distros do not believe that is good to do by default for security reasons, so it is left up to the user. But if you are using KDE 4, this has not yet been implemented yet as it is in KDE 3.

I don’t know what you are using, so let me give you this easy solution. It will work fine with any Desktop Environment. Open the file manager as root, navigate to /mnt, and create 4 new folders: mepis7, mepis8, kubuntu, mint. After you create them, right-click on each, click on Properties, then Permissions, then change the group to Users and give Group permission to read and write (“view and modify”). Or if you wish, do this in the terminal after switching to root:

cd /mnt
mkdir mepis7
mkdir mepis8
mkdir mint
mkdir kubuntu
chgrp users mepis7
chgrp users mepis8
chgrp users mint
chgrp users kubuntu
chmod g+rw mepis7
chmod g+rw mepis8
chmod g+rw mint
chmod g+rw kubuntu

Now copy/paste the following into your openSUSE /etc/fstab:

/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part2   swap            swap   defaults        0 0
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part8   /               ext3   acl,user_xattr  1 1
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part10  /home           ext3   acl,user_xattr  1 2
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part5   /mnt/mepis7     ext3   acl,user_xattr  0 0
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part6   /mnt/mint       ext3   acl,user_xattr  0 0
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part7   /mnt/kubuntu    ext3   acl,user_xattr  0 0
/dev/disk/by-id/ata-MAXTOR_STM3250310AS_5RY0FGRB-part9   /mnt/mepis8     ext3   acl,user_xattr  0 0
proc                 /proc                proc       defaults              0 0
sysfs                /sys                 sysfs      noauto                0 0
debugfs              /sys/kernel/debug    debugfs    noauto                0 0
devpts               /dev/pts             devpts     mode=0620,gid=5       0 0

Now every time you start the system the other partitions will be mounted under their respective folders created above, just like in Windows.