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wierd-ass bootsector

nighticenightice
edited September 2015 in Hardware
The bootsector on the HP's hard drive is acting all funky-like. I can't install any other one. It just shows "GRUB" and stops. I even tried DEBUG to put in the sector, but it didn't work. This is really annoying, seeing as I'm trying to install Windows 2000. Formatting isn't an option.

Comments

  • QQ
    I'm tempted to say FDISK /MBR, but it's been ages since I've used that and I also don't know exactly what that might do with GRUB...

    -Q
  • BODBOD
    see if the bios can do low level format, it'll take ages but might work
  • nighticenightice
    I don't care about GRUB. I just want a DOS bootsector. I guess I didn't properly make the partition when I erased the b0rked SuSE install and created the FAT32 partition.
  • JoshJosh
    run: fixmbr

    Works like a charm.
  • nighticenightice
    Never mind. Not certain what I did, but it got fixed. It'll be kind of wierd seeing Windows 2000 and FreeDOS dual-boot.
  • TCPMetaTCPMeta
    You had the GRUB bootloader installed into the master boot record. All you had to do was run FDISK /MBR with a DOS or Win9x bootdisk and it would of whipe it out.
  • JoshJosh
    Or fixmbr on NT disks.
  • SlashSlash
    use winimage 7.0 pro. It can do this stuff...
    Or FIXMBR from Recovery console.
  • nighticenightice
    What was really wierd is that for some reason the DOS part of setup couldn't overwrite the MBR. I had to use the BOOT command (included with FreeDOS) to write in c:\$win_nt$.~bt\bootsect.bin.
  • ThumpThump
    edited December 2004
    OK, Q said first and correctly:
    "'m tempted to say FDISK /MBR, but it's been ages since I've used that and I also don't know exactly what that might do with GRUB...

    -Q"
    *****************************
    Now there's no longer a question niteice said:
    I don't care about GRUB. I just want a DOS bootsector. I guess I didn't properly make the partition when I erased the b0rked SuSE install and created the FAT32 partition.
    *************************************
    Now TCPMeta sees that and posts:
    You had the GRUB bootloader installed into the master boot record. All you had to do was run FDISK /MBR with a DOS or Win9x bootdisk and it would of whipe it out.

    Exactly right. If there's one thing I've learned about trying
    out Linux it's when you want it to let go and let you live
    again it's FDISK /MBR
    Then you can live normally again.
    ***************
    He seemed to find some other way. but not the simplest.

    guzzle.gif

    Thump
  • SlashSlash
    Fdisk /mbr is the simpliest but it not always works...
  • nighticenightice
    Especially because I wasn't able to use FreeDOS FDISK to write in the proper MBR.
  • wingzeroisminewingzeroismine
    I use debug lol... I have directions I printed out because a hard drive I got from a friend had some DDO installed onto it, and I didn't want to deal with that crap, because it would come up with some boot menu, as it was a secondary hard drive, not the primary. I don't remember what it was that was on there...
  • SlashSlash
    Who knows how to rewrite the MBR using DEBUG?
  • QQ
    I remember reading it in an ASM page, but I forget now.

    -Q
  • wingzeroisminewingzeroismine
    Slash wrote:
    Who knows how to rewrite the MBR using DEBUG?
    Uhm... read the post above lol... I know how.... if anyone interested I can type out the directions, or maybe scan the paper and just post an image...
  • nighticenightice
    Try this on axcel216's site.
  • SlashSlash
    Thanks to nightice!
  • TCPMetaTCPMeta
    Cool, thats neat. I'll print it out for just in case.
  • nighticenightice
    I suppose someone handy with assembly could make that into an actual program.
  • wingzeroisminewingzeroismine
    My directions are similar to that, but I don't know if they are exact.
  • FAMICOMASTERFAMICOMASTER
    nightice wrote:
    The bootsector on the HP's hard drive is acting all funky-like. I can't install any other one. It just shows "GRUB" and stops. I even tried DEBUG to put in the sector, but it didn't work. This is really annoying, seeing as I'm trying to install Windows 2000. Formatting isn't an option.

    It's Linux, what do you expect?
  • dosboxdosbox
    FAMICOMASTER wrote:
    nightice wrote:
    The bootsector on the HP's hard drive is acting all funky-like. I can't install any other one. It just shows "GRUB" and stops. I even tried DEBUG to put in the sector, but it didn't work. This is really annoying, seeing as I'm trying to install Windows 2000. Formatting isn't an option.

    It's Linux, what do you expect?

    1) What is that supposed to mean!?

    2) This topic is 11 years old!
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