Rocky 8.6 won’t boot on PC with Nvidia Graphics card

Rocky Linux General
1

I’ve tried to boot up the boot.iso on 3 machines.

It works o.k. on an HP Compaq DC5800 which uses Intel graphics.

On the 2 machines with Nvidia Graphics cards, the following sequence is

observed:

-after selecting the install option on the initial screen display, boot-related

messages occur up to the message “Reached target Basic System”

-after a lengthy pause, a warning message is repeated about 40 times:

“dracut-initqueue warning dracut-initqueue timeout - starting timeout scripts”

-the process then exits to the Dracut emergency shell → warning: /dev/root

does not exist.

Nvidia machine details:

For the HP Pavilion m8247c, the sudo inxi -Fxz output is


System: Host: CLM19.2X64 Kernel: 4.15.0-54-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 7.4.0 Desktop: Xfce 4.12.3

Distro: Linux Mint 19.2 Tina base: Ubuntu 18.04 bionic

Machine: Type: Desktop System: HP Pavilion 06 product: D5468AT-ABA ALONPAV v: 1331211RE101EXPLO0 serial: <filter>

Mobo: ECS model: Nettle2 v: 1.0 serial: N/A BIOS: Phoenix v: 5.20 date: 10/03/2007

CPU: Topology: Dual Core model: AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+ bits: 64 type: MCP arch: K8 rev.F+ rev: 3 L2 cache: 2048 KiB

flags: lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 svm bogomips: 4018

Speed: 1000 MHz min/max: 1000/2800 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 1000 2: 1000

Graphics: Device-1: NVIDIA C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] vendor: Hewlett-Packard driver: nvidia v: 304.137

bus ID: 00:0d.0

Display: server: X.Org 1.19.6 driver: nvidia resolution: 1680x1050~60Hz

OpenGL: renderer: GeForce 6150SE nForce 430/integrated/SSE2 v: 2.1.2 NVIDIA 304.137 direct render: Yes

Audio: Device-1: NVIDIA MCP61 High Definition Audio vendor: Hewlett-Packard driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel

bus ID: 00:05.0

Device-2: ViXS Systems XCode 2100 Series vendor: ASUSTeK driver: N/A bus ID: 03:00.0

Device-3: Logitech Webcam C270 type: USB driver: snd-usb-audio,uvcvideo bus ID: 1-1.2:6

Sound Server: ALSA v: k4.15.0-54-generic

Network: Device-1: NVIDIA MCP61 Ethernet vendor: Hewlett-Packard type: network bridge driver: forcedeth v: kernel

port: ec00 bus ID: 00:07.0

IF: enp0s7 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>

Drives: Local Storage: total: 763.85 GiB used: 13.07 GiB (1.7%)

ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Western Digital model: WD5000AAKX-08U6AA0 size: 465.76 GiB temp: 36 C

ID-2: /dev/sdb vendor: Samsung model: HD320KJ size: 298.09 GiB temp: 31 C

ID-3: /dev/sdc type: USB vendor: Sony model: USB Floppy size: 1.4 MiB

Partition: ID-1: / size: 19.56 GiB used: 13.07 GiB (66.8%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda8

ID-2: swap-1 size: 5.08 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sdb8

Sensors: System Temperatures: cpu: 40.0 C mobo: N/A

Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A

Info: Processes: 174 Uptime: 2m Memory: 2.81 GiB used: 502.6 MiB (17.5%) Init: systemd runlevel: 5 Compilers:

gcc: 7.5.0 Shell: bash v: 4.4.20 inxi: 3.0.32

For the HPPavilion m8247c, the sudo parted -l output is:


Model: ATA WDC WD5000AAKX-0 (scsi)

Disk /dev/sda: 500GB

Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B

Partition Table: msdos

Disk Flags:

Number Start End Size Type File system Flags

1 1049kB 161GB 161GB primary ntfs boot

2 161GB 172GB 10.7GB primary ntfs

3 172GB 172GB 524MB primary ntfs

4 172GB 500GB 328GB extended lba

5 172GB 254GB 81.6GB logical ntfs

6 254GB 417GB 163GB logical ntfs

7 417GB 439GB 21.5GB logical ext4

8 439GB 460GB 21.5GB logical ext4

9 460GB 482GB 21.5GB logical ext4

10 482GB 500GB 18.5GB logical ext4

Model: ATA SAMSUNG HD320KJ (scsi)

Disk /dev/sdb: 320GB

Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B

Partition Table: msdos

Disk Flags:

Number Start End Size Type File system Flags

1 32.3kB 107GB 107GB primary ntfs boot

2 107GB 118GB 10.7GB primary ntfs

3 118GB 119GB 1074MB primary ext4

4 119GB 320GB 201GB extended

5 119GB 141GB 21.5GB logical ext4

6 141GB 175GB 34.4GB logical ext4

9 175GB 209GB 34.4GB logical ext4

10 209GB 293GB 83.8GB logical ext4

7 293GB 315GB 21.5GB logical ext4

8 315GB 320GB 5455MB logical linux-swap(v1)

Warning: Unable to open /dev/sdc read-write (Read-only file system). /dev/sdc

has been opened read-only.

Error: /dev/sdc: unrecognised disk label

Model: SONY USB-FDU (scsi)

Disk /dev/sdc: 1475kB

Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B

Partition Table: unknown

Disk Flags:

For the Compaq Presario, the sudo inxi -Fxz output is:


System:

Host: cLMX19 Kernel: 4.15.0-54-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 7.4.0

Desktop: Xfce 4.12.3 Distro: Linux Mint 19.2 Tina base: Ubuntu 18.04 bionic

Machine:

Type: Desktop System: Compaq-Presario product: NY540AA-ABL CQ5210F v: N/A

serial: <filter>

Mobo: PEGATRON model: NARRA5 v: 5.00 serial: <filter> BIOS: Phoenix v: 5.52

date: 09/14/2009

CPU:

Topology: Dual Core model: AMD Athlon II X2 215 bits: 64 type: MCP arch: K10

rev: 2 L2 cache: 1024 KiB

flags: lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4a svm bogomips: 10849

Speed: 800 MHz min/max: 800/2700 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 800 2: 2100

Graphics:

Device-1: NVIDIA C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] vendor: Hewlett-Packard

driver: nvidia v: 304.137 bus ID: 00:0d.0

Display: server: X.Org 1.19.6 driver: nvidia resolution: 1152x864~75Hz

OpenGL: renderer: GeForce 6150SE nForce 430/integrated/SSE2

v: 2.1.2 NVIDIA 304.137 direct render: Yes

Audio:

Device-1: NVIDIA MCP61 High Definition Audio vendor: Hewlett-Packard

driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus ID: 00:05.0

Sound Server: ALSA v: k4.15.0-54-generic

Network:

Device-1: NVIDIA MCP61 Ethernet vendor: Hewlett-Packard type: network bridge

driver: forcedeth v: kernel port: fb00 bus ID: 00:07.0

IF: enp0s7 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>

Drives:

Local Storage: total: 465.76 GiB used: 16.40 GiB (3.5%)

ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Western Digital model: WD5000AAKS-65V0A0 size: 465.76 GiB

temp: 35 C

Partition:

ID-1: / size: 35.28 GiB used: 16.40 GiB (46.5%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda9

Sensors:

System Temperatures: cpu: 40.0 C mobo: N/A

Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A

Info:

Processes: 158 Uptime: 3m Memory: 2.81 GiB used: 527.7 MiB (18.4%) Init: systemd

runlevel: 5 Compilers: gcc: 7.5.0 Shell: bash v: 4.4.20 inxi: 3.0.32

For the Compaq Presario, the sudo parted -l output is:


Model: ATA WDC WD5000AAKS-6 (scsi)

Disk /dev/sda: 500GB

Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B

Partition Table: msdos

Disk Flags:

Number Start End Size Type File system Flags

1 1049kB 106MB 105MB primary ntfs boot

2 106MB 129GB 129GB primary ntfs

3 129GB 142GB 12.6GB primary ntfs

4 142GB 500GB 359GB extended

5 142GB 143GB 1074MB logical ext4

6 143GB 181GB 38.8GB logical ext4

7 181GB 220GB 38.8GB logical ext4

8 220GB 259GB 38.8GB logical ext4

9 259GB 298GB 38.8GB logical ext4

10 298GB 336GB 38.8GB logical ext4

11 336GB 375GB 38.8GB logical ext4

12 375GB 414GB 38.8GB logical ext4

13 414GB 438GB 23.6GB logical ext4

14 438GB 439GB 1074MB logical ext4

15 439GB 493GB 53.9GB logical ext4

16 493GB 500GB 7570MB logical linux-swap(v1)

Warning: Unable to open /dev/sr0 read-write (Read-only file system). /dev/sr0

has been opened read-only.

Error: Too many primary partitions.

Model: hp DVD-RAM GH40L (scsi)

Disk /dev/sr0: 13.8MB

Sector size (logical/physical): 2048B/2048B

Partition Table: unknown

Disk Flags:

Is there a way around this problem ??

Len E.

2

Have you tried text mode install?

If that too fails, then the next thing I would try is to add kernel command line options (the bootloader’s menu should allow that, somehow) to disable nouveau.

3

Helllo
I spent hours and hours getting NVIDIA to work on my Dell Laptop with all sorts of errors.
All I have learnt is that there are basically 2 methods to get it to work.

  1. Install the drivers by involves downloading from the NVIDIA dev repo.
    How to Install or Upgrade Nvidia Drivers on Rocky Linux 8 - LinuxCapable

or

4
  1. Download the drivers and install.
    Install NVIDIA Drivers [515.48.07 / 510.73.05 / 470.129.06 / 390.151 / 340.108] on CentOS Stream 9/8, RHEL 9/8, Rocky Linux 8.5 – If Not True Then False

Personally, I went for the first method as I have a greater chance of the drivers being recompiled when I upgrade the kernel as they come from the repo.

The 2nd method will give you the specific driver of the moment but when you change kernel, you get the black screen and all sorts of errors.
The other issue I had was with the BIOS setup so make sure the BIOS is fully compatible with Rocky.
I know this does not specifically answer your question but it may get you of your hole.

5

Hi jlehtone, chlowden:

I tried a text mode install and several graphics-related kernel command line

options, all to no avail. Further to your comments, I kept searching on the web

and stumbled onto the real cause of my boot problems:

They’re not related to the Nvidia graphics at all, but in fact are caused by RHEL

eliminating support for some Serial ATA (SATA) disk controllers in RHEL 8

that used to be supported in RHEL 7 and earlier. There is a Centos forum post,

New CentOS 8 Install does not see SATA Drives - CentOS which describes the situation exactly.

On both my HP Pavilion m8247c and Compaq Presario, there is a MCP61 interface

rather than the MCP51 interface mentioned in the post; the same graphic card

(nForce 430) is in use.

For the HP Pavilion m8247c, the lspci output is:


00:00.0 RAM memory: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller (rev a1)

00:01.0 ISA bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 LPC Bridge (rev a2)

00:01.1 SMBus: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SMBus (rev a2)

00:01.2 RAM memory: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller (rev a2)

00:02.0 USB controller: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 1.1 Controller (rev a3)

00:02.1 USB controller: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 2.0 Controller (rev a3)

00:04.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI bridge (rev a1)

00:05.0 Audio device: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 High Definition Audio (rev a2)

00:06.0 IDE interface: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 IDE (rev a2)

00:07.0 Bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Ethernet (rev a2)

00:08.0 IDE interface: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller (rev a2)

00:08.1 IDE interface: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller (rev a2)

00:09.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0b.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0c.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0d.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] (rev a2)

00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] HyperTransport Technology Configuration

00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Address Map

00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] DRAM Controller

00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Miscellaneous Control

01:06.0 Communication controller: Conexant Systems, Inc. HSF 56k Data/Fax Modem

01:09.0 FireWire (IEEE 1394): VIA Technologies, Inc. VT6306/7/8 [Fire II(M)] IEEE 1394 OHCI Controller (rev 80)

03:00.0 Multimedia controller: ViXS Systems, Inc. XCode 2100 Series

For the Compaq Presario, the lspci output is:


00:00.0 RAM memory: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller (rev a1)

00:01.0 ISA bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 LPC Bridge (rev a2)

00:01.1 SMBus: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SMBus (rev a2)

00:01.2 RAM memory: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller (rev a2)

00:02.0 USB controller: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 1.1 Controller (rev a3)

00:02.1 USB controller: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 2.0 Controller (rev a3)

00:04.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI bridge (rev a1)

00:05.0 Audio device: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 High Definition Audio (rev a2)

00:07.0 Bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Ethernet (rev a2)

00:08.0 IDE interface: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller (rev a2)

00:08.1 IDE interface: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller (rev a2)

00:09.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0b.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0c.0 PCI bridge: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge (rev a2)

00:0d.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] (rev a2)

00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor HyperTransport Configuration

00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Address Map

00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor DRAM Controller

00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Miscellaneous Control

00:18.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Link Control

04:00.0 Communication controller: LSI Corporation Device 0630 (rev 01)

The solution described in the CentOS post is well beyond my capabilities.

I’m hopeful that it will be part of the next Rocky 8 point release.

Len E.

6

‘lspci -nn’ adds device id to that list. It is more exact to search drivers with the id.

7

Hi jlehtone:

For the HP Pavilion m8247c, the lspci -nn output is:


lspci -nn

00:00.0 RAM memory [0500]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller [10de:03ea] (rev a1)

00:01.0 ISA bridge [0601]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 LPC Bridge [10de:03e0] (rev a2)

00:01.1 SMBus [0c05]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SMBus [10de:03eb] (rev a2)

00:01.2 RAM memory [0500]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller [10de:03f5] (rev a2)

00:02.0 USB controller [0c03]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 1.1 Controller [10de:03f1] (rev a3)

00:02.1 USB controller [0c03]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 2.0 Controller [10de:03f2] (rev a3)

00:04.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI bridge [10de:03f3] (rev a1)

00:05.0 Audio device [0403]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 High Definition Audio [10de:03f0] (rev a2)

00:06.0 IDE interface [0101]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 IDE [10de:03ec] (rev a2)

00:07.0 Bridge [0680]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Ethernet [10de:03ef] (rev a2)

00:08.0 IDE interface [0101]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller [10de:03f6] (rev a2)

00:08.1 IDE interface [0101]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller [10de:03f6] (rev a2)

00:09.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e8] (rev a2)

00:0b.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e9] (rev a2)

00:0c.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e9] (rev a2)

00:0d.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: NVIDIA Corporation C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] [10de:03d0] (rev a2)

00:18.0 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] HyperTransport Technology Configuration [1022:1100]

00:18.1 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Address Map [1022:1101]

00:18.2 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] DRAM Controller [1022:1102]

00:18.3 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Miscellaneous Control [1022:1103]

01:06.0 Communication controller [0780]: Conexant Systems, Inc. HSF 56k Data/Fax Modem [14f1:2f20]

01:09.0 FireWire (IEEE 1394) [0c00]: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT6306/7/8 [Fire II(M)] IEEE 1394 OHCI Controller [1106:3044] (rev 80)

03:00.0 Multimedia controller [0480]: ViXS Systems, Inc. XCode 2100 Series [1745:2100]

For the Compaq Presario, the lspci -nn output is:


lspci -nn

00:00.0 RAM memory [0500]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller [10de:03ea] (rev a1)

00:01.0 ISA bridge [0601]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 LPC Bridge [10de:03e0] (rev a2)

00:01.1 SMBus [0c05]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SMBus [10de:03eb] (rev a2)

00:01.2 RAM memory [0500]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Memory Controller [10de:03f5] (rev a2)

00:02.0 USB controller [0c03]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 1.1 Controller [10de:03f1] (rev a3)

00:02.1 USB controller [0c03]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 USB 2.0 Controller [10de:03f2] (rev a3)

00:04.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI bridge [10de:03f3] (rev a1)

00:05.0 Audio device [0403]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 High Definition Audio [10de:03f0] (rev a2)

00:07.0 Bridge [0680]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 Ethernet [10de:03ef] (rev a2)

00:08.0 IDE interface [0101]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller [10de:03f6] (rev a2)

00:08.1 IDE interface [0101]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 SATA Controller [10de:03f6] (rev a2)

00:09.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e8] (rev a2)

00:0b.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e9] (rev a2)

00:0c.0 PCI bridge [0604]: NVIDIA Corporation MCP61 PCI Express bridge [10de:03e9] (rev a2)

00:0d.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: NVIDIA Corporation C61 [GeForce 6150SE nForce 430] [10de:03d0] (rev a2)

00:18.0 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor HyperTransport Configuration [1022:1200]

00:18.1 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Address Map [1022:1201]

00:18.2 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor DRAM Controller [1022:1202]

00:18.3 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Miscellaneous Control [1022:1203]

00:18.4 Host bridge [0600]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Link Control [1022:1204]

04:00.0 Communication controller [0780]: LSI Corporation Device [11c1:0630] (rev 01)

It’s not clear to me what my next step should be.

Len E.

8

These seem to have:

  • IDE controller [10de:03ec]
  • SATA controller [10de:03f6]

I’ll check with modprobe -c | grep 10DE.*03..sv

  • EL9 has i2c_nforce2 only for [10de:0368] and [10de:03eb]
  • EL8 has i2c_nforce2 only for [10de:0368] and [10de:03eb] (and nv_tco for [10de:0368])
  • EL7 has:
$ modprobe -c | grep -i 10de.*03..sv
alias pci:v000010DEd00000368sv*sd*bc*sc*i* i2c_nforce2
alias pci:v000010DEd00000368sv*sd*bc*sc*i* nv_tco
alias pci:v000010DEd0000036Esv*sd*bc*sc*i* pata_amd
alias pci:v000010DEd0000037Esv*sd*bc*sc*i* sata_nv
alias pci:v000010DEd0000037Fsv*sd*bc*sc*i* sata_nv
alias pci:v000010DEd000003E7sv*sd*bc*sc*i* sata_nv
alias pci:v000010DEd000003EBsv*sd*bc*sc*i* i2c_nforce2
alias pci:v000010DEd000003ECsv*sd*bc*sc*i* pata_amd
alias pci:v000010DEd000003F6sv*sd*bc*sc*i* sata_nv
alias pci:v000010DEd000003F7sv*sd*bc*sc*i* sata_nv

RHEL 7 / CentOS 7 thus has pata_amd for [10de:03ec] and sata_nv for [10de:03f6].

Next, I’ll look at ELRepo’s device ID page. They have package kmod-sata_nv that supports 10de:03f6 ELRepo | DeviceIDs

Understandably ELRepo for EL7 does not have it. ELRepo for EL8 does:

[EL8]$ dnf -q list kmod-sata_nv
Available Packages
kmod-sata_nv.x86_64        3.5-5.el8_6.elrepo            elrepo

On Rocky 8 one could:

dnf install elrepo-release
dnf install kmod-sata_nv

Alas, you can’t do that before you have the module. How can you write to disk that you can’t “control” yet?

With driver update disk (DUD): The ELRepo Blog: RHEL 8.0 and support for removed adapters
There is dd-sata_nv-3.5-5.el8_6.elrepo.iso in Index of /linux/dud/el8/x86_64

On the bootloader of the installer you have to edit the kernel options before you boot the installer. You have to add:

inst.dd=https://elrepo.org/linux/dud/el8/x86_64/dd-sata_nv-3.5-5.el8_6.elrepo.iso
1 Like
9

Thank you, @jlehtone . That is so thorough and in great detail.

I was helping the user in the springdale mailing list.

@LenE, let’s continue here if you need further help. :slight_smile:

10

Hi Akemi:
I’ve just finished some subject-related testing, and have run into
a few problems:

-I tried to access the tutorial video you recommended in your
previous email, but a message came up that the video is no longer
available. Fortunately, I came across your ELRepo blog,
“RHEL 8.0 and support for removed adapters”, and the “tutorial
video” link in it did work.

-I downloaded the .iso and placed it on a USB stick.
In initiating a boot up on my Compaq Presario machine,
I used the technique illustrated in the video, of just adding
a statement “inst.dd” with no parameters in the grub command
line. The installer did detect the USB; I entered a 1 after
the prompt, and the installer did detect the .iso file; I
entered a 1 again, and the installer did detect the .rpm file;
again I entered a 1, and the installer inserted an “x” in the
box in front of the .rpm file name.
But when I entered a 1 again, the installer simply removed the
“x” in front of the .rpm file name and proceeded no further.
I don’t understand why it didn’t go any further.

-I tried this with the Rocky 8.6 .iso as well as the Springdale 8.6
.iso, and on my HP Pavilion machine, with the same results.
-I did try jlehtone’s suggestion of trying to download the DUD
directly from the web, with the statement
inst.dd=https://elrepo.org/linux/dud/el8/x86_64/dd-sata_nv-3.5-5.el8_6.elrepo.iso,
but just after starting the dracut-initqueue hook, the installer
stopped dead, and nothing else happened.
I suspect that at this point, internet access for the installer is
not yet active.

11

The installer found the rpm you wanted to use but did not allow you to go amy further? I’m sorry to say I have no idea why. If you try to start over once again, did it fail at the same step?

12

Hi Akemi: I started over again by viewing again the
portion of the tutorial video showing the installer
prompts for the USB stick containing the DUD .iso.

I noticed that after the “x” is inserted in front of the
rpm file name, one is supposed to enter a “c” to continue.

I simultaneously set up my HP Pavilion with the Rocky 8.6 DVD
and a USB stick containing the DUD .iso, and my Compaq Presario
with the Springdale 8.6 DVD and a USB stick with the DUD .iso.

In both cases, the results were the same:

When I entered the “c” to continue, the screen showed
“Starting Driver Update Disk UI on tty1” and
“DD: Extracting Kmod-sata-nv”. Also, the original
Driver disk drive selection prompt reappeared.

I left both machines alone for about 10 minutes with
nothing further happening.

Then, I entered a “c” to the reappeared Driver disk drive
selection prompt.

In both cases, the process aborted with 2 sets of the following
5 messages:

blk_update_request: I/O error, dev loop 0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags
0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
SQUASHFS error: squashfs_read_data failed to read block 0x0
unable to read squashfs_super_block
dracut-initqueue [1153]: mount:/run/install/tmpmnt0: can't read
superblock on /dev/loop0
dracut-initqueue [1132]: Warning: can't get kickstart
from /dev/loop0:/ks.cfg

The only difference between the 1st set of 5 and the 2nd set of 5
messages is tmpmnt0: in the first set, tmpmnt1: in the second set.
All 10 messages in each case had a long message ID in front of them,
egs. [1242.512832] on Rocky 8.6, [701.135995] on Springdale 8.6.

13

The “message ID” is timestamp, seconds from boot, I presume.

14

SQUASHFS error indicates you have faulty hardware. Can you get another USB stick for the driver and try again?

15

Hi Akemi, jlehthone,

Further to your suggestion, I loaded 2 other USB sticks
with the driver, and did sha256sum checks on the files
to make sure they matched the dd*.asc file contents.

On each of my 2 test machines, the HP Pavilion and the
Compaq Presario, I used alternative USB ports in which
to plug in the sticks. I tried both Rocky 8.6 and
Springdale 8.6 on both machines.

On the Compaq Presario, both Rocky and Springdale aborted
in the same fashion as previously.

On the HP Pavilion, for both Rocky and Springdale, after
entering “c” to the reappeared Driver disk drive selection
prompt, there was a flurry of hard disk activity indicated
by rapid flashing of the panel light, which quickly subsided
to a slow, steady flashing of the light.
Nothing further happened, and I terminated each test after
about 10 minutes.

The following may not be relevant, but it might offer some
clue to what is happening:
CentOS-8.5.2111-x86_64 is the last CentOS 8 downstream
version that was issued and is no longer available on the
CentOS website. However, it can still be downloaded from
a Japanese archive website.

I tried it on both my machines in the same fashion as
Rocky and Springdale. In all cases, when checking the
USB containing the DUD .iso, a message came out that
no suitable driver was available.

(In all cases, when the USB is being checked, there is
a warning message that it is mounted as read-only.
I’m assuming that it is the normal expectation.)

Len E.

16

Do you happen to have Secure Boot enabled ?

17

How about this? I see that AlmaLinux provides live media for 8.6:

https://repo.almalinux.org/almalinux/8/live/x86_64/

Then the kmod package for the sata_nv driver is:

https://elrepo.org/linux/elrepo/el8/x86_64/RPMS/kmod-sata_nv-3.5-5.el8_6.elrepo.x86_64.rpm

Boot the system with the live media and then try to install the kmod package. If no error, try loading the module by:

modprobe sata_nv

If you see any error, that might help figure out what went wrong where.

18

Hi Akemi,

Thank you for your last 2 suggestions.
I have some interim results now which will influence my next steps.

For CentOS-8.5.2111-x86_64, I tried it with the 1st previous DUD .iso,
dd-sata_nv-3.5-4.el8_4.elrepo.iso.

On the HP Pavilion, it worked, so that the installer proceeded with the first graphical, language-choice
screen.

On the Compaq Presario, it accepted the .iso but still aborted as previously.

I believe that my HP Pavilion hardware is o.k. now, using the alternate USB port for the USB stick,
and I do have the proper command sequence now for uploading the DUD .iso.

I plan to try a few more USB stick/USB port combinations on the Compaq Presario, but if no fixes
are found, I follow up on your latest 2 suggestions specifically for the Compaq Presario.

Len E.

19

Hi Akemi,
Regarding the latest on the Compaq Presario:

-I don’t have secure boot enabled on it.
-I wasn’t able to get the AlmaLinux-8.6 .iso booted up properly on it. (I’m using the Gnome -mini version).

When booting up AlmaLinux from a DVD, there was a series of esoteric error messages starting with:
“AE_AML_BUFFER_LIMIT, Field [ASSM] at bit offset/length 54288/32 exceeds size of target Buffer (800 bits)”
After some delay, the bootup aborted with the usual string of dracut-initqueue timeout messages.

When booting up from a USB stick with the .iso loaded with Unetbootin-702, the graphics came up
normally, but the internet connection wouldn’t work. The kmod .rpm was available from a 2nd USB
stick which was accessible from the command line, but a yum local install wasn’t possible with no
internet access to the repositories.

Len E.

20

Hi Len,

Regarding the installation of the rpm package locally, you do not need to use yum/dnf. Try “rpm -ivh xxx.rpm”