Installed gentoo but only a blinking underscore appears.

[Annunaki]

Hello everyone,

I read the manual and obey the instruction to make an 'easy' gentoo installation.

Problem is after I press reboot and get rid of my usb, it only shows a blinking underscore like when your pc hasn't got any data on any partitions.

Even if I had problems when I did 'grub2-install /dev/sda' and it showed:

installing for i386-pc platform ...
installing for i386-pc platform.
grub2-install: warning: disk does not exist, so falling back to

partition device /dev/sda2
grub2-install: warning: disk does not exist, so falling back to

partition device /dev/sda2
grub2-install: warning: disk does not exist, so falling back to

partition device /dev/sda2
grub2-install: error: disk `hostdisk/dev/sda2' not found.

this command afterward worked ... : 'grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg' which seems that I sorted installing the boatloader right?

afterwards when I type :umount -l /mnt/gentoo/dev{/shm,/pts,}
it says: 'umount: /mnt/gentoo/devshm': not found
but'umount /mnt/gentoo{/boot,/sys,/proc,}' works.... and these 2 lines shouldn't affect the installation as it's just about deleting uncessesary space if I am correct.

Also when I type : 'emerge vixie-cron' it doesn't work even if the daemon is not compulsory for the installation

To make things clearer I typed all the commands I did from the beginning:

type: f8 when the screen appear

select usb

type: f2

type: gentoo acpi=on

type fdsisk /dev/sda

type: p

if there are partitions type: d

type: a number of partition

type : d (until there's no partitions left)

to save a partition that has been deleted type: q

type: w

type: fdisk /dev/sda


type (to create a new partition): n

type: p

type: 1

type: 2048

type: +2M

type: n

type: p

type: 2

type: enter

type: +128M

type: a

type: 2

type: n

type: p

type: 3

type: touche Enter

type: +512M

type: t

type: 3

type: 88

type: n

type :p

type: enter

type (last sectors) : enter

type: w

type :mkfs.ext2 /dev/sda2

type :mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda4

type: mkswap /dev/sda3

type : swapon /dev/sda3

type: mount /dev/sda4 /mnt/gentoo

type: mkdir /mnt/gentoo/boot

type: mount /dev/sda2 /mnt/gentoo/boot

type : cd /mnt/gentoo

type : links www.gentoo.org

go to mirrors, linuxant.fr (ftp) france, releases,x86, autobuilds,
current-stage3 ...

after download

type: tar xvjpf stage3-amd64-20140925.tar.bz2

type: rm stage3-amd64-20140925.tar.bz2

type : y

type: mirrorselect -i -o >> /mnt/gentoo/etc/portage/make.conf

select France : Linuxant.fr

type: mirrorselect -i -r -o >> /mnt/gentoo/etc/portage/make.conf

select France : Linuxant.fr

type :cp -L /etc/resolv.conf /mnt/gentoo/etc/


type : mount -t proc none /mnt/gentoo/proc

type: mount --rbind /sys /mnt/gentoo/sys

type : mount --rbind /dev /mnt/gentoo/dev

type: chroot /mnt/gentoo /bin/bash

type: source /etc/profile

type: export PS1="(chroot) $PS1"

type: emerge-webrsync

type: emerge --sync

type: eselect profile list

type: eselect profile set 2

type: env-update && source /etc/profile

type: emerge gentoo-sources

type: cd /usr/src/linux

type: make menuconfig


go to file systems
press Y (for Second extended fs support)
go to Ext3 journalling file system support
press Y
go to reiserfs support
press y
go to JFS filesystem support
press y
go to XFS filesystem support
press y
press twice escape
go to Device Drivers
go to Networking device support
press y
go to PPP (point-to-point protocol) support
press y
go to PPP support for async serial ports
press y
go to PPP support for sync tty ports
press y
press save
press ok
press exit
press exit until you are in the command line
type : make && make modules_install

type nano -w /etc/fstab

write:
/dev/sda2 /boot ext2 defaults,noatime 0 2
/dev/sda3 none swap sw 0 0
/dev/sda4 / ext4 noatime 0 1

/dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom auto noauto,user 0 0

Type: ctr + x
type: Y
type: enter
type: nano -w /etc/conf.d/hostname
in hostname change localhost by tux
press: ctr + x
type: y
type: ok
type: emerge --noreplace netifrc
type : emerge dhcpcd
type : config_eth0=( "dhcp" )
type : cd /etc/init.d
type: ln -s net.lo net.eth0
type : rc-update add net.eth0 default
type: nano -w /etc/hosts
replace localhost with tux.homenetwork tux localhost
delete the line afterwards
press : ctr + x
press: Y
press: ok
type : passwd
type : azerty (on my back keyboard)
type : azerty (on my back keyboard)
TYPE: emerge syslog-ng
TYPE: rc-update add syslog-ng default


type :emerge sys-boot/grub
type : grub2-install /dev/sda
type: grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
type: exit
type: cd
type: umount -l /mnt/gentoo/dev{/shm,/pts,}
type: umount /mnt/gentoo{/boot,/sys,/proc,}
type: reboot

Your help would be very appreciated, I feel so close yet so far

ps :For those who saw my previous post I sorted it out.

[Jickler]

I am by no means an expert, and I imagine that somebody who knows what they're doing will have time to respond to this in time, but I feel like whenever I encounter grub2 install failures it's because I failed to mount dev, sys and proc. Make sure you're following the "Mounting the necessary filesystems" part here http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/handbook-amd64.xml?full=1#book_part1_chap6 before you enter your chroot. If you're chrooting from a different type of liveCD you may need to substitute the command to mount proc with the one found here: http://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Installation_alternatives. The grub2-mkconfig should always work (presuming you have a /boot/grub directory); this doesn't install the bootloader to the drive but instead installs the configuration file to the path you specify that contains the partition information/kernel options/etc that Grub2 needs when it's starting your computer. As for vixie-cron, you will need to let people know what problem you're encountering (Are you sure you're connected to the Internet in your chroot? Remember you need to mount proc, sys and dev and copy /etc/resolv.conf every single time you chroot).

[Annunaki]

I did extra search and inform you I don't have efi and maybe should use grub legacy instead of grub2 as if I'm not incorrect grub2 has problems with bios..? since I don't recall in the installation doing mkfs.ext2 /dev/sda maybe I should do it so grub can be understood?

[Jickler]

GRUB2 should boot BIOS, but Gentoo is your own thing, so use what you want. I like GRUB2 and GPT tables (instead of MBR), so my strategy is to make a 2MB ef02 type partition as sda1, then grub2-install /dev/sda, then run mkconfig. It's a little more than you need if you don't need a GPT disk, but it works for me!
Your boot partition should definitely have a file system. What does your partition table use?

[Jickler]

So this is what I suggest for this, in flow chart form. If this doesn't fix your problem, then I probably don't know what's wrong, and hopefully somebody else will save you
1. Did you run the following before chrooting?

[Annunaki]

Hi thanks for your many attemps, I appreciate it.

I read the manual many times so for http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/handbook-amd64.xml?full=1#book_part1_chap6 I did this:

type : mount -t proc none /mnt/gentoo/proc

type: mount --rbind /sys /mnt/gentoo/sys

type : mount --rbind /dev /mnt/gentoo/dev

then right after that I do:

type: chroot /mnt/gentoo /bin/bash

I think i'm using mbr as i'm using fdisk /dev/sda, bad luck seems the problem I have is actually more complex...

I tried mounting the 3 things with the correction of using 82 for hex instead of 88 and after doing the command 'emerge sys-boot/grub' and this is what happened :

for : mount -t proc none /mnt.gentoo/proc it says it is already mounted but for the two other mount nothing is ever mentioned...:

type: mount --rbind /sys /mnt/gentoo/sys

type : mount --rbind /dev /mnt/gentoo/dev

the partitions are still there but grub2-install /dev/sda still doesn't work

I only use a usb from the install, just the one.

As for vixie-cron, I am connected to the net as this command in chroot works: emerge-webrsync

These lines correspond to creating the partitions:

type (to create a new partition): n

type: p

type: 1

type: 2048

type: +2M

type: n

type: p

type: 2

type: enter

type: +128M

type: a

type: 2

type: n

type: p

type: 3

type: touche Enter

type: +512M

type: t

type: 3

type: 88

type: n

type :p

type: enter

type (last sectors) : enter

type: w

so it shows :

/dev/sda1 2048 6143 2048 83 Linux
/dev/sda2 * 268287 131072 83 Linux
/dev/sda3 1316863 524288 82 Linux swap /Solaris
/dev/sda4 488397167 243540152 83 Linux

(I must underline I made the mistake of choosing the hex 88 instead of 82 and I tested both grub2 and grub-legacy with the correct hex)


--------------------
I decided to try my luck with grub legacy so after the command : rc-update add syslog-ng default
I typed:

emerge sys-boot/grub:0

nano -w /boot/grub/grub.conf

in grub.conf I put this:
# Entrée par défaut, 0 est la première, 1 la deuxième, etc.
default 0
# Délai en secondes avant de lancer l'entrée par défaut
timeout 30
# Jolie image « splash »
# Mettez la ligne suivante en commentaire
# si votre machine n'a pas de carte graphique.
splashimage=(hd0,1)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz

title Gentoo Linux 3.12.20
# Partition qui contient l'image du noyau ( ou le système

d'exploitation)
root (hd0,1)
kernel /boot/kernel-3.12.20 root=/dev/sda4

title Gentoo Linux 3.12.20 (rescue)
# Partition qui contient l'image du noyau
root (hd0,1)
kernel /boot/kernel-3.12.20 root=/dev/sda4 init=/bin/bb

grep -v rootfs /proc/mounts > /etc/mtab
grub-install --no-floppy /dev/sda

Prob, when I type grub-install --no-floppy /dev/sda it says :
/dev.sda does not have any corresponding BIOS drive.

So I then tried my luck with LILO, here are the commands after the command : rc-update add syslog-ng default

emerge lilo
nano -w /etc/lilo.conf
in lilo.conf:
boot=/dev/sda
prompt
timeout=50
default=gentoo

image=/boot/vmlinuz-3.12.20-gentoo
label=gentoo
read-only
root=/dev/sda4

image=/boot/vmlinuz-3.12.20-gentoo
label=gentoo.rescue
read-only
root=/dev/sda4
append="init=/bin/bb"

other=/dev/sda6
label=windows

/sbin/lilo

when I type /sbin/lilo I get:

Warning: LBA32 adressing assumed
Fatal: open /dev/sda : Operation not permitted

So after seeing your post I tried to make sda2 into ext2 by doing these commands.

type: exit
type: fdisk /dev/sdq
type: p

and strangely there's no partitions there!

[Jickler]

I'm not sure if it's a typo, but you wrote "fdisk /dev/sdq." Sdq would be your 17th hard drive, so obviously there won't be any partitions there. Before working on your emerge issues , let's focus on the grub install and make sure you haven't accidentally messed up your partitions. First, show us your partition table. Boot a livecd and run "fdisk /dev/sda" . Press "p" and enter to print your partition table and paste it here, so we can make sure it's still okay.

Also, you don't have to mount dev/sys/proc from within the chroot. Sorry if I was confusing -- you absolutely must do this before you chroot, but you don't have to do it twice.

[Jickler]

Okay, I see where you posted your partitions. They look okay. You don't need the ef02 partition since your using MBR, but you don't have to remove it if it doesn't bother you. It will still work. It seems like you mounted sys/proc/dev correctly, so I'm not sure. I'll google around and hopefully come up with some ideas in case nobody else has input.
Also, keep in mind that Gentoo has a French forum if you prefer.