How to get out of sh:grub>

[Goh Lip]

On 02/18/2010 10:16 AM, Rob wrote:
> On 2/8/2010 4:06 AM, Alin-Andrei wrote:
>> >>I had been searching for help all over the place. Hopefully this is
>> the right one.
>> >>I'm beginner with ubuntu, I have used ubuntu wubi 9.10 for this past
>> few weeks without any problems, until >>yesterday. I was installing a
>> package update and was told to restart. After restart it gave me the
>> message >>below ;
>>
>> I had the exact same problem this morning, except I don't use Wubi.
>> This saved my day:
>> http://www.webupd8.org/2009/12/how-to-recover-grub2-linux.html
>>
>> P.s.: is there something wrong with kernel *.19 ?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 01:25, kclim <familylim1 at yahoo.com
>> <mailto:familylim1 at yahoo.com>> wrote:
>>
>>     Hi There,
>>     I had been searching for help all over the place. Hopefully this
>>     is the right one.
>>     I'm beginner with ubuntu, I have used ubuntu wubi 9.10 for this
>>     past few weeks without any problems, until yesterday. I was
>>     installing a package update and was told to restart. After restart
>>     it gave me the message below ;
>>     GNU GRUB version 1.97 beta 4
>>     [Minimal Bash-like line editing is supported. For the first word,
>>     TAB lists possible command completions. Anywhere else TAB lists
>>     possible device/file completions.]
>>     sh:grub>
>>     Here I don't know what command to give, I want to get back to
>>     evolution, please help. Thankyou.
>>     Best wishes
>>     japilim


> Greetings all,
>
> A recent Ubuntu update has given me the same problem. I have (had)
> Ubuntu installed in a dual boot arrangement with XP. XP is installed on
> my internal hard drive and Ubuntu 9.10 is (still) installed on an
> external drive. I had installed Grub on my internal drive so that on
> boot it offered me a choice of whether to boot into XP or Ubuntu. After
> this recent update when I boot I end up with a prompt of: "sh:grub>". I
> have visited the above site and followed the advice there about how to
> recover Grub but it is not working for me. While it appears to accept
> the commands from a Live CD of Ubuntu and installs Grub, if I install it
> to the external drive, the next boot will not even see it and the
> machine boots into XP. If I install Grub onto the internal drive, the
> only thing I get on boot is a prompt of: "sh:grub>". I have to run the
> Super Grub CD that we burned here several years ago to be able to boot
> into XP (while restoring XP's boot to the MBR) but I cannot find a way
> to get Ubuntu to boot. Short of re-installing Ubuntu onto my external
> drive, is there an alternate method of recovering Grub because following
> the instructions at the web site above is not working for me.
>
> Many thanks for any assistance.
>
> Rob
>


Referring to an earlier post...

> On 01/30/2010 11:45 PM, Knapp wrote:
>> > Hello,  I have a computer with a dead HD. I can boot it with the live
>> > Xubuntu CD (other don't work, to big). I can make the USB 8mb drive
>> > into a copy of the CD and boot it just fine but when I try to install
>> > to the USB Drive, the computer will not boot. How do I make the
>> > computer boot from the USB drive as if it were a HD with a normal
>> > install on it?
> Douglas, when booting from usb, does the grub2 menu screen appear? If it
> appears, go to command prompt ('c') and
> type "ls"; note if it is (hd0,1) or (hd1,1).
> If both appear, your hd is 'not dead' technically, then type
> "search -f /boot/grub/grub.cfg" and note output again.
>
> then type
> grub>linux (hd0,x)/vmlinuz root=sdax
> grub>initrd (hd0,x)/initrd.img
> grub>boot
>
> note: if (hd1,x), then change sdax to sdbx
>
> When booted up go to terminal and type
> sudo grub-mkconfig
>
> recheck output that the correct (hd0,x) is used as similar to your
> search and check uuid number of usb stick to be sure with fdisk.
>
> If okay, then type
> sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
>
>> > I hope this is clear. Maybe I need to make my own
>> > bootalble ISO with the files I need? For example an ISO with all the
>> > updates? Don't know how to do that ether. In any case I have a
>> > complete system installed to the USB; if only I could get it to boot.
>> > Thanks all.
> Hopefully, that won't be necessary.

Note that if you take the usb stick to another computer, the (hdy,x) and 
sdyx may change again. Recheck again. It may also change if you plugin a 
new usb device at same computer. Recheck too.

regards - goh lip