From owner-freebsd-bugs@FreeBSD.ORG Tue Sep 2 05:48:06 2003 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-bugs@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D211316A4BF for ; Tue, 2 Sep 2003 05:48:06 -0700 (PDT) Received: from clunix.cl.msu.edu (clunix.cl.msu.edu [35.9.2.10]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E6C6B43F75 for ; Tue, 2 Sep 2003 05:48:05 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from jerrymc@clunix.cl.msu.edu) Received: from clunix.cl.msu.edu (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by clunix.cl.msu.edu (8.12.9/8.12.9) with ESMTP id h82Cm4Og020887; Tue, 2 Sep 2003 08:48:05 -0400 (EDT) Received: (from jerrymc@localhost) by clunix.cl.msu.edu (8.12.9/8.12.9/Submit) id h82Cm4VF020886; Tue, 2 Sep 2003 08:48:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Jerry McAllister Message-Id: <200309021248.h82Cm4VF020886@clunix.cl.msu.edu> To: nullentropy@lineone.net (Robert Downes) Date: Tue, 2 Sep 2003 08:48:03 -0400 (EDT) In-Reply-To: <3F5407A4.9050004@lineone.net> from "Robert Downes" at Sep 02, 2003 03:59:48 AM X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.5 PL2] MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit cc: freebsd-bugs@freebsd.org Subject: Re: FreeBSD 5.0 hard disk geometry problem at install X-BeenThere: freebsd-bugs@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list List-Id: Bug reports List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Tue, 02 Sep 2003 12:48:06 -0000 > > I am attempting to install FreeBSD 5.0 (from a CD supplied with FreeBSD > Unleashed, second edition - good book) onto my P4 system. The first > drive is a 40Gb Fujitsu ATA-100 which Windows XP Pro is sitting on. The > second disk is a 14Gb Western Digital ATA-66 which I intend to devote to > FreeBSD if it ever wants to accept me as a host. > > However, Sysinstall says the probed reading of the geometry of ad0 is > obviously wrong and sets it to something else. When I set it to what my > BIOS says [19623/16/255], it tells me this is obviously wrong too. When > I tell it what pfdisk reports it as [4981/254/63], sysinstall is happy > with the values and carries on. The installation seems to go fine, but > when I try to boot my machine, Boot Manager offers me: Read the handbook about disk geometries. They are not what they seem on "modern" disks with "modern" controllers. ////jerry > > F1: ?? > F5: disk 1 > > If I hit F5 I am offered > > F1: disk 0 > F5: freebsd > > I hit F5 and then get a boot: prompt from FreeBSD telling me that > /boot/loader and /kernel are not available. > > Sometimes a bad install like this will kill XP's ability to load > properly. I got right up to the login screen before XP froze, the first > time. But booting the XP installation CD and running fixmbr (?) to reset > the MBR, then going all through the install seems to restore XP without > loss of personal files. Other times, selecting ?? at the Boot Manager > will allow Windows XP to run perfectly fine. (I'm doing so now.) > > So I don't know what to try next. I even swapped the IDE cables around > in my box because originally the HDDs were on the secondary channel, but > I still get the same problem, so that cannot have been the cause. > > Any suggestions? I've already ordered new hardware to dedicate to > FreeBSD, and I'm dreading getting the same problem there. > --- > Bob