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Date: Wed, 22 Nov 2000 22:31:11 -0800 (PST)
From: richw@webcom.com
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Subject: i386/23039: disklabel editor couldn't create partitions in slice 3
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>Number:         23039
>Category:       i386
>Synopsis:       disklabel editor couldn't create partitions in slice 3
>Confidential:   no
>Severity:       serious
>Priority:       medium
>Responsible:    freebsd-bugs
>State:          open
>Quarter:        
>Keywords:       
>Date-Required:
>Class:          sw-bug
>Submitter-Id:   current-users
>Arrival-Date:   Wed Nov 22 22:40:01 PST 2000
>Closed-Date:
>Last-Modified:
>Originator:     Rich Wales
>Release:        4.2-RELEASE
>Organization:
>Environment:
n/a
>Description:
My 10GB hard drive has four slices:  two 2GB slices for Win95, and two
FreeBSD slices (one 600MB, the other 5GB).  My intent was to install a
4.2-RELEASE root and /usr in the third slice, while keeping my existing
3.4-RELEASE system intact in the fourth slice.

The 4.2-RELEASE disk label editor refused to create any partitions in
the third slice during installation.  When I tried to create a root
partition, it said:

"This region cannot be used for your root partition as the FreeBSD boot
code cannot deal with a root partition created in that location.  Please
choose another location or smaller size for your root partition and try
again!"

The FreeBSD boot code is, in fact, perfectly capable of booting from a
root partition in the third slice; I have no problems with 3.4-RELEASE
in the fourth slice.  (I intentionally made the small slice third, and
not fourth, so that both FreeBSD slices would be close enough to the
start of the drive to be bootable.)

When I tried to create a non-root partition in the third slice, it said:
"Unable to create the partition.  Too big?"  I got this error no matter
how small a partition I specified, so I don't think it's legitimate.

To install 4.2-RELEASE, I ended up installing a second (spare) hard
drive in the system, configuring it as one big slice, and installing
4.2-RELEASE on this second drive.  After doing this (and rebooting my
new 4.2-RELEASE system), I ran /stand/sysinstall in single-user mode
and was able to create partitions in the third slice of the first drive
without difficulty.  I then copied (pax -r -w -X -p e) my new root and
/usr from the second drive into the new partitions on the first drive,
and I was able to boot 4.2-RELEASE off the first drive (third slice).

>How-To-Repeat:
See above.  I'm not sure whether the problem is simply that I was trying
to install into a slice other than the first one on the disk, or if some
other issue is involved here.
>Fix:


>Release-Note:
>Audit-Trail:
>Unformatted:


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