Score:0

Suddenly boot problem: "The selected boot device failed. Press Enter to Continue"

br flag

Something weird happened some days ago and I cannot explain it to myself. I am running Xubuntu from external HDD via USB on a Laptop (Laptop internal SDD has windows ). Every essential Linux things are on external hdd (Root FS, boot etc) A am doing it form about 2 years now and everything went smooth. Suddenly after I turned my laptop in order to boot Ubuntu I get the message: "The selected boot device failed. Press Enter to Continue" and do not want to boot xubuntu. I cannot tell if the where an windows update a day before, or a Ubuntu update I cannot figure it out really. When I boot from a live USB a can mount the HDD and am able to access all the File system, and see all partition, I Also run the boot-repair tool but it did not help. I even got the internal SSD out and contacted only with USB external HDD and boot-repair sees all partitions and checks the boot partition, but after restart int fails again.

Here is the boot-repair Log.

https://paste.ubuntu.com/p/KWmRgRwyHG/

Can someone help me with this ?

oldfred avatar
cn flag
It looks like you have mixed UEFI and BIOS boot. Windows is probably BIOS/MBR, since no UEFI boot entry, but sda has an ESP - efi system partition with Ubuntu boot files. But sda is MBR with a grub installed in MBR for BIOS boot. Windows requires gpt for UEFI boot, but Ubuntu will let you boot in UEFI mode from MBR drive (probably should not). You have mount of ESP in fstab, so that is why it wants to reinstall grub in UEFI mode. The GUID errors may be from converting drive to MBR from gpt? If Windows is BIOS boot may be better to keep Ubuntu as BIOS boot??
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
The attached log shows the repair atemmpt where the internal SSD (containing windows) was removed. Perhaps that is why you don't see any windows info? I would not like to install xubunto from scratch because it si a lot of programs and data on it
oldfred avatar
cn flag
UEFI remembers entries until you delete them. If drive removed, it usually keeps an entry, but changes it (not sure why). Do you have good backups. If not that should be first thing you do. Since UEFI system, is Windows UEFI boot? Microsoft has required vendors to install in UEFI/gpt mode since 2012. But users could use BIOS/MBR. You should have Ubuntu in same boot mode as Windows, but since separate drives that means it is not a requirement, if you always boot from UEFI/BIOS. Do you want UEFI or BIOS boot of Ubuntu?
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
Both uefi I suppose
oldfred avatar
cn flag
Bit worried about all the "GUID Partition Table Header signature is wrong:" errors. Post this but do not do any write. Want to see its error messages: `sudo gdisk -l /dev/sda` Do not make any changes unless you have good backups.
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
GPT fdisk (gdisk) version 1.0.6 Warning: Partition table header claims that the size of partition table entries is 0 bytes, but this program supports only 128-byte entries. Adjusting accordingly, but partition table may be garbage. Warning: Partition table header claims that the size of partition table entries is 0 bytes, but this program supports only 128-byte entries. Adjusting accordingly, but partition table may be garbage. Partition table scan: MBR: MBR only BSD: not present APM: not present GPT: not present
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
Found invalid GPT and valid MBR; converting MBR to GPT format in memory. Disk /dev/sdb: 976773168 sectors, 465.8 GiB Model: 00BPVT-80HXZT1 Sector size (logical/physical): 512/4096 bytes Disk identifier (GUID): 14D74FE5-DC27-4101-9052-90D5055549E9 Partition table holds up to 128 entries Main partition table begins at sector 2 and ends at sector 33 First usable sector is 34, last usable sector is 976773134 Partitions will be aligned on 2048-sector boundaries Total free space is 7882540 sectors (3.8 GiB)
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
umber Start (sector) End (sector) Size Code Name 1 48060416 462117056 197.4 GiB 8300 Linux filesystem 2 9035776 48060415 18.6 GiB 8200 Linux swap 4 7878656 9035775 565.0 MiB EF00 EFI system partition 5 462118912 976771071 245.4 GiB 0700 Microsoft basic data
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
how to post the entire command return? @oldfred there is this warning: Found invalid GPT and valid MBR; converting MBR to GPT format in memory.
oldfred avatar
cn flag
Was drive originally for UEFI boot and then gpt partitioned? And then did you convert from gpt to MBR with Windows or by installing Windows in BIOS mode which would convert drive? Windows gpt to MBR conversion is known to not convert correctly. It leaves backup gpt table at end of drive, but uses MBR. Linux tools see MBR & backup gpt and get confused on what you have or want. I do not recommend BIOS installs with UEFI hardware. And recommend gpt partitioning. But Microsoft requires MBR with BIOS install of Windows.
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
Well I did not convert anything, I just created a bootable, portable Linux HDD via USB and it worked like from the beginning. Suddenly it did not. I installed Linux in efi mode. Does it make sense to instal grub manually? Since it does not appear in the first place. Is it possible that Sompting has change the content in /boot??
oldfred avatar
cn flag
You have to resolve partition issue first. FixParts is the easiest way to remove the stray GPT data. GPT fdisk (gdisk or sgdisk) can do it, but the procedure's a bit more involved. http://www.rodsbooks.com/fixparts/ That should remove the incorrect gpt data. Then you can reinstall grub-pc (BIOS version of grub).
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
Can you write the exact command with fixpart that remove the got stray? Or what the procedures in options would be?
oldfred avatar
cn flag
I have never used fixparts. Are not details in the link to it? And it says in the details, do a backup of the partition table to another device, so you could restore current configuration if issues.
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
I made a back up. Still doesn't clear how to femove that gpt stray. I am goimg to read the manual again
Jojojo Jaja avatar
br flag
I tried out fixparts as manual stated, but no GPT stray has been found. And still problem occurs. I am forced to install xubuntu again...
Score:0
br flag

The main problem was the portable function of the HDD. SOmthing went wrong with grub and/or boot partition. Raw re-instalation did not helped. What solve the problem was configuring the boot partition again like here in this blog: https://www.dionysopoulos.me/making-a-portable-full-installation-of-ubuntu-on-a-usb-hdd.html

  1. mount the / partition on live Xubuntu and change the correct UIDD of the boot partition of the external USB HDD
  2. mount on live USB in the / partition the boot partition in /boot/efi and install under chroot on boot partition grub with option --removable

What caused the issue I don' know - maybe a update but I cannot confirm it

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