UNetbootin

unetbootin hard drive installation option

Asked by Sindhu S

No where on the internet have they stated clearly what to do after selecting the "hard drive" option in unetbootin...

some say extract the iso and place it in a partition .. thats it, what happens next , what next to do - no clue!

am extremely annoyed even the unetbootin author's site doesn't say much other than about extracting.. doesn't what kind of partition it should be extracted to.. and what image file too choose when it asks for the location of the "driver disk image"

from my conversation with a friend , i understand the driver disk image should be the stage2.img or initrd image, if i choose stage2 image file the setup says it has been halted abnormally and asks to reboot. so then back to square one(!)

and it if were to be initrd image file, then upon extraction of the ISO, i saw that there is a initrd file in about 3 folders! which one do i choose?

please do help me out. my DVD drive is currently conked , downloading 3.83 gb dvd of fedora 8 off the net for an install is not only impossible on my 256kb connection but also a silly thing to do when i already have the iso on my hard disk.

last note i must tell about my hard disk and how exactly i want my installation

i have two 2 hard disks , on SATA (160GB with 6 partitions) and a ATA 20GB disk empty unformatted. i want to install fedora 8 using the iso image on my SATA disk onto to ATA disk using unetbootin.

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Geza Kovacs
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Revision history for this message
Geza Kovacs (gezakovacs) said : 		#1

Sorry for the typo, the Fedora DVD iso doesn't even have to be extracted at all (you simply place the iso file into a folder on any partition other than the one you're installing to and specify the partition and path when prompted); the instructions concerning the mandatory extraction of the package files applied to other distros. Same with the initrd and stage2.img; you needn't specify them manuallly, the initrd is bundled with UNetbootin and the stage2.img is auto-loaded from the iso. I've also updated the instructions, hopefully they should now be clearer and better answer your questions. (These are the instructions I added to the site):

"""Alternatively, if you would rather use a pre-downloaded Fedora install DVD iso file, you can use that by first partitioning your disks using the PartedMagic Partition Manager (download) in order to create a partition to install Fedora in, and placing the iso file into any partition other than the ones you aim to use for Fedora. While still in PartedMagic, take note of the partition number of the filesystem containing the iso file, as presented by GParted, such as /dev/sdb4 if it is the fourth partition on the second drive. Then, install the UNetbootin Fedora installer, reboot, and when prompted for an installation source, select "Hard Drive". You will now be prompted to specify the partition and folder containing the Fedora iso file; enter in the partition, such as /dev/sda1, in the first field, and in the second field, specify the folder containing the iso, such as /linux/install/ if the path to the Fedora install DVD iso file was X:\linux\install\Fedora-8-x86_64-DVD.iso in Windows."""

However, given that you were given a prompt for a "driver disk image" rather than asked which partition the iso file is in, I think you're having an entirely different issue; perhaps Fedora 8 doesn't support the hard drive configuration you're using, because if it's able to detect any disks, it would have gone straight to the partition and folder prompt, and wouldn't have asked for a driver image. Perhaps try using a different distro that better supports your hardware if that's the case, or report a bug in Fedora and see if you can get help on the disk detection issue from their developers, if it is indeed a hardware compatibility issue in Fedora itself, rather than an issue with UNetbootin.

Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#2

I cannot seem to access launchpad website which is why am replying to this
email. Only after i re-read your explanation was it clear to me on what i
should do.

I have the following partitions on my windows installation (SATA Disk)

*Parition letter *- *Label*

C: - Local disk
D: - DVD Drive
E: - Documents
F: **- Music
G: - Downloads
H: - Movies
I: - Other

I put fedora.iso (3.60GB) in "G:\fedora\"

So after selecting installation from "Hard Drive" option, i was presented
with this screen.. (sorry about the poor quality, it was taken with my cam
phone)

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/7317/image322to4.jpg
[image: http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/7317/image322to4.jpg]

and i had selected "/dev/sb8" from the list (because i remember one of the
previous linux distributions showing my G drive (it is a NTFS format drive
of course) as "sdb8" (and am pretty darn sure it is that)...and in the path
field typed in "fedora/" because inside G drive there was a folder called
"fedora" within which was my "fedora.iso"

but still on clicking Okay, i get the following messages:...

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2484/image325xi3.jpg
[image: http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2484/image325xi3.jpg]

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/1240/image326uh7.jpg
[image: http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/1240/image326uh7.jpg]
Then I tried selecting /dev/sdb1 to sdb9 (that is to say all the options
available) in case i had assumed my g drive as sdb8 wrongly. i still got the
above 2 messages each time.

my ATA 20 GB disk is sda1 and empty. doesnt have anything, no partitions, no
data. so there is no possibility of me being mistaken with hard drisk names
here.

So can you please tell me where I am going wrong?

And thank you for making the instructions clearer on your site.

-Sindhu S

On Feb 9, 2008 3:13 AM, Geza Kovacs <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #24169 on UNetbootin changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Geza Kovacs proposed the following answer:
> Sorry for the typo, the Fedora DVD iso doesn't even have to be extracted
> at all (you simply place the iso file into a folder on any partition
> other than the one you're installing to and specify the partition and
> path when prompted); the instructions concerning the mandatory
> extraction of the package files applied to other distros. Same with the
> initrd and stage2.img; you needn't specify them manuallly, the initrd is
> bundled with UNetbootin and the stage2.img is auto-loaded from the iso.
> I've also updated the instructions, hopefully they should now be clearer
> and better answer your questions. (These are the instructions I added to
> the site):
>
> """Alternatively, if you would rather use a pre-downloaded Fedora
> install DVD iso file, you can use that by first partitioning your disks
> using the PartedMagic Partition Manager (download) in order to create a
> partition to install Fedora in, and placing the iso file into any
> partition other than the ones you aim to use for Fedora. While still in
> PartedMagic, take note of the partition number of the filesystem
> containing the iso file, as presented by GParted, such as /dev/sdb4 if
> it is the fourth partition on the second drive. Then, install the
> UNetbootin Fedora installer, reboot, and when prompted for an
> installation source, select "Hard Drive". You will now be prompted to
> specify the partition and folder containing the Fedora iso file; enter
> in the partition, such as /dev/sda1, in the first field, and in the
> second field, specify the folder containing the iso, such as
> /linux/install/ if the path to the Fedora install DVD iso file was
> X:\linux\install\Fedora-8-x86_64-DVD.iso in Windows."""
>
> However, given that you were given a prompt for a "driver disk image"
> rather than asked which partition the iso file is in, I think you're
> having an entirely different issue; perhaps Fedora 8 doesn't support the
> hard drive configuration you're using, because if it's able to detect
> any disks, it would have gone straight to the partition and folder
> prompt, and wouldn't have asked for a driver image. Perhaps try using a
> different distro that better supports your hardware if that's the case,
> or report a bug in Fedora and see if you can get help on the disk
> detection issue from their developers, if it is indeed a hardware
> compatibility issue in Fedora itself, rather than an issue with
> UNetbootin.
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169/+confirm?answer_id=0
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

--
-Sindhu S
www.sindhu-s.com

Revision history for this message
Geza Kovacs (gezakovacs) said : 		#3

First of all, you may want to rename "fedora.iso" to its original name "Fedora-8-i386-DVD.iso" to help the Fedora installer find it (probably unnecessary, but it might help). It seems like the Fedora installer is, for some reason, unable to read that particular partition, but since you have a multitude of other partitions, why don't you instead just copy over the iso file over to the top-level of some other partition (so that its location is "I:\Fedora-8-i386-DVD.iso" or so; just specify "/" as the folder), see if it works any better.

Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#4

I tried that too. Renamed the iso back to "Fedora-8-x86_64-DVD.iso" and put
it in my E: (Documents) drive , at the top level (e:\Fedora-8-x86_64-DVD.iso)
, still it says cant find image.

am sure the iso is alright because i've used it a couple of times.

now i really want exact instructions with what to do when i get the screen
after choosing "hard drive" options...

here's what i assume,

1.select which parition the iso is on
2. _________ field for path has to be filled with "/dev/sdbX/" or "/" ??

"/" - since the iso is in the top level
X means the number of the partition.

and why do i get this message:
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2484/image325xi3.jpg
what does "failed to read directory: tmp/hdimage/fedora/ :" mean??? where on
my hard disk is" tmp/hdimage/fedora/" ?

i just dont understand why it cant find the iso. does my partition which has
the iso should be EXT3 or any other linux partition type? or is it okay if
it is NTFS?

A friend suggested another of extracting the stage2.img and putting it in
"/" (of course creating ext3 partition on the ATA disk from windows"
extracting vmlinuz and initrd.img to the /boot and installing grub through
the live cd and mounting the original fedora iso via the live cd (my DVD
drive does read CDs) and then fireing up Anaconda...

but either way, (using unetbootin or the other method) i cannot bypass the
stage of having to tell anaconda where my fedora iso on disk is right?

that is exactly where am stuck, it simply cant find the fedora iso even
though it is there in the partition.

so what do i do? *frown face*

On Feb 10, 2008 6:21 AM, Geza Kovacs <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #24169 on UNetbootin changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Geza Kovacs proposed the following answer:
> First of all, you may want to rename "fedora.iso" to its original name
> "Fedora-8-i386-DVD.iso" to help the Fedora installer find it (probably
> unnecessary, but it might help). It seems like the Fedora installer is,
> for some reason, unable to read that particular partition, but since you
> have a multitude of other partitions, why don't you instead just copy
> over the iso file over to the top-level of some other partition (so that
> its location is "I:\Fedora-8-i386-DVD.iso" or so; just specify "/" as
> the folder), see if it works any better.
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169/+confirm?answer_id=2
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/unetbootin/+question/24169
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

--
-Sindhu S
www.sindhu-s.com

Revision history for this message
Best Geza Kovacs (gezakovacs) said : 		#5

"and why do i get this message:
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2484/image325xi3.jpg
what does "failed to read directory: tmp/hdimage/fedora/ :" mean??? where on
my hard disk is" tmp/hdimage/fedora/" ?"

The error "failed to read directory: tmp/hdimage/fedora/" is because /tmp/hdimage is where Fedora temporarily mounts your hard drive to to do the scanning for the iso file; therefore /tmp/hdimage/fedora means the fedora directory on the specified partition.

"here's what i assume,

1.select which parition the iso is on
2. _________ field for path has to be filled with "/dev/sdbX/" or "/" ??"

The field for the path should just be "/" if it's in the top-level directory.

"A friend suggested another of extracting the stage2.img and putting it in
"/" (of course creating ext3 partition on the ATA disk from windows"
extracting vmlinuz and initrd.img to the /boot and installing grub through
the live cd and mounting the original fedora iso via the live cd (my DVD
drive does read CDs) and then fireing up Anaconda..."

As for NTFS support, Anaconda fully supports reading iso files from NTFS partitions, so unless you have some kind of filesystem corruption on the NTFS partitions that's causing Anaconda to be unable to read them, that can't be the issue. However, perhaps it's an issue with Anaconda being unable to read your SATA drive (/dev/sdb), so in that case using the ATA drive might help. However, I believe just formatting part of it /dev/sda as FAT32 and placing the iso file in there (and then select /dev/sda1 or so when you are asked by Anaconda) should work just as well as that advice, because FAT32 support is about as mature in Linux as ext3, stage2.img doesn't have to be extracted (Anaconda reads it from the iso file), and having GRUB installed on a partition doesn't make it any easier to read by Anaconda.

However, since you pointed out that you can boot the liveCD fine, why don't you just install the standard way using the LiveCD, add your DVD iso as a yum install source after installing (use mount -o loop first, then point yum to the directory where it's been mounted to), details at http://www.city-fan.org/tips/SubsetRepositoriesFedora8

"but either way, (using unetbootin or the other method) i cannot bypass the
stage of having to tell anaconda where my fedora iso on disk is right?"

Yes, unless you do the FTP net-install

Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#6

Ok i got pretty darn frustrated that i downloaded the Fedora Live CD and installed through that. Thanks a lot for staying through anyway.

Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#7
Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#8

Hello there!

I thought I should let you know this , I dont blog at sindhu-s.com anymore.
This is my new blog address:

http://sindhu.tumblr.com

[If got annoyed, pardon the mass mail]

Thanks :)

-Regards,
Sindhu S

Revision history for this message
Sindhu S (sindhu-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#9

Thanks Geza Kovacs, that solved my question.

Revision history for this message
Vedran (antipa-xnet) said : 		#10

I installed Linux Mint 10 using UNetbootin. I used my hard disk C: as start up sequence ("frugal install"). Everything was fine. But now I have a problem .I wonder how to uninstall Unetbootin. I ve read this: (on http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/#other)
    Removal Instructions (Applicable only to Hard Disk / "frugal installs")
If using Windows, UNetbootin should prompt you to remove it the next time you boot into Windows. Alternatively, you can remove it via Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.
    But nothing of this happend. In Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel there is no UNetbootin. I cannot find it by other programs specified as uninstaller.

 I cannot uninstall Unetbootin, what means I cannot start Linux in dual-boot menu. (I have two HDD. 1.st is Windows, 2. Linux) Previously I have it installed over Mint CD, and dual boot was fine, but I wanted to move over to Mint 10.. Now(with UNetboot) , when I boot, Windows gives me choice to boot Windows or UNetbootin. Linux is disappeared.
    When I watch C: it looks like LinuxMint installation disk.
    Please how can I uninstall unetbootin.
    Thanks!