installation prbl, can't install grub, 64bit thinkpad X121e

[Waleed Hamra]

On 08/31/2011 07:51 PM, Uwe Brauer wrote:
> Hello 
> 
> This is a very bizarre problem.
> 
>     -  I installed on a brand new X121e (without an OS)
>        Kubuntu 10.04.
> 
>     -  I inserted an additional 4 giga RAM.
> 
>     -  I installed windows 7, which made a strange partition
>        of the hard disk:
>        /dev/sda1 fat32 small
>        /dev/sda2 fat32 small
>        /dev/sda3 ntfs big windows 7 installation and of
>        course deleted me previous linux installation. Most
>        likely Bios was then in efi mode.
> 
>     - I tried to install Kubuntu 11.04 (either 64 or 32 bit)
>       in all cases everything went smooth. Grub however was
>       to be installed per default not in the MBR but in
>       /dev/sda
>       and exactly at the end of the installation I obtained
>       the error message
>       grub cannot be installed in /dev/sda this is a serious
>       error.
> 
>     -  so I repeated the installation selecting /dev/sda4
>        where linux is going to live as a target but I
>        obtained at the end of the installation process the
>        same error message.
> 
> I never encountered anything like this.
> Does anybody have an advice?
> 
> thanks
> 
> Uwe Brauer 
> 
installing grub to /dev/sda IS installing to the MBR, for afterall, sda
refers to the whole hard disk, and not any particular partition.
when installing grub, you have 2 options, either install to the MBR of
the disk, and the code gets executed first thing after BIOS hands
control. or install it on the bootsector of a certain partition, but the
code will only get executed if the MBR handed control to it. i've read
that the new Windows boot loader now respects this, and can have the
option to add certain partitions to the boot menu, but i don't know, i
personally would prefer grub handle everything including booting Windows.
your best option is to install kubuntu on a partition, like you did, and
install grub on the MBR. if for any reason, the grub setup stage failed,
open a konsole window in the live CD and type:

sudo grub-setup /dev/sda

hope this helps


-- 
Waleed K. Hamra
Manager of Hamra Information Systems

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