RE: fresh install on crashed disk

[Tim Hurman <kano-tlug@example.com>]

On Sat, 8 Sep 2001, legend wrote:

> Yep, I've tried booting with floppy disks as well.
> Kondara bootnet.img and Win2k boot disk gave exact
> the same results respectively..
In engineer speak..."hmm, interesting" :)
As the floppy and CD use different interfaces, you can assume that neither
the IDE or floppy interface is in error. This leaves just the main bit of
the PC. The general step I follow here are this:

1) reset the BIOS to its defaults, enabling a full memory check.
2) check the cables/memory are seated properly inside the PC.
3) start dismantling the PC step by step checking for hardware faults, and
booting after each config change to see if that helped.

> I had never had this problem before, and I'm really
> confused. If it's not drive error nor IDE error, what
> does cause this problem?
>
> I know for sure that the partition table on my hard disk
> is messed up pretty badly. But when booting up with
> floppy disk, the computer doesn't make use of hard
> disk, right?  (or am I wrong.. as usual)
Nope, thats right, unless you specify root=/dev/[hs]dxXYY
on the command line, in which case you will see
"mount / on /dev/[hs]dxXYY: error mounting <something about incorrect fs
etc>"

> My understanding is that the PC loads the kernel image
> onto the memory and it operates with what it has on
> there..
Almost true, When booting from HDD, there is a small amount of the kernel
installed by lilo in the MBR (or other). When activated, IIRC, linux pulls
the rest of the kernel from the disk using programmed IO, then starts to
execute it via long jump. When using a floppy, the same happens, except
over the FDC programmed IO.