Constant Error 21 problems

[DaSwine]

Sorry for posting twice but could the Mods please delete my last post http://www.linuxmint.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=10008 I want to try to rephrase my question to clear up any confusion.

I am trying to install Mint to a hard drive separate from my XP drive. Every time I boot I get an Error 21. I am currently using the Daryna live CD.

I have been editing fstab and menu.lst attempting to resolve my problems, however nothing is working.

I'm on the verge of wiping the Mint drive and attempting to reinstall a second time and I wanted to post my info and see if anyone has any tips to either fix the issue, or for me to use on the reinstall to avoid the issue again.

So, currently my fstab shows

Code: Select all

# <file system> <mount point>   <type>  <options>       <dump>  <pass>
proc            /proc           proc    defaults        0       0
# /dev/sdc1
#UUID=af8425fb-b6ee-44bf-8321-93bcf5d193dc
/dev/sdc1 /               ext3    defaults,errors=remount-ro 0       1
# /dev/sdc5
#UUID=5413c7d7-592f-46aa-a6a4-90f70b73c6ab
/dev/sdc5 none            swap    sw              0       0
# /dev/sda1
#UUID=AEAC1346AC13088B
/dev/sda1        /media/disk-1     ntfs defaults,umask=007,gid=46 0 1
# /dev/sdb1
#UUID=3E084449084401FF
/dev/sdb1       /media/Music       ntfs defaults,umask=007,gid=46 0 1
/dev/scd0       /media/cdrom0   udf,iso9660 user,noauto,exec 0       0

My /boot/grub/menu.lst shows:

Code: Select all

## ## End Default Options ##

title      Linux Mint, kernel 2.6.22-14-generic
root      (hd0,0)
kernel      /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-generic root=/dev/sdc1 ro quiet splash
initrd      /boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-generic
boot

title      Linux Mint, kernel 2.6.22-14-generic (recovery mode)
root      (hd0,0)
kernel      /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-generic root=/dev/sdc1 ro single
initrd      /boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-generic
boot

title      Linux Mint, kernel memtest86+
root      (hd0,0)
kernel      /boot/memtest86+.bin
boot

### END DEBIAN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST

Screen shots of my drives in GParted are attached.
[img]

sda.png

[/img]
[img]

sdb.png

[/img]
[img]

sdc.png

[/img]

Thanks

[DaSwine]

Oops, something I should have mentioned before.

sda1 = SATA
sdb1 = IDE (PATA)
sdc1 = IDE (PATA)

[muskratmx]

title Linux Mint, kernel 2.6.22-14-generic
root (hd0,0)

Grub is looking to load the kernel from the primary master drive, which from your pics of gparted thats not the case.

When your working with Linux, Windows, And Grub. You are acutualy using three different OSs each with their own way of addressing drives. If you've ever used two languges and translated them, then you know it can get very confusing. I've found it best for my to translate each languge into a standard and work from there.

We don't want any one of those three, to be the standard, because many things can change them.
So I always use the hardware as a standard.

For example;
In most older PCs we had two ribbons, each supporting two drives. (Newer Sata can be different. and the bios can swap them from primary to secondary adding to the confusion.) Anyway, each of those ribbons support two drives. Most PCs have the CD mounted on the secondary drive as master.

OK;

RIbbon one == Primary
Ribbon two == Secondary

Frist drive on primary or secondary == Master
second drive on primary or secondary == slave

Primary Master == Windows C:, Linux hda,or sda, Grub (hd0)
Primary Slave == Windows D:, Linux hdb, or sdb, Grub (hd1)
The cd effects the second ribbon but not the numbering of hard drives, it can be master or slave and the hard drives still follow the numbers regardless.
Secondary Master/Slave == Windows E:, Linux hdc, or sdc, Grub (hd3)

You didn't state wither you had IDE drives or Sata Drives! I don't have any sata experience.

21 : Selected disk does not exist
This error is returned if the device part of a device- or full file name refers to a disk or BIOS device that is not present or not recognized by the BIOS in the system.

If your using Sata drives you might have to place /boot/grub on the primary drive because after the bois passes off to grub, grub might not have the driver to access that third drive.

But also according to your gparted images your windows install is on your primary masters first partition. Yet You got grub loading linux from the primary master, first partition. (hd0,0)

You also didn't state which MBR is holding what information, You have three MBRs there. If your booting the third drive, then your grub is correct, and I would say You have driver issues, meaning Grub can't access it after the bios finishes giving it to grub. The bios boots grub, but when it's finished grub has to boot linux and sometimes with exotic hardware, you'll run into that, the remedy is to place grub and /boot/grub part of linux on the primary master, along with the kernel.

[DaSwine]

Thanks for the quick reply muskratmx.

My drive setup is a bit confusing.

I have 1 x SATA, 2 x IDE and my CD drive is external connected via USB.

So, my windows drive is the SATA one: windows C: / Linux sda
The IDE primary master is a NTFS Storage drive: windows D: / Linux sdb
The IDE primary Secondary is where I installed Mint: windows E: / Linux sdc

At least that is the common setup, and what I think I managed to edit fstab to see. The sdb and sdc were switching around each boot but they haven't in the last few times.

I think I'm confused on where I should be pointing grub. Should I have it pointing to the Mint drive, so I would use the command:
grub> root (hd2,0)
grub> setup (hd2,0)

Because I think that is what I did last. I'm getting confused now because I've tried so many different things.

I'm 1/2 tempted to just wipe the SATA drive and partition it and put both Mint and XP on it. I just don't like the idea of being defeated by my computer.

Not sure if its interconnected, or points to a different issue, but if I switch my bios boot sequence to boot from the Mint drive I still get the Error 21. In fact, it doesn't matter what order I put the boot sequence in, I always get the error.

[muskratmx]

Sorry I'm slow getting back to you. Sometimes I can't get online everyday.

I don't have any Sata box yet, but my dad has one, and we've experienced problems down the same line. The problem is grub's kernel is loaded in the mbr on whichever drive it boots from. And if the /boot/grub files on on another drive, then you are having driver issues.

Sata is still rather new, and I don't think grub has caught up to it yet.

The answer would be, which ever drive has grub installed to the mbr should have the linux install on it. Now you might find that it will not then boot windows. But no problem, just let windows have thier own mbr back and swap OSs with the Bios.

That's what I do on this laptop. It has USB boot capabilities, and secondary drive boot also. So my MBR enternally boots and controls those installs on that drive, My mbr on the external drive, boot and controls those installs and when I remove the optical drive and insert the secondary HD it's mbr boots and controls those installs. And I just hit F12 to pick which mbr to boot if I have them all hooked up.

So, my windows drive is the SATA one: windows C: / Linux sda
The IDE primary master is a NTFS Storage drive: windows D: / Linux sdb
The IDE primary Secondary is where I installed Mint: windows E: / Linux sdc

If I were in your shoes, I'd swap the E and D drives. Then install grub to the mbr of the master IDE, you shouldn't have driver issues then, grub still might not want to boot the sata drive. But let windows boot it's self. Windows will still see the NTFS as D: because they don't recognize linux format drives.

That would create an interesting sence, you'd have a hidden OS. depending on how you bios is set, nobody would know you had two systems on that box.