Grub update fails ("hideously") on usb-creator images
Affects | Status | Importance | Assigned to | Milestone | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
grub2 (Ubuntu) |
Fix Released
|
High
|
Colin Watson | ||
Lucid |
Fix Released
|
High
|
Colin Watson | ||
Maverick |
Invalid
|
High
|
Colin Watson |
Bug Description
Binary package hint: grub2
When dist-upgrading a usb-creator USB system, grub gives very bad advice about where to install the updated grub, and then fails when the USB partitions are specified.
SRU justification:
Impact: Significant confusion. It's (probably) possible to get this upgrade to do the right thing, but it's certainly not obvious.
Development branch: Fixed in grub2 1.99~rc1-1ubuntu1 with a pair of fixes, both straightforwardly backportable:
* If we're upgrading and /boot/grub/core.img doesn't exist, then don't ask
where to install GRUB, since it probably means we're in some kind of
specialised environment such as a live USB stick (LP: #591202).
* Drop the default priority of grub2/linux_cmdline to medium. We only
need to ask it if we're upgrading from GRUB Legacy and found an empty
kopt in menu.lst (LP: #591202).
Patch:
http://
http://
TEST CASE: Create a live USB stick from 10.04.1 or 10.10 as released. Upgrade the grub-pc package to the current version. The version currently in lucid-updates (1.98-1ubuntu9) and the version currently in maverick-updates (1.98+20100804-
Regression potential: It would be worth testing normal system upgrades (not on a live USB stick) to ensure that they still work properly. In particular, the timestamp of /boot/grub/core.img should be updated when upgrading the grub-pc package.
Changed in grub2 (Ubuntu): | |
status: | New → Triaged |
importance: | Undecided → High |
assignee: | nobody → Colin Watson (cjwatson) |
description: | updated |
Changed in grub2 (Ubuntu Lucid): | |
status: | Triaged → In Progress |
Changed in grub2 (Ubuntu Maverick): | |
status: | Triaged → In Progress |
tags: | removed: verification-done |
tags: | added: testcase |
This seems like the same bug that I've noticed when using the Maverick mini.iso. If you install Ubuntu via a flash drive (created with Unetbootin or Ubuntu Startup Disk Creator) grub2 installs to /dev/sda which is the flash drive that you are installing FROM, not the drive you are installing TO. This then makes the system unbootable and could leave lots of inexperienced users very disenfranchised.
Ideally, grub should give you the option of what drive to install it to during the Ubuntu installation process.
To fix this in the short term, leave the flash drive you installed FROM in the PC and once Ubuntu and been installed when the PC reboots, choose to boot from the flash drive, this will then boot the newly installed Ubuntu installation. Then, login and type sudo fdisk -l to find out the name of the hardrive you need grub2 installed to. Finally install grub2 by issuing sudo grub-install /dev/sdX where /dev/sdX is the name of the drive that the fdisk command gave you.