Re: How to move the master boot record?

[Rodolfo Medina <rodolfo.medina@gmail.com>]

Rodolfo Medina <rodolfo.medina@gmail.com> wrote:

>>> On my PC, besides the swap partition, I have one partition, hda1, for MS
>>> Windows and another five for Linux: hda6, had7, hda8, hda9, hda10.
>>>
>>> At the moment the `boot partition' is hda6 and I want it to be, say, hda9.
>>> Sorry if I can'y use the right words.  Maybe I should say that the hda6
>>> Grub boot loader is now installed to the master boot record of my hard
>>> drive whereas the hda9 boot loader is installed to the /dev/hda9 partition?


Joe Hart <j.hart@orange.nl> writes:

>> There are more than one way to do this, but this will (should) work:
>>
>> #grub
>> grub>root (hd0,8)
>> grub>setup (hd0)
>> grub>quit
>>
>> hd0,8 = /dev/hda9, so you should be alright with those command.  Note that
>> the # and the grub> are the prompts.



Rodolfo:

> I tested it and it seems to work fine.  Only, I can't now restore the previous
> situation: I do:
>
>  # grub
>  grub > root (hd0,5)
>  grub > setup (hd0)
>  grub > quit
>
> , then reboot but the system can't get into hda6.  It's strange, I find no
> reason why it works with hda9 and not with hda6.  Please, any ideas?



I've done more tests and these are my conclusions:

1) if I run the above grub commands from the `target' partition everything goes
   well: e.g., if I want to install hda6 grub boot loader to the mbr, I have to
   do:

   # grub
   grub > root (hd0,5)
   grub > setup (hd0)
   grub > quit

   from hda6; instead, if I want to install hda9 grub boot loader to the mbr, I
   have to do:

   # grub
   grub > root (hd0,8)
   grub > setup (hd0)
   grub > quit

   from hda9.  This way things seems to go fine.

2) If I give those commands from Knoppix 5.0, they work for Etch, whereas Sarge
   does not manage to boot any more: I have to get back to Knoppix and install
   Etch grub to mbr, boot from there into Sarge and there install grub to mbr.

So, if I want to use those commands, from Knoppix, to, say, restore Linux boot
after a Windows installation, they are not supposed to work with Sarge, whereas
they should with Etch.

What do you think?

Bye,
Rodolfo