Re: Bug#185770: grub: incompatible with Windows 2000 NTFS when installed on MBR

[Jason Thomas]

Hi, I have no solution at hand, but can tell you that I have grub
working with win2k and NTFS on multiple computers fine.

I have CC'd the upstream mailing list maybe someone can make a
suggestion.


On Fri, Mar 21, 2003 at 10:52:32AM -0600, Raj Manandhar wrote:
> Package: grub
> Version: 0.91-2
> Severity: important
> 
> I install grub using /sbin/grub-install /dev/hda (with or without the
> --force-lba option; it makes no difference). I save the beginning
> sectors of the disk after the grub install for reference using
> 
>       $ dd bs=63b count=1 < /dev/hda > /boot/boot.grub
> 
> I also make a floppy using grub-floppy. I can boot from the floppy
> with no problem at any time. I have trouble with the hard drive (MBR)
> installation as follows, though.
> 
> After the MBR install, I can access the GRUB menu fine and boot into
> Linux, and reboot into Linux as many times as I like. I can also
> choose Windows from the menu and boot Windows, once. When I then
> reboot from Windows, grub prints out "Loading stage1.5..." (or
> something similar) for a fraction of a second, then it blanks and goes
> back to the BIOS startup screen, and this continues in an infinite
> cycle. I use the floppy to boot into Linux and notice that the boot
> sectors have been changed by Windows:
> 
>       $ dd bs=63b count=1 < /dev/hda > /boot/boot.broken
>       $ cmp /boot/boot.grub /boot/boot.broken
>       /boot/boot.grub /boot/boot.broken differ: char 2561, line 15
> 
> (and cmp -l shows that everything is different beyond that point).
> 
> I have done the same comparison after rebooting into Linux without
> ever booting into Windows and I'm pretty sure that it shows no
> changes, i.e., the problem is not with Linux or the basic grub
> install. I have had grub installed on supposedly identical hardware
> (Dell Optiplex GX150) but with Windows running on VFAT and it worked
> perfectly. So I think it is a problem with Windows on NTFS. It looks
> to me like the stage1.5 loader would have to fit into 2560 bytes or
> less to work with Windows in this way.
> 
> Background information follows.
> 
> $ /sbin/fdisk -l /dev/hda 
> 
> Disk /dev/hda: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 2434 cylinders
> Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes
> 
>    Device Boot    Start       End    Blocks   Id  System
> /dev/hda1   *         1      1019   8185086    7  HPFS/NTFS
> /dev/hda2          1020      2434  11365987+   5  Extended
> /dev/hda5          1020      1748   5855661   83  Linux
> /dev/hda6          1749      2113   2931831   83  Linux
> /dev/hda7          2114      2332   1759086   83  Linux
> /dev/hda8          2333      2434    819283+  83  Linux
> 
> $ cat /proc/ide/hda/geometry 
> physical     38792/16/63
> logical      2434/255/63
> 
> My /boot/grub/menu.lst is
> 
> ## 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'.           
> default               0
> 
> ## timeout sec
> # Set a timeout, in SEC seconds, before automatically booting the default 
> entry
> # (normally the first entry defined).
> timeout               2
> 
> # 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         Linux
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel        /vmlinuz root=/dev/hda8 ro
> 
> title         Windows 2000
> root          (hd0,0)
> makeactive
> chainloader   +1
> 
> 
> ### BEGIN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST
> ## lines between the AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST markers will be modified
> ## by the debian update-grub script except for the default optons below
> 
> ## DO NOT UNCOMMENT THEM, Just edit them to your needs
> 
> ## ## Start Default Options ##
> ## default kernel options
> ## e.g. kopt=root=/dev/hda1 ro
> # kopt=root=/dev/hda8 ro
> 
> ## default grub root device
> ## e.g. groot=(hd0,0)
> # groot=(hd0,7)
> 
> ## should update-grub create alternative boot options
> ## e.g. alternative=true
> ##      alternative=false
> # alternative=true
> 
> ## should update-grub lock alternative boot options
> ## e.g. lockalternative=true
> ##      lockalternative=false
> # lockalternative=false
> 
> ## altoption boot targets option
> ## multiple altoptions lines are allowed
> ## e.g. altoptions=(extra menu suffix) extra boot options
> ##      altoptions=(recovery mode) 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
> 
> ## ## End Default Options ##
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.4.18
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.18 root=/dev/hda8 ro
> savedefault
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.4.18 (recovery mode)
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.4.18 root=/dev/hda8 ro single
> savedefault
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.2.20
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.2.20 root=/dev/hda8 ro
> savedefault
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.2.20 (recovery mode)
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.2.20 root=/dev/hda8 ro single
> savedefault
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.2.18
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.2.18 root=/dev/hda8 ro
> savedefault
> 
> title         Debian GNU/Linux, kernel 2.2.18 (recovery mode)
> root          (hd0,7)
> kernel                /boot/vmlinuz-2.2.18 root=/dev/hda8 ro single
> savedefault
> 
> ### END DEBIAN AUTOMAGIC KERNELS LIST
> 
> 
> -- System Information
> Debian Release: 3.0
> Architecture: i386
> Kernel: Linux droid 2.4.18 #4 Tue Oct 8 11:54:03 CDT 2002 i686
> Locale: LANG=C, LC_CTYPE=
> 
> Versions of packages grub depends on:
> ii  libc6                    2.2.5-14        GNU C Library: Shared libraries 
> an
> ii  libncurses5              5.2.20020112a-7 Shared libraries for terminal 
> hand
> 

-- 
Jason Thomas                           Phone:  +61 2 6257 7111
Unix System Administrator              Fax:    +61 2 6257 7311
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