bugGNU GRUB - Bugs: bug #39216, Fails to go into GRUB menu with...

 
 

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bug #39216: Fails to go into GRUB menu with 2TB USB NTFS formated hard drive attached.

Submitter:  BryanFRitt <bryanfritt>
Submitted:  Sun 09 Jun 2013 10:13:38 PM UTC
   
 
Category:  None Severity:  Major
Priority:  5 - Normal Item Group:  Software Error
Status:  Invalid Privacy:  Public
Assigned to:  None Originator Name: 
Open/Closed:  Closed Release:  other
Release:  Reproducibility:  Every Time
Planned Release:  None

Jump to the original submission

Mon 15 Jul 2013 07:41:59 AM UTC, comment #6: 

"I don't think that the drive size was the actual issue. It sounds more like BIOS was configured to boot from this drive and it did so yet since there was no useful code there it hanged."

Maybe it was something neither of these? not that I know what. keep reading...

"Fortunately, even it was probably bad idea, it pointed also to BIOS boot settings, where Bryan finally found the solution himself - so, it could be rare example, how also bad diagnose can lead sometimes indirectly to correct solution of the problem... :-)"

nicely said :-)

I think of changing the BIOS settings not to attempt to boot from USB as more of a workaround that's good enough for me, than a "correct solution".

I set USB to being first and tried booting with another external HD hooked up via USB (it is a 1TB GF1000Q), the BIOS then correctly booted into the internal HD's GRUB... Shutdown and replaced with the 2TB drive from before, and it didn't boot. (Got stuck at the same screen as before, a blinking '_' without the quotes, just before GRUB starts)

Maybe it's a compatibility issue between the BIOS and the drive, or how it's formated?

Now, I've now put last USB as last in Boot Sequence, and it still boots with this drive attached. AKA if it finds nothing else that's bootable it'll then try the USB. Of course it finds the internal hard drive first, and won't even bother trying to boot from USB. (in the rare case where the internal harddrive, etc... is missing, or broken, the USB boot option can be used. Even if it hangs then, it wouldn't matter, the computer wouldn't have booted either way)

turn on -> F2 -> System -> Boot Sequence -> USB Storage Device -> ...

BryanFRitt <bryanfritt>
Sun 14 Jul 2013 10:08:31 PM UTC, comment #5: 

Yes, why not, it could be also the case.
And, when I see again now, which settings Bryan made in his BIOS, I think it is much more probable then my idea - because Bryan changed only BIOS boot settings/sequence, not BIOS USB legacy settings.

But I have on my PC this BIOS issue (as I wrote below):
Each time I try to boot with connected external USB 1TB disk drive, the BIOS hangs - even I have set booting priority/selection to boot only from local disk drive!
I.e., my BIOS hangs not in the booting phase, but it hangs more early, when it only checks/enumerates connected USB devices - it is clear also from BIOS console output.
(My USB 1TB disk is properly formatted and bootable - on newer machine(s) it can be used as bootable device without any problem. But, on my current older PC, this disk is no usable as bootable medium and can be connected only after Linux or Windows boot.)

So, my first idea was that Bryan's DELL has the similar/same BIOS problem.
Fortunately, even it was probably bad idea, it pointed also to BIOS boot settings, where Bryan finally found the solution himself - so, it could be rare example, how also bad diagnose can lead sometimes indirectly to correct solution of the problem... :-)

BR,
Ales

Ales Nesrsta <starous>
Group Member
Sun 14 Jul 2013 09:16:29 PM UTC, comment #4: 

I don't think that the drive size was the actual issue. It sounds more like BIOS was configured to boot from this drive and it did so yet since there was no useful code there it hanged.

Vladimir Serbinenko <phcoder>
Group administrator
Sat 15 Jun 2013 05:56:36 PM UTC, comment #3: 


> "If I ever wanted to use an external bootable USB drive, how can I find out how big of a drive could I use for this and other computers?"


It is hard to say - it is PC/BIOS dependent. I am afraid there is no universal method how to find such limit - at least I don't know it :-(
As a first try look into documentation of Your PC/motherboard :-)

If You try to google e.g. "bios disk limit" You will get some links related to BIOS/disk limits or their history:

http://knowledge.seagate.com/articles/en_US/FAQ/213511en
http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Large-Disk-HOWTO-4.html
http://web.inter.nl.net/hcc/J.Steunebrink/bioslim.htm

BR,
Ales

Ales Nesrsta <starous>
Group Member
Sat 15 Jun 2013 12:37:49 AM UTC, comment #2: 

Thanks! That fixed it!

F2 -> System -> Boot Sequence -> USB Storage Device
I unselected this option with 'the SPACE key'
and now it'll boot into GRUB even with this drive attached.
I don't currently use any USB devices as a boot device so I'm fine with this option unselected.

[sorry if this question isn't enough GRUB related]
If I ever wanted to use an external bootable USB drive, how can I find out how big of a drive could I use for this and other computers?

BryanFRitt <bryanfritt>
Fri 14 Jun 2013 09:30:28 PM UTC, comment #1: 

Hi,
it looks like BIOS problem. Older BIOSes cannot handle such big devices (and GRUB depends on BIOS services). For example BIOS freezes on my machine before loading any bootloader if I connect 1TB USB hard drive.
If You don't use this USB hard drive as booting device, You maybe can avoid this problem - try disable masstorage related USB part in BIOS, i.e. booting from USB devices or Legacy USB Support etc.
BR,
Ales

Ales Nesrsta <starous>
Group Member
Sun 09 Jun 2013 10:13:38 PM UTC, original submission:  

GRUB 1.99-27+deb7u1
When I have my external 2TB NTFS formated USB 3.0 hard drive model STAC2000106 attached to my Dell Latitude D830(it only has USB 2.0 ports) GRUB wont display it's menu. It happens every time a GRUB menu should appear after starting with the drive plugged in. I can have the drive pluged in during POST, unplug when it asks for my finger print and plug the drive back in once the GRUB menu shows, and things work fine, but if the drive is left in the USB port when GRUB menu is supposed to show up, the GRUB menu won't show.
GRUB works the same irregardless of rather or not my USB G700 mouse is hooked up.


Misc System Info:
I currently have Debian 7 64-bit, but this also happened with KUbuntu 12.04 64-bit.
Windows Vista 32-bit.
VirtualBox installed.
Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T7500
(4M Cache, 2.20 GHz, 800 MHz FSB)
4GiB 666MHz Ram
NVIDIA NVS 140M 256GiB Video
1920x1200 display (WUXGA)
Gigabit Ethernet port
Modem Port (never really used)
DVD burner
...

BryanFRitt <bryanfritt>

 

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