BT5 R2 in Persitant USB boot error

[fjecp]

Hi, after several trials I finally achieved to install BT5 R2 in a persistant USB using the Universal USB Linux installer (very similar to Unetbootin that gave me some problems) and the BT5 KDE 32bit ISO

It now seems to work OK, but it has a very slow booting process. Taking out the splash screen I found several error messages that I'm not able to understand reason for them:

a.-

stdin: error 0
/init: line 3: can't open /dev sr0. No medium found
Warning: Unable to find the persistent home medium

Questions:

Why is it looking for device sr0? (USB device is sda). Later on, there are again some references to errors with sr0.
Why the message about not finding the persistant medium? The reality is that persistance works, I tested it and it works !!!

b.-

..... end_request: I/O error, dev fd0, sector xxxxx

Question:

Why is it looking for dev fd0? It shouldn't exists and thus, it shouldn't look for it.

c.-

..... EXT2-fs (loop1) error: ext2_lookup: xxxxxxx inode referenced: yyyyy
And this one repeats for many (thousands of) references....

General question: How could I get rid and avoid those messages?

***** EDIT ****

I tried command (runing it from another distro, NOT the same USB)

e2fsck /cdrom/casper-rw

that I found in another thread in this forum.

First result was very possitive, booting again from the USB the error had dissapeared.... BUT, when did a shutdown of the system and re-boot, it was again there.

As a cue to what can be producing it, I was able to read some kind of error message in the final process of the shutdown. something like:

"END error .... on device sda" (sda is, of course my USB)

Any help on it?, because I should say that when the system booted without the casper-rw errors everything was perfect, even still being there the other two errors I referred to.

**************

I should say that I'm not too much used with Linux, so, maybe those are very simple questions for many of you, but impossible to understand for me.

Thanks for any help.

[fjecp]

It seems I found a (temporary?) solution to the 3rd. problem which is the one most concerns me because it impacts the normal use of my USB system.

Once the filesystem is corrected using another distro with the e2fsck command, when I boot again my USB persistent system, and before to halt the system, I execute the sync command before to execute the shutdown command.

There are still some I/O errors in several sectors of the USB device, but, in the following on boots of the USB system, it seems to work better and the non-ending sequence of errors on the EXT2 filesystem is reduced to only 6 to 8 messages and the system seems to work properly.

Anyway, if anyone is able to give me a better and more definitive solution, not only for the 3rd. problem, but also for the other 2 ones, I would very much appreciate it.

Regards

[dafuq]

Dear fjecp,

b.
I also had 'end_request: I/O error, dev fd0, sector xxxxx' while booting.
I solved that one by disabling 1.44 floppy in bios.

a.
I also have the 'Warning: Unable to find the persistent home medium' problem.
Found anything for that?
How do you hide the (boot)splash screen?
I press ESC but I'm paranoid that that actually cancels the current operation (like a Ctrl+C command).

c.
Also I have 'EXT2-fs (loop1) error: ext2_lookup: xxxxxxx inode referenced: yyyyy' problem.

What do you specifically type when you say you use 'the sync' command?

I noticed that logging off first and then type shutdown -h 0 reduced them to 7 or 8 lines indeed. (instead of endless lines).
Others suggest using poweroff instead.

I

[fjecp]

Hi, to be honest there is much time I don't use my USB Linux drive, I installed BT on a detachable (and bootable from my laptop) HDD and I use it since then, so, I'm not sure my (human) memory will be correct or not, but lets try.

Point b.- I forgot and get ride of it... the error is still there, but everything seems to work, so..... your idea is not bad, but it implies that I would have to disable and enable the FDD everytime, even I don't use FDDs on my laptop... well, maybe I will try, thanks anyway for your cue.

Point a.- Maybe the error is still there but when I applied the sync command solution, it seemed not to be such disturbing.... sync command is as it is, that is, "sync", and that's all, before shutdown or poweroff. I feel the problem should be related to a bad download of the "in memory" buffers to the USB when tha shutdown commenad is used. SYNC command solves that.

Relating the splash screen, I don't remember how I did it, probably simply using the "enter" key or onw of the arrows keys, not sure (too much time passed), test it. If you want to permanently discard it, you should edit and work with some of the ".config" files, sorry, don't remember which one. What I remember is that when the problem was solved with the SYNC command, the splash screen changed to a "normal one" and not the "extrange one" that was there when the error was found.

Good luck!

[dafuq]

1.
It stranges me that you're still experiencing 'end_request: I/O error, dev fd0, sector xxxxx' even after disabling floppy.

2.
When I boot a completely fresh install of BT5r1, I already get 'Unable to find the persistent home medium'.

3.
I used your 'sync' command in Konsole (terminal). Then I logged off. Then I typed your 'sync' command again. Then 'poweroff'.
On the very last second my netbook shows multiple lines of 'end_request: I/O error, dev sdb, sector xxxxxxxx'

[fjecp]

1.- Maybe I was missunderstood... I never disabled floppy yet... Error is still there, but I don't care of it.

2.- I am not sure how this eror was solved, maybe editing one of the config files, because the USB is detected as a different "sdx" filesystem during the installation process and the execution process. As I use to write down all the steps I do all the times I install something, I went back to my "record file" and here is what I noted there:

******

At boot time there is a continous error message in filesystem EXT2, and, addidtionally the persistence seems not to work OK and the desktop splash screen is very strange.

It seems to be solved executing the following command:

"e2fsck" related to the "casper-rw" filesystem of the USB

BUT it has to be executed from a different Linux system to which the USB has to be mounted.

I did it, and the first time I boot it seems to boot OK, but on shutdown some goes wrong because next time I boot system the error comes back again.

I seems that if, before to execute the "shutdown" a "sync" command is executed for writting to the disc (USB) all the buffers that are still in the main memory (RAM) the problem is solved at some extent. After shutdown still some I/O errors in the USB still come and in the following on boot also I/O error come, but they are very few and all the system, the desktop and the persistence seem to work OK now.

**********

This is all I can tell you now. Hope it helps.

Regards.

Javier

[raymon432]

I also experience similar problems after installing backtrack 5 with persistence to a 16 gb Sandisk usb. The first boot was ok and i logged out of kde with end session,then did poweroff from commandline. Afterwards when I try to boot get to the splash screen with continous error messages:

EXT-fs (loop1): error ext2_lookup: deleted inode referenced: 786458

When I press CTRL+C the "root@bt#" appears where one is supposed to enter startx, but the constant-error messages instantly reappears.
I used Unetbootin to create the persistent usb from the image. Strange that the first boot went ok. I do not want to disable floppy-drive in bios since I now only can boot from the live-dvd. The computer is an Acer travelmate from 2007.
Should there have been any changes made before booting out of the first session with the live-usb?

[fjecp]

Did you try the commands I used and explained in my previous post? What results you get? Remember that the e2fsck should be executed over the USB filesystem but from a different Unix system where the USB is mounted.

Good luck

[raymon432]

Did you try the commands I used and explained in my previous post? What results you get? Remember that the e2fsck should be executed over the USB filesystem but from a different Unix system where the USB is mounted.

Good luck

Thank you for your reply. Could you please specify the exackt command(target path and from which directory) for the e2fsck command?
Is it possible to boot from my live cd into backtrack, then insert the not yet persistent usb and change directory to the usb directory, i.e
cd /media/disk and in that directory make the following command:
root/media/disk# e2fsck

[fjecp]

To be honest, I don't remember what was the exact command I issued, I'm not a Linux expert, I should say, and I did it a couple of months ago, I wrote a note about it, but not the exact comand. But looking to the e2fsck command descrition/help ("man e2fsck"), I feel it should be something like:

e2fsck /dev/sdax

Being "sdax" the dev id. the USB "still not persistant" got once mounted in the "other linux system", or the dev id. it has having booted from other Linux system having the USB already connected to the PC.

Again, good luck.