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List:       opensuse
Subject:    Re: [opensuse] Grub bugs ... should I file separate bugs for each
From:       Felix Miata <mrmazda () ij ! net>
Date:       2009-06-13 13:37:38
Message-ID: 4A33ABA2.3050106 () ij ! net
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On 2009/06/13 08:24 (GMT-0400) Greg Freemyer composed:

> I'm confused by this whole thread.

> Is this a reasonable summary:

> Form latest to earliest use of labels during boot:

> /etc/fstab   -  by_label, etc., fully supported

AFAIK, Grub never uses fstab.

> /boot/grub/device.map - by_label, etc., fully supported

AFAIK, device.map is only ever used after boot, by scripts used to configure
Grub.

> /boot/grub/menu.lst - by_label, etc., fully supported

by_label in this file is for the feeding of parameters to the kernel. Grub
only displays a menu, feeding the strings from menu.lst to the display,
accepts a selection, then loads a kernel and initrd as specified by the
selection, which it does entirely using its own language of devices.

> MBR used to invoke grub stage 1.5 or 2.  -  No label support, so the
> user can be screwed every time a user adds / removes disks?

NAICT, true, but the user typically can utilize some assistance from his BIOS
to ensure that the BIOS device assignment(s) related to Grub and booting are
maintained when potential boot device count is changed.

> That's not a bug, that's FUBAR.  I did not realize we were allowing
> the government to design our boot methodologies.

I think this has more to do with who makes money off Linux, and how they do
it, plus a probably small pool of unpaid developers and testers that
contribute to Grub (2) development, and a near empty set of people who work
on Grub 1. NAICT, most Grub-related boot troubles are related to
multibooting, while most paid support contracts are for systems that only
have one OS installed. AFAICT, testing Grub's boot competence is hardly
something one can multitask, yet would seem to require a substantial amount
of hardware switching & reconfiguration by any dev working on Grub.

Grub isn't Linux. Grub is a boot starter. Linux is only used by Grub to
configure Grub, but could be configured by any system capable of I/O on the
filesystems and boot sectors where it is installed. There are mailing lists
for Grub. I suspect they are usually a better place for discussing problems
like started this thread than any of the lists for particular distros.
-- 
"Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone,
for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to
the sky like an eagle."	       Proverbs 23:5 NIV

 Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata  ***  http://fm.no-ip.com/
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