[Boot-Repair] Graphical tool to repair the PC boot in one click

[Gredd]

Hello all! Hope its ok to ask for help in the first post. I have messed up 2 XP machines from booting correctly! Tried to fix it with boot-repair disc but no luck. It still hangs on the blinking "_" sign in the top left corner right after bios post stuff so I'm getting nothing. Problem started after installing software called Mazda IDS (car diagnostics). I actually thought my hdd crashed in the first laptop by random (HDD worked for hours on the install) and I tried it on another laptop with same result!! Damn stupid I know! So... could you gurus have a look at this log and see if you can find anything: http://paste2.org/p/3271395

Thank you very much in andvace

[oldfred]

@gredd
Windows XP needs three files to boot in the partition with the boot flag (*).
Windows Boot files:
WinXP
/boot.ini /ntldr /NTDETECT.COM

You script shows ntldr missing from sda1. But it looks like you have a copy in sda3, do I might try copying it to sda1.
Otherwise.

If files are still missing you can do this to copy from CD to C:\:
COPY [CDDRIVE]:\I386\NTLDR C:\
COPY [CDDRIVE]:\I386\NTDETECT.COM C:\

OR you can run Windows repairs from your XP install disk.

[Sanakei]

Hello,

I am pretty new to Ubuntu and tried to installt it on my Lenovo S400 notebook.
Windows 8 was pre installed and I installed Ubuntu on it's own partition.
Now I get the known "invalid EFI file path" error when I am trying to boot Windows 8 with GRUB, even after using boot-repair.
The S400 has a lot of pre formated system partitions for restore and more, don't know if this is the problem.

Here is my boot-repair link, I hope anybody can give me advice to fix this.
http://paste.ubuntu.com/5640348/

Thanks a lot
and best regards

[Gredd]

@gredd
Windows XP needs three files to boot in the partition with the boot flag (*).
Windows Boot files:
WinXP
/boot.ini /ntldr /NTDETECT.COM

You script shows ntldr missing from sda1. But it looks like you have a copy in sda3, do I might try copying it to sda1.
Otherwise.

If files are still missing you can do this to copy from CD to C:\:
COPY [CDDRIVE]:\I386\NTLDR C:\
COPY [CDDRIVE]:\I386\NTDETECT.COM C:\

OR you can run Windows repairs from your XP install disk.

Thank you very much for your input! I can get XP to boot by using this "trick" but I cannot get it to boot without the boot disc (but it is fantastic to have access to my computer again )

http://www.tinyempire.com/notes/ntldrismissing.htm

EDIT: I have copied ntldr + ntdetect + boot.ini from the disc but no go. Is it something with active partition? Diskhandler in windows does not show the system partition as active. No partition is active even though I have tried to make it active with DISKPART command.

[oldfred]

@sankei
Are you booting this entry? Not sure why it says recovery but it is the correct Windows file in the efi partition. You do have another partition with many boot files but that is the recovery partition. There can only be one efi partition which then is the partition with all systems boot loaders.

menuentry "Windows UEFI recovery bootmgfw.efi" {
search --fs-uuid --no-floppy --set=root 08B7-DA0A
chainloader (${root})/EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bootmgfw.efi
}

Your sda2 is the efi partition and sda3 is a recovery partition, so the boot stanzas with the UUID from sda2 or 08b7-da0a are correct boot entries.
/dev/sda2 2,050,048 2,582,527 532,480 EFI System partition
/dev/sda3 2,582,528 4,630,527 2,048,000 -

/dev/sda2 08B7-DA0A vfat SYSTEM_DRV
/dev/sda3 4CC2-C641 vfat LRS_ESP



grub2's os-prober creates wrong style (BIOS) chain boot entry
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+s...2/+bug/1024383
type of entry from Boot-Repair that should work.
'Windows UEFI loader'
Type of entry that does not work:
'Windows ...) (on /dev/sdXY)'

[Sanakei]

I was trying it with Windows 8 (loader) entry, but now I tried every other entry too and here is the outcome:

Ubuntu loads smooth,
Everything with Windows UEFI or Windows Boot UEFI in the name say "cannot load image".
The entries "Windows Recovery Environment..." and Windows 8 (loader) say "Invalid EFI file path"

System setup boots into bios.

I already tried reinstalling ubuntu and executing boot-repair again.

[oldfred]

@sanakei
Do you have secure boot on or off? Try both ways.
If still not working, use Boot-Repair to rename files and try with secure boot on or off.
Boot-Repair - Updated Jan 1, 2013 to not rename first time, but rename if first time Windows does not boot. Post 706 and 711
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...769482&page=71
Boot-Repair copied /EFI/ubuntu/grubx64.efi to /EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi (in case the BIOS is hard-coded to boot into /EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi or secure boot signed GRUB file shimx64.efi.
I disabled secure boot, and unchecked it in boot-repair. It now bypasses Grub and goes straight in to Windows.
Renamed files:
/EFI/Boot/bkpbootx64.efi
/EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bkpbootmgfw.efi

@gredd
Active partition in Windows is boot flag (*) with fdisk or most Linux tools. You can only have one active partition and it must the NTFS partition with the boot files.
If you copied boot.ini from CD, it may not be correct it has to refer to your boot partition and is hard coded, but is just a text file.
You may need to run the full set of XP repairs from XP disk including chkdsk.

Description of the Windows XP Recovery Console for advanced users list of commands
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314058/
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307654
To run the Recovery Console from the Windows XP startup disks or the Windows XP CD-ROM, follow these steps:
1. Insert the Windows XP startup disk into the floppy disk drive, or insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.

Click to select any options that are required to start the computer from the CD-ROM drive if you are prompted.
2. When the "Welcome to Setup" screen appears, press R to start the Recovery Console.
3. If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you must access from the Recovery Console.
4. When you are prompted, type the Administrator password. If the administrator password is blank, just press ENTER.
5. At the command prompt, type commands one at a time.

FIXMBR C: #do not run if you still want grub in the MBR
FIXBOOT C:
BOOTCFG /rebuild # rebuilds boot.ini
chkdsk c: /r

# is start of comment, do not type any comments

[Gredd]

@sanakei
Do you have secure boot on or off? Try both ways.
If still not working, use Boot-Repair to rename files and try with secure boot on or off.
Boot-Repair - Updated Jan 1, 2013 to not rename first time, but rename if first time Windows does not boot. Post 706 and 711
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...769482&page=71
Boot-Repair copied /EFI/ubuntu/grubx64.efi to /EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi (in case the BIOS is hard-coded to boot into /EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi or secure boot signed GRUB file shimx64.efi.
I disabled secure boot, and unchecked it in boot-repair. It now bypasses Grub and goes straight in to Windows.
Renamed files:
/EFI/Boot/bkpbootx64.efi
/EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bkpbootmgfw.efi

@gredd
Active partition in Windows is boot flag (*) with fdisk or most Linux tools. You can only have one active partition and it must the NTFS partition with the boot files.
If you copied boot.ini from CD, it may not be correct it has to refer to your boot partition and is hard coded, but is just a text file.
You may need to run the full set of XP repairs from XP disk including chkdsk.

Description of the Windows XP Recovery Console for advanced users list of commands
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314058/
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307654
To run the Recovery Console from the Windows XP startup disks or the Windows XP CD-ROM, follow these steps:
1. Insert the Windows XP startup disk into the floppy disk drive, or insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.

Click to select any options that are required to start the computer from the CD-ROM drive if you are prompted.
2. When the "Welcome to Setup" screen appears, press R to start the Recovery Console.
3. If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you must access from the Recovery Console.
4. When you are prompted, type the Administrator password. If the administrator password is blank, just press ENTER.
5. At the command prompt, type commands one at a time.

FIXMBR C: #do not run if you still want grub in the MBR
FIXBOOT C:
BOOTCFG /rebuild # rebuilds boot.ini
chkdsk c: /r

# is start of comment, do not type any comments

Problem solved!! It was actually the ntdlr that was corrupt (0kb). After replacing that file AND tell it to boot from hdd instead of cdrom everything was back to normal. Fixed my problem on both machines. Can't understand why Mazda diagnostic software would do such a cruel thing though... Thanks a bunch for helping!!!

[Relsig]

FYI I'm a total noob to all forms of Linux...

When installing Ubuntu I lost access to Windows 8. It shows up in GRUB but when I choose it it gives me "Command not found 'drivemap'". I've done ridiculous amounts of reading but I haven't gotten it working.

I've tried boot-repair as it was the only solid suggestion, but it didn't change anything. http://paste.Ubuntu.com/5641593 (it said to write that down and share it here)

The only plus side so far is I haven't messed up both windows 8 and Ubuntu... Can anyone give me another idea or a good starting point?

P.S. sda5 is where windows resides, sda4 is recovery (also inaccessible), sda3 is a microsoft reserved partion etc. all came stock on the Dell XPS8500

[oldfred]

@relsig
You can only have one efi partition per drive, you have two. Use gparted and remove the boot flag from sda5. All booting under UEFI is from the efi partition.
Your efi partition has no Windows boot files. Did you erase it, the Ubuntu recreated it?
There is a backup of the Windows boot file, but you also need the BCD which you can recreate with a Windows repair flash drive.

? location of BCD?
/boot/efi/EFI/Microsoft/Boot/BCD
copy of Windows efi boot files:
C:\Windows\Boot\EFI\bootmgfw.efi

Windows 8 UEFI repair USB must be FAT32
http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials...ndows-8-a.html
http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/For...-166dddf32205/
http://www.ghacks.net/2012/11/01/how...m-repair-disc/