Dual boot Win 7 / Ubuntu 12.04 borked.

[globetrotterdk]

I am a new member of this forum and a Windows user for the first time in ten years (Win2K). I have been running my Windows 7 install for two weeks on my home built, desktop box. When I originally installed Win 7, I erased my Linux system and let the Windows 7 installer choose which of my two internal drives to install on. The install went fine, but after two weeks I started missing Linux. Yesterday, I installed the latest version of Ubuntu. This formats the drive (in Linux /dev/sda - I don't know what that would be in Windows) and installs the Linux Grub 2 boot loader. However, Grub 2 is unable to find a Win 7 installation that it can add to the boot loader. I assume that either the Win 7 boot loader files were deleted or the "secret" partition was erased, or both. I have a post here that has been trying to address the problem mainly from the Linux side, but as can be seen, I also refer to what I have done to try to repair the Win 7 boot loader. The problem is that I have basically been asking Linux users to help me with a Win 7 problem.

Anyone out there that can help me sort this out, so that I can use both Linux and Windows?

 

[Golden]

Hi,

Download and use the free version of EasyBCD to add the Ubuntu entry so it chainloads from the Windows bootloader. Refer to this guide:

http://neosmart.net/wiki/display/EBCD/Ubuntu

Regards,
Golden

 

[globetrotterdk]

Thanks for the3 quick response. It looks like the author of that guide makes the assumption that the user can boot into Windows. I can't. Using chkdsk, I can see that the Windows system is fine. The only error was an allocation issue with the MBR.

 

[Kaktussoft]

what and how many partitions are on sda?
what and how many partitions are on sdb?
What is linux (sdb1, sdb2... or?)
and what is win7?

 

[Kaktussoft]

Try this How to add Vista/Windows 7 partition to Grub 2 (Ubuntu 9.10, Karmic Koala) « Eric's Notes
Does it change the grub2 bootmenu? Windows 7 boots?

 

[globetrotterdk]

/dev/sda is where Ubuntu 12.04 resides. The disk has a root partition at sda1, sda2 is an extended partition. sda5 is a swap partition. sda6 is a home partition. There is only one partition on sdb it is a primary NTFS partition at sdb1

 

[globetrotterdk]

I get the message "BOOTMGR missing". when I try to boot Win 7 from Grub

 

[Kaktussoft]

/dev/sda is where Ubuntu 12.04 resides. The disk has a root partition at sda1, sda2 is an extended partition. sda5 is a swap partition. sda6 is a home partition. There is only one partition on sdb it is a primary NTFS partition at sdb1

So sdb is for win7 and has only 1 big partition. Is that an active partition?
sda is all linux stuff.

 

[Kaktussoft]

I get the message "BOOTMGR missing". when I try to boot Win 7 from Grub

Post file /boot/grub/grub.cfg
/etc/grub.d/11_Windows as well

 

[globetrotterdk]

sdb (Win 7) is flagged as a "boot" partition in Gparted and sda (Ubuntu) is not.

The /boot/grub/grub.cfg file contents is located here.

I deleted /etc/grub.d/11_Windows because it wasn't working. I tried both the original posting and the version for two disks that is mentioned in the comments section. Even the menu entry came out looking weird. I know, the function is more important than the aesthetics, but as neither was working... I have also been looking at this posting, but I am having some difficulty wrapping my head around it.

 

[Kaktussoft]

sdb (Win 7) is flagged as a "boot" partition in Gparted and sda (Ubuntu) is not.

The /boot/grub/grub.cfg file contents is located here.

I deleted /etc/grub.d/11_Windows because it wasn't working. I tried both the original posting and the version for two disks that is mentioned in the comments section. Even the menu entry came out looking weird. I know, the function is more important than the aesthetics, but as neither was working... I have also been looking at this posting, but I am having some difficulty wrapping my head around it.

I don't see a windows 7 menuentry in your grub file!!

You mean sdb1 is flagged as boot (not sdb)?!

 

[Kaktussoft]

dd if=/dev/sda of=/tmp/mbrsda.bak bs=446 count=1
dd if=/dev/sdb of=/tmp/mbrsdb.bak bs=446 count=1
dd if=/dev/sdb1 of=/tmp/sdb1.bak bs=512 count=1

Post the created bak files in /tmp

/dev/sdb1 does you show windows stuff?
/dev/sdb1/bootmgr exists?
/dev/sdb1/boot/bcd exists?

 

[globetrotterdk]

When using Gparted, the individual partition is flagged. sdb1 is the only partition on my computer that is flagged as "boot". The Win 7 menu entry disappeared when I ditched /etc/grub.d/11_Windows and updated Grub.

I can access sdb1 at will from my Ubuntu 12.04 system. There are no /bootmgr and /bcd directories.

Here is the output of the first of the commands:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sda of=/tmp/mbrsda.bak bs=446 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
446 bytes (446 B) copied, 2.4264e-05 s, 18.4 MB/s

The second command:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sdb of=/tmp/mbrsdb.bak bs=446 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
446 bytes (446 B) copied, 0.0138272 s, 32.3 kB/s

The last command:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sdb1 of=/tmp/sdb1.bak bs=512 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
512 bytes (512 B) copied, 0.000157204 s, 3.3 MB/s

 

[Kaktussoft]

When using Gparted, the individual partition is flagged. sdb1 is the only partition on my computer that is flagged as "boot". The Win 7 menu entry disappeared when I ditched /etc/grub.d/11_Windows and updated Grub.

I can access sdb1 at will from my Ubuntu 12.04 system. There are no /bootmgr and /bcd directories.

Here is the output of the first of the commands:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sda of=/tmp/mbrsda.bak bs=446 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
446 bytes (446 B) copied, 2.4264e-05 s, 18.4 MB/s

The second command:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sdb of=/tmp/mbrsdb.bak bs=446 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
446 bytes (446 B) copied, 0.0138272 s, 32.3 kB/s

The last command:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sdb1 of=/tmp/sdb1.bak bs=512 count=1
1+0 records in
1+0 records out
512 bytes (512 B) copied, 0.000157204 s, 3.3 MB/s

Post /tmp/mbrsda.bak /tmp/mbrsdb.bak and /tmp/sdb1.bak

/dev/sdb1 has a folder called Users and Windows and "Program Files"?

 

[globetrotterdk]

OK, here is all the info.

Edit: Did you get the files you requested as well? I don't see them on my posting. It doesn't look like .bak files are supported for upload.

 

[Kaktussoft]

OK, here is all the info.

Edit: Did you get the files you requested as well? I don't see them on my posting. It doesn't look like .bak files are supported for upload.

Rename the bak files to txt files and upload them

 

[Kaktussoft]

temporary disconnect your windows drive and boot. Does linux boot? Grub errors?
temporary only connect windows drive and boot. What error?

I wanna know for sure, what works and what doesn't. Do you have a win7 install DVD or win7 system repair CD? If so.. it's easy to fix

 

[Kaktussoft]

OK, here is all the info.

Edit: Did you get the files you requested as well? I don't see them on my posting. It doesn't look like .bak files are supported for upload.

In the screenshot of sdb1 I see a lot of windows folders like Windows, users and also hidden system files. But I'm missing file bootmgr and folder boot (folder boot is for bootmenu). Have you delete a partition? Most likely labeled "system reserved"?

Anyway that's the only problem so far. linux boots and it seems to chainload to sdb1 (as it tries to find bootmgr).

 

[globetrotterdk]

Here are the files. I had to restore the MBR so I could boot into Ubuntu after I had run

BOOTREC /FIXBOOT

but otherwise no problems.

No, I don't have any bootmgr and boot folders. I assume they were somewhere on sda before I reformatted the drive in connection with installing Ubuntu 12.04.

 

[gregrocker]

The solution for dual booting when you have multiple HD's is to place each OS on it's own HD, with the other one unplugged during install.

Then set the preferred OS to boot first in BIOS setup, boot the other using the one-time BIOS Boot menu key which every PC or mobo has.