Author Topic: Intel SSD Boot Problem  (Read 7171 times)

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wleebrown

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Intel SSD Boot Problem
« on: January 22, 2012, 08:13:05 AM »
Hello all,

I've been working on building my first Hack following the TonyMac Multibeast and then Unibeast process with iBoot over the last few days. I built a SL 10.6.8 that was partially functional and used it to upgrade to 10.7.2.  I now have a largely functional build of Lion (can't figure out the wireless card).

With the distinct exception that I cannot get the OS to boot directly from the drive.  I came here looking for Chameleon help and started by manually installing Chameleon on my SSD.  Still no luck.  If I unplug everything except the Intel SSD with Lion installed, I get an immediate "Please insert bootable media error..." Plug the Unibeast stick back in and it reboots immediately. The Acer BIOS is set to AHCI and the drive is formatted as GUID (screen capture of DISKUTIL LIST attached).

I have noticed the BIOS lists the drive as "UEFI INTELSSD????" (much longer name but I didn't write it all down).  Are there known issues with booting from Intel SSDs or is this likely a limitation of the BIOS on this machine.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Blessings,
Lee
« Last Edit: January 22, 2012, 09:33:53 PM by wleebrown »
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

wleebrown

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Re: Boot Problem
« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2012, 08:15:45 AM »
As I was writing the above I was cloning the SSD to an expanded portion of the HDD with Windows 7 installed.  Clearly I don't completely understand how bootloaders work just yet as this made the Clone of the Lion from the SDD bootable on the HDD, but rendered the Windows 7 install unbeatable (presumably because Chameleon replaced the MBR Windows 7 expected)?

Any suggestions on how to make this work.  It looks like the thing that is not working is the GUID Partition scheme on the SDD.

I would like to get to the point I can install both Windows 7 and Lion on the SDD, boot the OS of choice from there and then make the HDD data storage only.

Suggestions?

Thanks,
Lee
« Last Edit: January 22, 2012, 09:45:21 PM by wleebrown »
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #2 on: January 23, 2012, 01:26:58 PM »
One step forward 2 steps back, switching from GUID to MBR partitions schemes now has the Chameleon boot loader functioning.

I followed the MyHack dual boot guide to load both, installing a barebones Win7 OS from a memory stick. However switching back to the MacOS partition as active rendered the Win7 partition unbootable (I get a monochrome screen asking to insert install disks to repair Windows).

Any advice or other hints?

Thanks,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

Blackosx

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #3 on: January 23, 2012, 02:38:52 PM »
Hi wleebrown

I came here looking for Chameleon help and started by manually installing Chameleon on my SSD.  Still no luck.
What commands did you use?

Quote
I have noticed the BIOS lists the drive as "UEFI INTELSSD????" (much longer name but I didn't write it all down).  Are there known issues with booting from Intel SSDs or is this likely a limitation of the BIOS on this machine.
....
as this made the Clone of the Lion from the SDD bootable on the HDD, but rendered the Windows 7 install unbeatable (presumably because Chameleon replaced the MBR Windows 7 expected)?
This shows you can boot Chameleon from your HDD.

One step forward 2 steps back, switching from GUID to MBR partitions schemes now has the Chameleon boot loader functioning.
This is great, though I thought you would have still been able to do it using a GPT.

However switching back to the MacOS partition as active rendered the Win7 partition unbootable (I get a monochrome screen asking to insert install disks to repair Windows).
If you want to dual boot Windows 7 on the same disk as OS X then you will want to leave Windows the active partition and use the Chameleon Boot0hfs or Boot0md stage 0 loader in the disks MBR.
10.10.5 / 10.11 GM1 | Asus Maximum IV Gene-Z | i7-2600 3.40GHz | 4GB | Radeon 5770 1GB

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #4 on: January 23, 2012, 06:34:09 PM »
Blackosx,

Thanks for the responses!

I came here looking for Chameleon help and started by manually installing Chameleon on my SSD.  Still no luck.

What commands did you use?

I followed the help in the text file that came with the current Chameleon 2.0 bootloader. I didn't think it was working because when I unplugged everything but the loaded GPT formatted SSD, I would immediately get the "Insert bootable media..." error message. If I used a MBR formatted flash drive with Chameleon, I could point to the OSX partition and boot, but not straight from the SSD.

When I cloned that GPT partition to an HFS+ partition on my HDD, which contained the original partitions installed by Gateway, Chameleon started working for the HDD on reboot.

One step forward 2 steps back, switching from GUID to MBR partitions schemes now has the Chameleon boot loader functioning.


This is great, though I thought you would have still been able to do it using a GPT.

GPT would be my preference frankly, but I could not get the BIOS (Acer) to recognize the GPT formatted drive as bootable. Is there something equivalent to making a particular partition "active" like you do with MBR that is required for a GPT drive?

However switching back to the MacOS partition as active rendered the Win7 partition unbootable (I get a monochrome screen asking to insert install disks to repair Windows).

If you want to dual boot Windows 7 on the same disk as OS X then you will want to leave Windows the active partition and use the Chameleon Boot0hfs or Boot0md stage 0 loader in the disks MBR.

I'll give this a try tonight when I get home. 

One additional note, I noticed after I manually installed the Chameleon 2.0 stages to the SDD, the bdmesg command was still showing that Chameleon 1.6 was loaded on the drive. I seem to remember seeing a message along the way when trying to load the 0 stage, that it found a previously installed stage and did not overwrite it.

Thank you again for your help.

Blessings,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

Blackosx

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #5 on: January 25, 2012, 12:37:25 PM »
Sorry if this is short, but I don't have much time...

I followed the help in the text file that came with the current Chameleon 2.0 bootloader.
Text file?.. I'm not familiar with a text file included in the official v2 release or in the latest v2.1 download? Maybe I've just missed it.
But I only ask as maybe we could find something in your steps which is causing the installation to fail.
You can find manual installation instructions in the official docs.

Is there something equivalent to making a particular partition "active" like you do with MBR that is required for a GPT drive?
You can use fdisk (or Chameleon's fdisk440) - for flagging a partition active they both do the exact same thing.
For an example, see Gringo's install guide - Search the post for the word flagged and read below.
rdiskX will be your disk number, fX will be the partition number.

For a thorough overview of this, try googling Setting Your Partition "Active" Using Fdisk in MacOSX at the InsanelyMac forum.

One additional note, I noticed after I manually installed the Chameleon 2.0 stages to the SDD, the bdmesg command was still showing that Chameleon 1.6 was loaded on the drive.
Chameleon 1.6? I'm not sure what you mean. Chameleon is identified by it's revision number, for example rev1520. But if you saw a version on the screen that was not what you installed then you know your installation didn't work. This text comes from the stage 2 file and just replacing this file, providing you have a recent installation of the stage 0 and stage 1 files can change the bootloader version you're using.

I seem to remember seeing a message along the way when trying to load the 0 stage, that it found a previously installed stage and did not overwrite it.
Loading and installing are different.
The chameleon package installer (found on Buildbot) prints a message in the install log along the lines of what you say here.. For example:
Target disk already has existing Chameleon stage 0 loader - boot0hfs
Stage 0 loader not written to *diskname*


The stage 0 loader is the file that lives in the MBR of the disk (be it a disk using either MBR or GUID (using a hybrid GPT/MBR) partition tables). This file is what's needed to start the Chameleon loading process and once loaded, it then proceeds to look for stage 1.

This goes back to the first part of this post - are you using an installer to install Chameleon for you or are you installing by hand by entering commands in the Terminal?
« Last Edit: January 25, 2012, 12:48:07 PM by Blackosx »
10.10.5 / 10.11 GM1 | Asus Maximum IV Gene-Z | i7-2600 3.40GHz | 4GB | Radeon 5770 1GB

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #6 on: January 26, 2012, 12:47:09 AM »
Sorry if this is short, but I don't have much time...

I appreciate the help very much, thank you.

I followed the help in the text file that came with the current Chameleon 2.0 bootloader.
Text file?.. I'm not familiar with a text file included in the official v2 release or in the latest v2.1 download? Maybe I've just missed it.

I was referring to the two text files in the Docs folder of the Chameleon pkg file.  I was typing the commands into a terminal window. (I had previously installed it with installer packages like Chameleon Wizard and Multibeast).

sudo fdisk -f boot0 -u -y /dev/rdisk0
sudo dd if=boot1h of=/dev/rdisk0s2
sudo cp boot /


It appears possible that my computers BIOS does not support booting from GPT partitioned devices.  I'm still trying to figure out how to know this for certain.  But I'm at the point where I'm willing to just plug a small MBR formatted USB stick with Chameleon and stop fighting to force my computer to boot from the hard drive.

Thanks,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

Blackosx

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #7 on: January 27, 2012, 12:06:22 PM »
I was referring to the two text files in the Docs folder of the Chameleon pkg file.
What's the exact name of the Chameleon pkg file you have? is it actually a package installer or just a folder of files which you are calling a package? Maybe it's an old version? Can you post a screenshot, or the list of contents?
The latest Chameleon source has /doc/BootHelp.txt and /doc/README.

I was typing the commands into a terminal window.

sudo fdisk -f boot0 -u -y /dev/rdisk0
sudo dd if=boot1h of=/dev/rdisk0s2
sudo cp boot /
The README from the source package mentions using fdisk440 and not fdisk so this re-inforces that you must have old files. Where did you get it? Though to be honest the use of fdisk won't be the cause of your problem.

If you ever try again, please post a copy of your terminal entries and the message results that appear from entering the commands, or maybe even try running the Chameleon package installer and posting the log file from that? The latest version can be found at Buildbot.

It appears possible that my computers BIOS does not support booting from GPT partitioned devices.
Have you tried creating and bootable chameleon USB flash drive using a GPT to see if your BIOS can boot from that?

But I'm at the point where I'm willing to just plug a small MBR formatted USB stick with Chameleon and stop fighting to force my computer to boot from the hard drive.
I understand and that's fine. Any solution that works for you is good enough.  :)
« Last Edit: January 27, 2012, 12:08:14 PM by Blackosx »
10.10.5 / 10.11 GM1 | Asus Maximum IV Gene-Z | i7-2600 3.40GHz | 4GB | Radeon 5770 1GB

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #8 on: January 27, 2012, 10:16:39 PM »
The README from the source package mentions using fdisk440 and not fdisk so this re-inforces that you must have old files. Where did you get it? Though to be honest the use of fdisk won't be the cause of your problem.

If you ever try again, please post a copy of your terminal entries and the message results that appear from entering the commands, or maybe even try running the Chameleon package installer and posting the log file from that? The latest version can be found at Buildbot.

Ok, I installed the latest package from the link above.  I've attached the install log below.


Have you tried creating and bootable chameleon USB flash drive using a GPT to see if your BIOS can boot from that?

Yes that didn't work either.

I now have both Windows 7 and Lion installed.  I'm trying to sort out getting Chameleon to work for both, but no luck just yet.

Despite the fact I've formatted this drive several times in the interim, it seems that first Chameleon bootloader has a firm grip on the Stage 0 location.  The text below is the start of the BDMESG command.

Quote
Last login: Fri Jan 27 08:11:57 on console
Lees-Mac-Pro:i386 lee$ bdmesg
Chameleon 1.6.0 (svn-r1394) [2011-10-28 20:34:09]


Thanks again,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #9 on: January 28, 2012, 07:10:51 PM »
A "brief" update on progress ...

As of today I have both Win7 and OS X Lion running from the SSD in my configuration with most everything working in Lion. If I make the Windows partition active, it boots fine but skips past the Chameleon menu without an opportunity to choose.  However, if I make the Lion partition active then Win7 says it's broken. I've moved my home folder to the exFAT formatted HDD which turned out to be a disaster, it broke my only login account, so I moved Home back to the SSD and then symlinked the big folders (Pics, Music, etc.) to the HDD. The holdouts are:

(1) Ralink Wireless card (downloaded drivers direct from Ralink without success) not much of an issue I'm generally using Ethernet
(2) Bootloader issues listed here and in my post above (tried both manual and package installs)
(3) Mounted drives don't show on Desktop
(4) Boot drive doesn't show in Finder window (right click on the folder icon at the top to get there)
(5) /Extras does not have an Extensions subfolder

On an interesting sidenote, I pulled the harddrive out of my latest dead MacbookPro, installed it and the darn thing boots quite well from Chameleon. Not too surprisingly Ethernet doesn't work, but apps do so I can recover my iBank files and I've managed to copy the 200GB of pictures off that drive.  Now I just need to add a few more TB of drive space and I should be good for a few months.

I'm going to back up my working install and then bang at it a few more times maybe, it's sort of nice to have things working fairly smoothly for a change. Any suggestions on approaches to address the last four issues would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

wleebrown

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #10 on: January 28, 2012, 08:23:29 PM »
A "brief" update on progress ...

(2) Bootloader issues listed here and in my post above (tried both manual and package installs)



Problem number 2 has finally at long last been eliminated.  I went to Buildot and got the svn-r1769.tgz file, then went back and carefully followed these instructions:

You can use fdisk (or Chameleon's fdisk440) - for flagging a partition active they both do the exact same thing.
For an example, see Gringo's install guide


Now at long last it works!!!  Guess it helps to try this during the daytime when I'm actually awake.  Now if I can just get the rest of the issues worked out.

Blessings,
Lee
Gateway DX4860 Core i5 2320 3.0Ghz
PNY Nvidia GT 430
Intel 120G SSD (10.7.2), WD 1TB HDD (Windows7)
Realtec 662 Audio

Blackosx

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Re: Intel SSD Boot Problem
« Reply #11 on: February 01, 2012, 11:12:08 PM »
Now at long last it works!!!
Hi wleebrown
Good to hear you have your issue sorted :)

Now if I can just get the rest of the issues worked out.
......
(1) Ralink Wireless card (downloaded drivers direct from Ralink without success) not much of an issue I'm generally using Ethernet
(3) Mounted drives don't show on Desktop
(4) Boot drive doesn't show in Finder window (right click on the folder icon at the top to get there)
(5) /Extras does not have an Extensions subfolder
1) I've never used a wireless card with a hack so I can't help you there.
3) Open Finder Preferences, General tab, tick the Hard disks checkbox.
4) Not sure what you mean? sorry
5) then create one.
10.10.5 / 10.11 GM1 | Asus Maximum IV Gene-Z | i7-2600 3.40GHz | 4GB | Radeon 5770 1GB