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Re: Weird Linux problem



Hi,

On Sun, 8 Feb 1998, Ariel Biener wrote:

> 
>    Hi,
> 
> 
> 
> 
>     I installed a Linux today for someone in our physics dept. The
> configuration is pretty standard, Pentium-II 300Mhz, Intel Atlanta 440LX
> chipset, 512kb cache, 96MB memory, 2xQuantum Fireball ST 3.4GB, one CDROM
> slave on the secondary bus, windows installed on the first disk, Linux on
> the second.
> 
>     The problem starts here:  After I finished installing RedHat 4.2, LiLO
> didn't configure itself properly, even though it is configured ok. The
> problem is probably related to the following:
> 
> hda: QUANTUM FIREBALL ST3.2A, 3079MB w/81kB Cache, CHS=782/128/63
> hdc: QUANTUM FIREBALL ST3.2A, 3079MB w/81kB Cache, CHS=6256/16/63
> 
> 
> Linux is on /dev/hdc, while Windows is on /dev/hda. But, notice the
> geometry translation difference. At home it works fine, by the way.

it's just fine. look in the CMOS configuration. you'll see that the hda is
in a mode called LBA, while hdc is in a NORMAL mode. LBA (Logical Block
Addressing) is the means to overcome the >1024 cylinder problem of
Dos/Windows. It does some translation of cylinder & head to one eighth the
number of cylinders, but eight times the number of heads.

If these are SCSI disks, try adding "linear" to lilo.conf. what about
adding an "initrd" directive? for some reason, my computer needs it.

> Now, to the /etc/lilo.conf file:
> 
> boot=/dev/hda
> map=/boot/map
> install=/boot/boot.b
> prompt
> append="mem=96M"
> image=/boot/vmlinuz
>         label=linux
>         root=/dev/hdc1
>         read-only
> other=/dev/hda1
>         label=dos
>         table=/dev/hda
> 
> 
> This is pretty standard.
> 
> 
> But, no matter what, the machine boots up with a:
> 
> LI
> 
> :)
> 
> Any ideas ?
> 
> 
> --Ariel
> 
> 
>    +---------------------------------------------------------------+
>    | Ariel Biener                                                  |
>    | e-mail: ariel@post.tau.ac.il        Work ph: 03-6406086       |
>    | fingerprint = 07 D1 E5 3E EF 6D E5 82 0B E9 21 D4 3C 7D 8B BC |
>    +---------------------------------------------------------------+
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 

Shachar Tal
------------
Technion, Faculty of Architecture system administrator
email: shachar@vipe.technion.ac.il, system@aluf.technion.ac.il 
KeyID 0481FEF1 fingerprint = 52 1B 97 6A F2 77 AE C6  64 B6 5A 5E 14 28 8E 7E