Ubuntu Won't Boot

[Uncoordinated]

Hello, so recently I decided to build a computer.
Here are the specs.
Amd Phenom II X4 960T
ASRock 970 EXTREME4
Case- COOLER MASTER Elite 430 RC-430-KWN1
Video Card-HIS iSilence 4 H667PS1G Radeon HD 6670
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM
PSU-CORSAIR Builder Series CX500 V2 500W ATX12V


I had a broken external Hard Drive lying around so I looked up how to fix it and apparently you can use it as an internal harddrive, so I did.

I put Ubuntu on a USB 2.0 stick and tried it on the setup, it worked. I then installed, took out the usb stick and rebooted it. When it rebooted it went to a black screen with small strip flashing on the top. I tried rebooting it this time it when to the color of Ubuntu like a orangish color but went back to the black screen with a strip of flashing across the top. I then tried installing lubuntu. It did the same thing so I told my did to dad to leave it running for 10 minutes and just shut it off. He then apparently tried to shut it off but couldn't. I came back from a guitar lesson about and hour and a half later to find it asking me whether I wanted to do a memory test or boot linux. I booted linux and it worked. I wanted Ubuntu though so I booted it from a usb drive and formatted the hard drive and installed it. When I tried to boot it it did the black screen with small strip flashing across the top again. I am letting it run currently. By the way the Ubuntu version is 11.01.

Ask if you need any further information. Sorry for any grammatical or spelling errors.

 

[PreferLinux]

Are you sure the hard drive is good? It obviously boots fine from the USB stick, so that seems the most likely problem. How long did it take to install?

When asking if you wanted to boot Linux, it would have been referring to Ubuntu.

 

[Uncoordinated]

I think it might be the hard dive but the thing is it ran fine with lubuntu on it.

Ya it asked me if I wanted to boot lubuntu, I just used Linux and lubuntu interchangeably.

 

[PreferLinux]

But did you leave it for as long waiting for it to boot Ubuntu? There shouldn't be a difference between Ubuntu and Lubuntu while booting – the only differences are the software and the DE.

 

[Uncoordinated]

Ya I left alone as long as before, even longer. When I booted the computer from a usb drive It said that the disk was fine except for proper airflow through the hard dive which was probably due to it being old. So I was thinking that it doesn't boot all the way up because it doesn't want to harm the hdd further. I don't know, just putting some thoughts out there.

 

[PreferLinux]

Strange. No, it isn't anything to do with the SMART status, including temperature or airflow – it wouldn't affect it booting. Are you sure that the Ubuntu ISO/whatever downloaded correctly, and then transferred to the USB stick correctly? Could it be the motherboard, or options in the BIOS? If you have a Windows disc available, see if a Windows install will work – don't put in a licence code, or activate (it should work for 30 days).

 

[Uncoordinated]

I tried downloading it on different usb drives but its always the same. I new to building computers so I really don't have a clue about what would prevent it in the bios. All I really do is change the boot order. I do have an XP disk that I might try out. I think I might take it to a computer shop today.

 

[Uncoordinated]

So I tried installing Windows XP 32 bit service pack 3 and It went to this error message.

C0000221 Unknown Hard Error \systemroot\system32\ntdll.dll

 

[PreferLinux]

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314474 Basically, it seems to be saying that the file mentioned is corrupted. On a new install, when you've been having that much trouble with both Linux and Windows, I suggest that it means the HDD is no good. So the only option that I can see is to replace the hard drive. Unless you just run it off the USB stick (which is probably not that great, really).

 

[Uncoordinated]

So i went to a computer repair shop and told them my dilemma. The guy told me that Ubuntu probably was not compatible with my new computer parts and it would take some time before they update it. He mentioned the M/B might be the issue. He suggested getting windows 7 and trying it out because Windows Xp is no longer backed up by Microsoft or something and there could be some compatibility issues. The reason I am hesitant about the HDD being messed up is because lubuntu ran on it.


Do you think the guy at the shop was on to something?

Thanks for responding to all my questions.

 

[Ijack]

I don't think the guy in the computer shop knew what he was talking about.

You spend all that money on building a new computer and then use a hard drive that came out of a non-functioning external drive? No wonder you are having problems. Try a new hard disk.

 

[Uncoordinated]

So would you recommend buying a new HDD or windows 7.

For a HDD what should I get and where, on a budget here.

I might try getting a very cheap HDD off of craigslist to see if that is the problem.

 

[PreferLinux]

So i went to a computer repair shop and told them my dilemma. The guy told me that Ubuntu probably was not compatible with my new computer parts and it would take some time before they update it. He mentioned the M/B might be the issue. He suggested getting windows 7 and trying it out because Windows Xp is no longer backed up by Microsoft or something and there could be some compatibility issues. The reason I am hesitant about the HDD being messed up is because lubuntu ran on it.


Do you think the guy at the shop was on to something?

Thanks for responding to all my questions.

No, the guy doesn't know anything about it. Those parts have been supported for years, not to mention that it would have been supported before they released – my SB hardware worked fine on a Linux distro released a year before hand, and also on Vista, without any problems (no, it hadn't had any updates). I don't think it is likely to be the motherboard either. Nor compatibility issues. The proof of this is that Ubuntu works fine when running of the USB stick. I suggest you get a cheap HDD that you can guarantee is working, and see how it goes. Hard drive failures of this type (assuming it is, which is pretty safe) can have rather strange behaviour because it will fail on some reads and not others.

 

[amdfangirl]

Or make a persistent installation of Linux onto your USB and install a hard drive testing tool.

 

[audiovoodoo]

I'll chip in to 3rd the vote that the HDD is the likely culprit here. PreferLinux is correct that HDD failure can be a bit random at times. I lost a disk a few years back and it really took some digging to get to the bottom of what was going on.

 

[audiovoodoo]

Or make a persistent installation of Linux onto your USB and install a hard drive testing tool.

The Ausie speaks sense here. You should be able to see warnings in SMART tools.

 

[amdfangirl]

The Ausie speaks sense here. You should be able to see warnings in SMART tools.

Is that a hint of surprise or sarcasm? I can't tell

 

[Uncoordinated]

Right now Im doing a full format of the HDD. Then ill try windows again, if it doesn't work ill probably get a cheap HDD to see if thats the problem. Ill keep you guys posted.

 

[audiovoodoo]

Is that a hint of surprise or sarcasm? I can't tell

Just geographic envy and direct observation. [/It's bloody cold here right now!]

You know I'm an amdfangirlfan really

 

[audiovoodoo]

Right now Im doing a full format of the HDD. Then ill try windows again, if it doesn't work ill probably get a cheap HDD to see if thats the problem. Ill keep you guys posted.

If you get XP installed and booted I'd still strongly recommend that you check the output from SMART, this is a system built into the disc that allows you to see the diagnostic data and should show you any errors. You can download the free tools for Windows from the link below:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/smartmontools/files/

Instructions are provided here

http://sourceforge.net/apps/trac/smartmontools/wiki/Download#Windows-InstalltheWindowspackage

It's a simple install and once you have it you can run the application from the program group. This takes you to a command line. For a simple health check just type

[cpp]smartctl c: -H[/cpp]

This gives you a simple pass fail result but might not find deeper issues with the drive.

You can also see the drive attributes to see if you can spot any errors:

[cpp]smartctl c: -A[/cpp]

There are lots of other diagnostics the tool supports but these are the two that should flag serious issues.

 

[Uncoordinated]

When I was running Ubuntu off of a USB drive I checked disk utility and it has the S.M.A.R.T. thing but it said there were non major issues. I tried using a vista installation disk. The installation was going smoothly until it said it needed to load drivers for my HDD and it wasn't able to see the HDD. Sort of sick of it so I just about to ordered this-http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Caviar-Cache-Desktop/dp/B00461LT6S/ref=sr_1_7?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1327018290&sr=1-7

Is this a good HDD im still on a budget but kind of want to go with 1 TB.

 

[PreferLinux]

Yes, that HDD looks fine.

 

[Uncoordinated]

Best answer selected by uncoordinated.

 

[amdfangirl]

This topic has been closed by Amdfangirl