Won't Boot

KaitenV

Obliviot
So, here's the deal, brand new PC, built by myself, tons of problems. The main current one being, I installed Ubuntu from the live CD on my Master harddrive, but BIOs just skips right over it.

EVGA 256-P2-N615-TX GeForce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card

A-DATA 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model ADQVE1A16K

Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6300

MB ECS NFORCE 570 SLIT-A V5.1 775

POWER SUPPLY CMAX500W CR-550B BKRT

CASE ANTEC|P180B BLACK RT

Super Old LITE-ON DVD ROM

Linksys Wireless-G Network Card (PCI)
 

NicePants42

Partition Master
I've never used Linux, but here are a few thoughts.

Assuming that you're sure the OS install completed correctly, you may have to change the boot order in the BIOS so that you boot from the correct HDD first.

Also, you specifically say Master Hard Drive - are you using two? If you've got more than one hard drive attached to the same IDE cable, you may want to check the jumpers on the HDDs to make sure that they're working correctly as Master/Slave. Since you were able to install Linux, I don't think this is your problem - generally if a HDD has a jumper in the wrong position, it simply won't be properly detected by the BIOS and you won't be able to work with it at all.

And that's about all I can think of.
 

Rob Williams

Editor-in-Chief
Staff member
Moderator
I am confused as well. Ubuntu would not install if it couldn't detect the hard drives properly, unless you installed to the slave drive? Even then, Linux will normally install the boot loader into the first drive in priority.

I'd unhook one of the hard drives (just unplug it) and see where you are then. Make sure your "main" hard drive really is the Primary Master. Then plug in the other drive and make sure it is Secondary Master or Primary Slave.

The easiest thing to do would be to boot up right now and see if there are two hard drives detected on the first screen. If the switches on the hard drives are not set up properly, it should only show one.
 
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