9.10 does not boot - error: no such device - failed to boot default entries

[alphabootis]

Problem

Karmic 9.10 does not boot after recent system update (update manager):

error: no such device : ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop
Failed to boot default entries
Press any key to continue

On pressing any key error message is repeated.

Same error occurred after the initial installation of 9.10 on various laptop models.

Note: In my case error only occurs when karmic 9.10 is installed on 250 GB Western Digital hard drives. On SAME laptops Error does NOT occur when karmic 9.10 is installed on 60 GB Hitachi hard drives.


Workaround

- boot system from from karmic 9.10 CD
- start terminal
- start nautilus file manager as admin (sudo nautilus)
- in nautilus select laptop's internal drive
note: I had to first start nautilus as user in order for it to show internal drive
- go to /boot/grub/grub.cfg
- right-click grub.cfg and choose properties
- select tab permissions
- change permissions of 'owner: root' from 'read-only' to 'read and write'
- right-click grub.cfg and open with gedit
- find the following entry:

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
menuentry "Ubuntu, Linux 2.6.31-14-generic" {
recordfail=1
if [ -n ${have_grubenv} ]; then save_env recordfail; fi
set quiet=1
insmod ext2
set root=(hd0,1)
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31-14-generic root=UUID=ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.31-14-generic
}

- simplify entry as follows:

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
menuentry "Ubuntu, Linux 2.6.31-15-generic" {
set root=(hd0,1)
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31-15-generic root=UUID=ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop ro quiet splash
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.31-15-generic
}

- safe grub.cfg
- change permissions of 'owner: root' from 'read and write' back to 'read-only'
- restart system
- ubuntu should now boot from first internal drive (hd0)


Community

I'm a Mac/Windows user. Ubuntu is new to me and I love it. However, this error is very severe and produces a really negative experience for new users. I would actually not even be surprised if this error had been deliberately introduced by someone who is not too fond of the Linux Community. Anyway, it would be great if the experts here could help us newbies and protect the community.

Could someone please post a shell command version for a clean workaround?

What is the exact nature and background of this error?

A recent system update just reactivated the error by replacing the modified grub.cfg with the flawed grub.cfg, i.e. my system didn't boot after the update. The problem is obviously not solved. Is there already a bug report for this error?

What is this this UUID all about? Is it something that was invented to protect our privacy? Anyone?


Thanks! :p

[drs305]

If you can't access your system, from the Grub 2 menu: Press ENTER after each line; # are just clarifying comments - do not type them.

c # enter command line mode
set root=(hd0,1) # to set sda1 as root
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro
initrd /initrd.img
boot

Once into the system, open /etc/default/grub:

sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

You can try disabling the UUID function to see if that solves things for you (uncomment it):

GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_UUID=true

Update Grub2:

sudo update-grub

[alphabootis]

I changed grub.cfg as described above and my system now boots and works. However, the grub2 menu is no longer being offered.

Also the next system update that will overwrite my modified grub.cfg with the original flawed grub.cfg will leave my system unbootable again.

What is the root of the problem and how can it be solved?

[drs305]

I changed grub.cfg as described above and my system now boots and works. However, the grub2 menu is no longer being offered.

Also the next system update that will overwrite my modified grub.cfg with the original flawed grub.cfg will leave my system unbootable again.

What is the root of the problem and how can it be solved?

Normally you change the settings in /etc/default/grub to affect the menu display. The two lines to change so you see your menu are (with settings so you see the menu):


#GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT_QUIET=true
GRUB_TIMEOUT="10"


Run "sudo update-grub" to make the changes permanent.

If you don't want to run update-grub for fear it may put back in settings that might make your system unbootable again, the line in /boot/grub/grub.cfg that the above settings change are:


if [ ${recordfail} = 1 ]; then
set timeout=-1
else
set timeout=10
fi


As for the cause, there have been some problems with the UUID feature of grub. I thought they were resolved but some may linger. There was also a new kernel released recently which may be causing problems unrelated to the grub menu (but probably not for what the OP posted).

[jesper_eskilson]

I have the same problem (I think), but I've installed Ubuntu using wubi, so my root fs is a virtual disk on a windows NTFS drive, and I can't get the proposed fix to work. Here's what I did:

First, when booting the machine I get the windows boot loader, and I select "Ubuntu". This brings me into the Grub command shell (with a "sh:grub>" prompt). In the grub command shell, I typed:


set root=(loop0)
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro
initrd /initrd
boot


Loading the kernel works, but then it fails with the error message "Target filesystem doesn't have /sbin/init", and suggests that I pass "init=" to the kernel when booting. I tried passing "init=/init", but that didn't work.

Any ideas?

[ashto]

If you can't access your system, from the Grub 2 menu: Press ENTER after each line; # are just clarifying comments - do not type them.

c # enter command line mode
set root=(hd0,1) # to set sda1 as root
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro
initrd /initrd.img
bootOnce into the system, open /etc/default/grub:

sudo gedit /etc/default/grubYou can try disabling the UUID function to see if that solves things for you (uncomment it):


Update Grub2:

sudo update-grub

I also have a similar issue. I am running 9.10 on an external HDD. It was installed using a HP 6930p laptop, after installation it would not boot and I received the "no such device" error. However it boots and runs without any problems on my Acer Aspire 5630.

I used the above suggestion and on the HP the boot process now gets further ("no such device error" has gone), I receive a black screen that asks for my username and then password. After entering them I am then given a prompt and I do not know how to proceed. Do you have any suggestions how to solve this?

It still works fine on the Acer.
Thanks

[drs305]

I have the same problem (I think), but I've installed Ubuntu using wubi, so my root fs is a virtual disk on a windows NTFS drive, and I can't get the proposed fix to work. Here's what I did:

First, when booting the machine I get the windows boot loader, and I select "Ubuntu". This brings me into the Grub command shell (with a "sh:grub>" prompt). In the grub command shell, I typed:


set root=(loop0)
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro
initrd /initrd
boot


Loading the kernel works, but then it fails with the error message "Target filesystem doesn't have /sbin/init", and suggests that I pass "init=" to the kernel when booting. I tried passing "init=/init", but that didn't work.

Any ideas?

You would at least have to have "initrd /initrd.img".

I installed wubi yesterday and played with the command line until I found what I needed to enter. The results are here:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=8385203&postcount=62
If that doesn't take you directly to the post, it is post #62.

Of course, this may get your Grub 2 to try to pass control to the kernel, but if there is a kernel problem or something else, it isn't something Grub can probably fix unless you are using extra command options such as "vga=791" on the linux command line.

@ashto - the last sentence probably applies to you as well.

[wmrojer]

I have the exact same problem as the original poster.

I've done a 2 fresh install of Ubunti 9.10 on a system with 2 IDE disks. On the 40GB WD disk grub2 finds the correct root device but on the 120GB Seagate disk it fails.


I've done several clean installs on both disks, and the result is the same every time. Works on the 40GB disk, fails on the 120GB disk.

The search command results in the error message "no such device d8e4a234-9bfe-4517-8e0e-320a333d03d7"

search --no-floppy --fs-uuid -set d8e4a234-9bfe-4517-8e0e-320a333d03d7
But the linux command seem to work just fine.

linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.31-14-generic root=UUID=d8e4a234-9bfe-4517-8e0e-320a333d03d7 ro quiet splash
Setting

GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_UUID=true
in /etc/default/grub only affects the use of uuid on the linux command, not the search command. So it does not have an effect.

Doing a ls command on the partition from the grub prompt shows that the uuid is correct.

I've seen on the grub2 wiki http://grub.enbug.org/ that there is both a 1.97 and a 1.97.1 version released. But I guess those haven't made it into ubuntu yet.

I hope that this bug gets fixed soon, but at least I know how to boot my system now.

[drs305]

I have the exact same problem as the original poster.

The search command results in the error message "no such device d8e4a234-9bfe-4517-8e0e-320a333d03d7"

in /etc/default/grub only affects the use of uuid on the linux command, not the search command. So it does not have an effect.

Doing a ls command on the partition from the grub prompt shows that the uuid is correct.

I've seen on the grub2 wiki http://grub.enbug.org/ that there is both a 1.97 and a 1.97.1 version released. But I guess those haven't made it into ubuntu yet.

I hope that this bug gets fixed soon, but at least I know how to boot my system now.

I saw a discussion of this topic by the devs this morning. So far the only way to automatically get rid of the "search" line is by modifying the grub-mkconfig library file, which can be done but would probably be overwritten by the next update to grub (not to be confused with update-grub). But removing the "search" line does seem to fix it in most of these cases.

Don't know when Ubuntu is going to update to 1.97 but I don't think there will be any really huge improvements for most users.

[moxsentre]

i have the same problem of failure to boot default entires.

but when i run this code on terminal
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

the grub file/folder is empty.

im using a admin account aswell. any help?

[drs305]

i have the same problem of failure to boot default entires.

but when i run this code on terminal
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

the grub file/folder is empty.

im using a admin account aswell. any help?

Are you using Grub 2 (grub-install -v > You should see Grub 1.97 beta)?
Do you have any special setup, or are you using Wubi?

When running graphical apps as root (when you input the password in a box and not in the terminal), please use "gksu" or "gksudo" rather than "sudo". Here's why: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/graphicalsudo

[swerve121]

This worked perfect for the Dell Inspiron 6000 Thanx

[Spikx]

I have the exact same problem. In my case it's a Seagate hard disk with 320 (if I remember correctly) on an old P4 system with 845P chipset.

I followed the instructions from the original post though I only deleted the
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnoppart. This made it work, however sometimes the error still showed up and I was sent to the GRUB menu again, where I simply had to select the first entry manually and then Ubuntu would boot.

Unfortunately there was an update apparently, now the line is back in again... or so I think, the server is not physically reachable for me at the moment ;). All I know is that the error shows up now every time the server boots. Is there any info yet on how to fix this permanently? (Except making the file read only.)

Btw. it's a fresh install of Ubuntu 9.10 Server Edition.

[Spikx]

According to launchpad (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/grub2/+bug/403408) a fix was released for Debian, but not for Ubuntu yet :(. Furthermore it seems to be only the '--no-floppy' parameter in 'search' lines (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/grub2/+bug/391044).

//edit: Ah, bug #403408 (https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/403408), actually describes a problem with the grub2 search command when part of the target of the
search lies beyond 137.44 GB (128 GiB).

[ranger5664]

I am having a similar problem... when i boot, i get the same error, however when i bring up the grub command line and type the
c # enter command line mode
set root=(hd0,1) # to set sda1 as root
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro
initrd /initrd.img
boot
It doesnt work at all. after the
linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda1 ro I get...

Error: No Device is set. and after i type
initrd /initrd.img I get...

Error: You need to load the kernel first.
and then of course, after the boot command i get...

Error: No kernel is loaded.

I have a brand new (just got it yesterday) Western Digital 160gb IDE hard drive.

Somebody please help!!!

[MuppetandChums]

I have Ubuntu 9.1 installed flawlessly on PC with Win 7 64 bit both via GRUB as separate instal & inside VMware Player in Win 7.

No Problem....but I am NEW at this.

Old Thinkpad T42... 1gb memory + 40Gb HD.
Instal routine is a mess. Reformated entire HD to get rid of IBM ' secret partition ' now as one large partition.

Live CD will not install. tried 3x
USB - UnetBootin will not install. tried 2x
same error message as above.

' no such device - failed to boot.... '

Try nautilus as suggested ...cannot see any grub.cfg file to edit. Dont think its a graphical login...Terminal Window - Nautilus is just like cmd.exe in windows

(Ubuntu 9.1 instal does not appear to be idiot proof, Mr Shuttleworth ?)

Where do I go to from here ?

Muppet & Chums

[drs305]

@ ranger5664 in post 15,

If you are still having this problem, try running these commands again, but first run this command at the grub prompt:

set prefix=(hd0,1)/boot/grub
assuming your Ubuntu install is on sda1.

[olofcadiz]

Hi

I had the same problem and solved it on another way.
first I installed 9.04 and then upgraded to 9.10
After that everything is working perfect

olofcadiz

[seks727]

I'm no expert but I had a simular issue and followed the instructions in the first page. Here is a quick run down of what i did to get it working for me.


When you're able to high-light a grub option and click 'e' to edit.
Next, follow the instructions on the first page of this thread, deleting the items in red and blue.
Now, type Ctrl+x to boot.
Once ubuntu starts open the terminal and type sudo nautilus (enter your password when prompted), a new window will popup with root permissions (admin rights).
Next navigate to the /boot/grub/grub.cfg file right click>properties>permissions. From here you can set the permissions from read only to read and write.
Finally, open the grub.cfg file with gedit and edit the section described in page one of this thread and save.
Reboot to test.
Hope this helps...

[ekosan]

Hi..,
I had same problem (http://esetianto.wordpress.com/2009/11/19/error-no-such-device/) few days ago. Just open up terminal and type sudo update-grub. It works for me. Hope this could help...

[MuppetandChums]

I have Ubuntu 9.1 installed flawlessly on PC with Win 7 64 bit both via GRUB as separate instal & inside VMware Player in Win 7.

No Problem....but I am NEW at this.

Old Thinkpad T42... 1gb memory + 40Gb HD.
Instal routine is a mess. Reformated entire HD to get rid of IBM ' secret partition ' now as one large partition.

Live CD will not install. tried 3x
USB - UnetBootin will not install. tried 2x
same error message as above.

' no such device - failed to boot.... '

Try nautilus as suggested ...cannot see any grub.cfg file to edit. Dont think its a graphical login...Terminal Window - Nautilus is just like cmd.exe in windows

(Ubuntu 9.1 instal does not appear to be idiot proof, Mr Shuttleworth ?)

Where do I go to from here ?

Muppet & Chums


Got fed up and assumed there was a secret IBM partition still on the Thinkpad affecting GRUB.


Got out KILLDISK on CD.... booted from it and reformatted the entire HD.

Installed Ubuntu 9.1 from USB stick Unetbootin.

All works fine.

No idea why.

M & C

[jjarven]

Ah. IBM Thinkpad / ThinkCentre / ...

This may help:

BIOS settings -> Security

Set "Access IBM Predesktop Area:" to DISABLED.


Jaakko

[Tom of Helatrobus]

I've was installing 9.10 on a Maxtor 34098h4.


After I installed, and before shutting down the computer, I went to System/Administration/Update Manager, checked for updates and then updated everything.
Removed the install CD and restarted...
Got the "No such device" message.
Put the install CD back in and cold booted the computer
I entered into the bios (pressing DEL during start up - that might be different for different motherboards) and set the settings to default - just to eliminate any question about bios. On my CMOS utility I entered "Load Optimized Defaults." What ever the settings are, make sure the CDROM boots first, of course. You can check by going to advanced BIOS features and making sure the first boot device is CDROM.
From the Ubuntu CD, select language (english, in my case) and then "Boot from first hard disk."
Selected the first entry and pressed "e" for edit.
I edited the code, removing the line; "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop " ("123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop" is different for different hardware), then I pressed ctrl-x to boot.

The OS booted and once in the system I opened a terminal; Applications/Accessories/Terminal.
In the terminal I entered "sudo nautilus" then entered password.
Waited for nautilus to open, then in the file browser I browsed to the main file system (what ever that is called) by pressing the "up" button (twice - go as high as you can go...).
Navigated to boot/grub/grub.cfg
Before opening grub.cfg, right click, select properties, select permissions. Change the second selection box (for owner access) to "read and write." Then close.
Open grub.cfg
Ignore the comment "DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE" at the top of the file
Find the section that begins with: "####BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux..." (This might be different for different versions of ubuntu.)
Remove the line that reads search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop. This might be a few about 6 lines down.

You might want to remove that same line in the section for "recovery mode," I didn't, but it might be a good idea.
Press save, if it doesn't let you save - then you forgot to change the permissions - go back to step 13.

Right click on grub.cfg, select properties>permissions and change owner access back to "read only." Then close.
Navigate to the file system using the "up" button or by pressing the file system icon.

Navigate to etc/default/grub.
Right click to access properties and change permissions of owner access to read and write. Then close
Open grub and find the line GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0 (this was 3 for four lines down on my version) and change to #GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0. The "#" turns the command off so that the computer doesn't read it. (This step might not be necessary - but it is working, so I won't fool with it.)
Save and close. Then enter the properties of grub again and change the permissions back to read only for owner access.
Close out all windows, remove install CD and shut down...
Restart...
The GNU GRUB window shows up and automatically boots Ubuntu generic after 4 seconds.

They you are in...

The key to it seems to be removing the line "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop .

[Hermes7]

I have a Sony Vaio laptop but cannot install Linux to the HDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have installed a new HDD thinking it may help but this same problem persists. I can run Ubuntu from the CD but after I install it to the hard drive I then have to re-start after removing cd, pressing enter and it re-boots but no such device comes up saying press any key to continue but the line is repeated each time I do.

Best option is to switch off swap the hdd with the one that has XP on it so I can get back online.

I really wanted to stick with Linux but I have installed Ubuntu 5 times, Fedora once and mint once and the same problem everytime it re-boots after the HDD install.

Really frustrated after 1 week of trying but I don't know much about linux so I have no idea.

HELP needed before I reluctantly buy Windows 7 to ease my torment with Linux Ubuntu.

Thanks

[Tom of Helatrobus]

I have a Sony Vaio laptop but cannot install Linux to the HDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have installed a new HDD thinking it may help but this same problem persists. I can run Ubuntu from the CD but after I install it to the hard drive I then have to re-start after removing cd, pressing enter and it re-boots but no such device comes up saying press any key to continue but the line is repeated each time I do.

Best option is to switch off swap the hdd with the one that has XP on it so I can get back online.

I really wanted to stick with Linux but I have installed Ubuntu 5 times, Fedora once and mint once and the same problem everytime it re-boots after the HDD install.

Really frustrated after 1 week of trying but I don't know much about linux so I have no idea.

HELP needed before I reluctantly buy Windows 7 to ease my torment with Linux Ubuntu.

Thanks

That's exactly what was happening to me. Did you try steps 1-29? Give it a try please, for the glory of freeware.

[jimflood]

I believe the problem is with the BIOS not supporting the larger disk. I hit the same problem replacing a 40GB drive with a 250GB drive with a fresh install of 9.10 on an old Latitude C840 running BIOS version A06.

Googling online (after rebooting from the CD) I found a suggestion to create a smaller boot partition. I would guess that Grub is limited by the BIOS in the initial phases of booting, and a smaller boot partition at the front of the disk would keep the entire partition "visible to BIOS".

I re-installed from scratch, and at the point where you are given partition options, I chose to create custom partitions. The installer gave me a single, large partition and a small swap partition to start with. I resized the large partition down to 20MB (specifying a value of 21475) to mount as /, and then took up the resulting large space in the middle into a new partition mounted as /home, leaving the swap partition alone. This keeps all of the boot stuff down in the first 20MB, and so far it's working fine.

If this is indeed a good solution, then the installer could suggest a three-partition configuration (with a big /home) for large hard disks to work around the problem.

[m4nm4n]

I've was installing 9.10 on a Maxtor 34098h4.


After I installed, and before shutting down the computer, I went to System/Administration/Update Manager, checked for updates and then updated everything.
Removed the install CD and restarted...
Got the "No such device" message.
Put the install CD back in and cold booted the computer
I entered into the bios (pressing DEL during start up - that might be different for different motherboards) and set the settings to default - just to eliminate any question about bios. On my CMOS utility I entered "Load Optimized Defaults." What ever the settings are, make sure the CDROM boots first, of course. You can check by going to advanced BIOS features and making sure the first boot device is CDROM.
From the Ubuntu CD, select language (english, in my case) and then "Boot from first hard disk."
Selected the first entry and pressed "e" for edit.
I edited the code, removing the line; "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop " ("123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop" is different for different hardware), then I pressed ctrl-x to boot.

The OS booted and once in the system I opened a terminal; Applications/Accessories/Terminal.
In the terminal I entered "sudo nautilus" then entered password.
Waited for nautilus to open, then in the file browser I browsed to the main file system (what ever that is called) by pressing the "up" button (twice - go as high as you can go...).
Navigated to boot/grub/grub.cfg
Before opening grub.cfg, right click, select properties, select permissions. Change the second selection box (for owner access) to "read and write." Then close.
Open grub.cfg
Ignore the comment "DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE" at the top of the file
Find the section that begins with: "####BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux..." (This might be different for different versions of ubuntu.)
Remove the line that reads search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop. This might be a few about 6 lines down.

You might want to remove that same line in the section for "recovery mode," I didn't, but it might be a good idea.
Press save, if it doesn't let you save - then you forgot to change the permissions - go back to step 13.

Right click on grub.cfg, select properties>permissions and change owner access back to "read only." Then close.
Navigate to the file system using the "up" button or by pressing the file system icon.

Navigate to etc/default/grub.
Right click to access properties and change permissions of owner access to read and write. Then close
Open grub and find the line GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0 (this was 3 for four lines down on my version) and change to #GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0. The "#" turns the command off so that the computer doesn't read it. (This step might not be necessary - but it is working, so I won't fool with it.)
Save and close. Then enter the properties of grub again and change the permissions back to read only for owner access.
Close out all windows, remove install CD and shut down...
Restart...
The GNU GRUB window shows up and automatically boots Ubuntu generic after 4 seconds.

They you are in...

The key to it seems to be removing the line "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop .



This worked perfectly. Thank you so much.

[bamdl001]

I've was installing 9.10 on a Maxtor 34098h4.


After I installed, and before shutting down the computer, I went to System/Administration/Update Manager, checked for updates and then updated everything.
Removed the install CD and restarted...
Got the "No such device" message.
Put the install CD back in and cold booted the computer
I entered into the bios (pressing DEL during start up - that might be different for different motherboards) and set the settings to default - just to eliminate any question about bios. On my CMOS utility I entered "Load Optimized Defaults." What ever the settings are, make sure the CDROM boots first, of course. You can check by going to advanced BIOS features and making sure the first boot device is CDROM.
From the Ubuntu CD, select language (english, in my case) and then "Boot from first hard disk."
Selected the first entry and pressed "e" for edit.
I edited the code, removing the line; "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop " ("123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop" is different for different hardware), then I pressed ctrl-x to boot.

The OS booted and once in the system I opened a terminal; Applications/Accessories/Terminal.
In the terminal I entered "sudo nautilus" then entered password.
Waited for nautilus to open, then in the file browser I browsed to the main file system (what ever that is called) by pressing the "up" button (twice - go as high as you can go...).
Navigated to boot/grub/grub.cfg
Before opening grub.cfg, right click, select properties, select permissions. Change the second selection box (for owner access) to "read and write." Then close.
Open grub.cfg
Ignore the comment "DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE" at the top of the file
Find the section that begins with: "####BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux..." (This might be different for different versions of ubuntu.)
Remove the line that reads search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop. This might be a few about 6 lines down.

You might want to remove that same line in the section for "recovery mode," I didn't, but it might be a good idea.
Press save, if it doesn't let you save - then you forgot to change the permissions - go back to step 13.

Right click on grub.cfg, select properties>permissions and change owner access back to "read only." Then close.
Navigate to the file system using the "up" button or by pressing the file system icon.

Navigate to etc/default/grub.
Right click to access properties and change permissions of owner access to read and write. Then close
Open grub and find the line GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0 (this was 3 for four lines down on my version) and change to #GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0. The "#" turns the command off so that the computer doesn't read it. (This step might not be necessary - but it is working, so I won't fool with it.)
Save and close. Then enter the properties of grub again and change the permissions back to read only for owner access.
Close out all windows, remove install CD and shut down...
Restart...
The GNU GRUB window shows up and automatically boots Ubuntu generic after 4 seconds.

They you are in...

The key to it seems to be removing the line "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop .


Hi There, how did you edit in step 8? When I pressed e all I got was a command prompt so what did you type into the command prompt to actually remove the line? I'ma newbie and I'm trying to install Karmic 9.10 on my NEC Versa laptop. I keep getting the same error so I'm hunting the forums looking for advice. I installed Karmic 9.10 on my desktop without any problems and it works beautifully but this laptop is causing me a headache.

Cheers

[presence1960]

Let's keep this simple. 29 steps are not required to fix the no such device error. See here for the simple fix: http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/bootinfoscript/index.php?title=Boot_Problems:search

[bamdl001]

Let's keep this simple. 29 steps are not required to fix the no such device error. See here for the simple fix: http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/bootinfoscript/index.php?title=Boot_Problems:search

THANK YOU!!!!! you have made my day.. it worked. In fact thanks to all for their input

Cheers :D

[presence1960]

THANK YOU!!!!! you have made my day.. it worked. In fact thanks to all for their input

Cheers :D

You are welcome. Enjoy Ubuntu :D

[n0njy]

I ran into this exact problem last night. I'll try some of the solutions here (especially the wiki solution posted near the end above).

I wiped my 160 gig drive to reinstall 9.10 last night got almost exactly those errors.

(Posted in another thread a bit ago, then found this one).

I'll let you know if it works for my old laptop.

(For the record I had upgraded from 8.04 with no problems, but later realized I still had XP on the laptop and it was taking up about half the hard drive so I wanted to dedicate it only to linux. So, instead of changing the partitions or whatever, I wiped things and started from scratch. Then I got the error on boot up after the install).

[erimol]

steps 1-29 worked flawlessly for me! Thanks:p

[gregkrc]

1-29 worked for me as well. Although after I finally got in and updated Ubuntu, it changed the grub.cfg file back to include the lines removed in 1-29. Any permanent fixes/updates for this yet?

[drs305]

1-29 worked for me as well. Although after I finally got in and updated Ubuntu, it changed the grub.cfg file back to include the lines removed in 1-29. Any permanent fixes/updates for this yet?

If you needed to come to this thread then it appears there is still a problem, at least for some users (including you).

A better solution than taking 29 steps is to go to the link provided in post #29.

The reason your fix didn't 'stick' is that you edited grub.cfg. This file is updated any time you or the system runs "update-grub", so you lose your changes. Besides you running "update-grub", the system automatically runs it for a variety of reasons, including grub version updates and the introduction of new kernels.

A better approach than editing grub.cfg is to edit the file that creates that file - /usr/lib/grub/grub-mkconfig_lib

Here is how (also detailed in the link referenced in post #29):
Edit the file. The section should begin shrtly after line 150.

gksu gedit +150 /usr/lib/grub/grub-mkconfig_lib
Find the section below and add the comment symbols as indicated:


# If there's a filesystem UUID that GRUB is capable of identifying, use it;
# otherwise set root as per value in device.map.
echo "set root='`${grub_probe} --device ${device} --target=drive`'"
# if fs_uuid="`${grub_probe} --device ${device} --target=fs_uuid 2> /dev/null`" ; then
# echo "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set ${fs_uuid}"
# fi

Save the file and update-grub.

Note that the change will persist after "update-grub" commands but if a new system update to Grub includes a change to grub-mkconfig_lib you will need to make the change again.

[SC_Dave]

I am very, very new at Ubuntu. Linux for that matter. But, as with all of “Mr. Bills offspring”, I too am changing my evil ways. Having said that; point is.
What ever the error message on your laptop, machine or what ever; that causes a boot failure after 9.10 has been installed.
Select “e” and edit out the line the non-existent device is in. Then hit Ctl-X.
It took me about an hour of reading these forums, and learning simple grub editing. So I took a shot at what seemed logical.
1-E for edit, edit.
2- Remove the phantom device
3-Ctl-X and boot it up
Hope this helps other lost sheep.
Have a nice day.:P

[SerialSniper]

Hey I encountered this problem on a Dell Inspiron 600m. I was dual booting Windows 7 and Windows XP before I decided to install Ubuntu 9.10 as a third OS. After performing the fix described in the first post Ubuntu worked however now both Windows7 and WindowsXP are now giving an 0x0000007b BSOD! This error seems to be, in my case, related to missing/corrupt boot files.

The Windows 7 repair utility does not find the installation so I cannot try rebuilding the MBR or do anything from there really. The installation is still there as I can see it from Ubuntu and tested the HDD anyway and it passed.

Changing the grub.cfg file back to its original state does not solve the problem.

Any ideas? Googleing for the 0x0000007b error doesn´t relly help as most solutions involve fixing/rebuilding the MBR from windows recovery.

What exactly did the fix do? And more importantly how do I reverse it to get my windows installations back, most importantly the Windows 7 one.

Thanks

EDIT: fdisk -l


Disk /dev/sda: 40.0 GB, 40007761920 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 4864 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x00000000

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 13 102400 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda2 13 3095 24751104 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda3 3096 4864 14209492+ f W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/sda5 3096 3732 5116671 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda6 3733 4809 8650971 83 Linux
/dev/sda7 4810 4864 441756 82 Linux swap / Solaris


"Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary." does not sound good. I have installed testdisk on ubuntu but don't want to change anything at this point. Advice welcome

[kurumban]

""error: no such device : ba123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop
Failed to boot default entries
Press any key to continue

On pressing any key error message is repeated. ""

I encountered this issue. i tried most of the solutions from this thread. i did not try some because i do not know how to try those.

I AM VERY NEW TO LINUX.

I downloaded ubuntu 9.10 and copied the image and tried to install it. here i got in to this problem.

Please give all steps for the solution do not assume i know something about linux :P
I do not understand why new copy is giving this installation headache](*,)

[Spikx]

According to the buglist (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/grub2/+bug/403408) a fix has been released.

Does Ubuntu obtain this fix automatically through updates? I still have the problem :(

[JCMB1]

This handy bit of advice was all I needed:

http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawik...roblems:search (http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/bootinfoscript/index.php?title=Boot_Problems:search)

I deleted the line in the boot script which was like this:

search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 86d32ee3-aec6-490b-8dab-e5cfff9c7af9

And the laptop is now up and running Ubuntu 9.1 beautifully!

[zeeshaan]

If you are having real boot problems on ubuntu and wana get the system running try this -
Zee's 6 step Ubuntu fix!
http://zeeis.me/ubuntu-boot-error-si...r-root-device/ (http://zeeis.me/ubuntu-boot-error-simple-fix-gave-up-waiting-for-root-device/)
If you wanna share it with anyone or post it on your website, please mention a linkback as credit.

[BigD77]

I've was installing 9.10 on a Maxtor 34098h4.


After I installed, and before shutting down the computer, I went to System/Administration/Update Manager, checked for updates and then updated everything.
Removed the install CD and restarted...
Got the "No such device" message.
Put the install CD back in and cold booted the computer
I entered into the bios (pressing DEL during start up - that might be different for different motherboards) and set the settings to default - just to eliminate any question about bios. On my CMOS utility I entered "Load Optimized Defaults." What ever the settings are, make sure the CDROM boots first, of course. You can check by going to advanced BIOS features and making sure the first boot device is CDROM.
From the Ubuntu CD, select language (english, in my case) and then "Boot from first hard disk."
Selected the first entry and pressed "e" for edit.
I edited the code, removing the line; "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop " ("123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop" is different for different hardware), then I pressed ctrl-x to boot.

The OS booted and once in the system I opened a terminal; Applications/Accessories/Terminal.
In the terminal I entered "sudo nautilus" then entered password.
Waited for nautilus to open, then in the file browser I browsed to the main file system (what ever that is called) by pressing the "up" button (twice - go as high as you can go...).
Navigated to boot/grub/grub.cfg
Before opening grub.cfg, right click, select properties, select permissions. Change the second selection box (for owner access) to "read and write." Then close.
Open grub.cfg
Ignore the comment "DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE" at the top of the file
Find the section that begins with: "####BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux..." (This might be different for different versions of ubuntu.)
Remove the line that reads search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop. This might be a few about 6 lines down.

You might want to remove that same line in the section for "recovery mode," I didn't, but it might be a good idea.
Press save, if it doesn't let you save - then you forgot to change the permissions - go back to step 13.

Right click on grub.cfg, select properties>permissions and change owner access back to "read only." Then close.
Navigate to the file system using the "up" button or by pressing the file system icon.

Navigate to etc/default/grub.
Right click to access properties and change permissions of owner access to read and write. Then close
Open grub and find the line GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0 (this was 3 for four lines down on my version) and change to #GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0. The "#" turns the command off so that the computer doesn't read it. (This step might not be necessary - but it is working, so I won't fool with it.)
Save and close. Then enter the properties of grub again and change the permissions back to read only for owner access.
Close out all windows, remove install CD and shut down...
Restart...
The GNU GRUB window shows up and automatically boots Ubuntu generic after 4 seconds.

They you are in...

The key to it seems to be removing the line "search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 123456-7890-abcd-efghijklmnop .


You're the man! I had the same problem, and this solved it perfectly! :guitar:

[BigD77]

Alright, since it seems that no one is asking this, I'll ask.

Why is this happening?

It started for me when I tried to install 10.10 after having problems with 10.04 as I had in a previous thread. It also happened when I tried Lubuntu 11.04 as well. Then I formatted the entire drive, loaded XP, then went back to 9.10 and had the same problem. After doing what was suggested on this thread, everything works and life is good.