Booting Linux on XC-603

ttttt said:

tfmeier

I can see you are frustrated and start several threads about your problems. Too bad that I do not own a XC-603 and don't have direct experience on it. I read your threads again carefully and see if I can help you further within my knowledge.
The last time I installed Fedora to my PC was close to a decade. I did not like Fedora as it crashed my PC during updates. So, the Fedora installation process must be different now. I wonder is it the problem between UEFI and Legacy modes. It will help if you can tell what selection that you made when installing Fedora. Do you have UEFI or Legacy BIOS with your XC-603?

About the BIOS, I think it should not be the problem, as you were able to boot to Fedora live DVD. It should be compatible with Fedora. It is "L" version or not should not matter.

You seemed to make the proper BIOS settings, but you have not mentioned you have ever tried to set BIOS to default. How about set the BIOS to default? I had a similar problem when I installed one Linux version to a M.2 NVMe SSD, and setting BIOS back to default solved the problem.

Good Luck!

You're a champion! After all this while all I had to do is to set the BIOS to default, boot the LIve DVD and install. System now boots successfully. Thanks very much for this. FYI, I'm using BIOS P11.B4 which confirms what you said; i.e. you don't need a "L" version BIOS to boot/run Linux

All comments

tfmeier

Seems the P11.B4L is the BIOS version you will use. Normally I'll download the latest BIOS file to my existing Windows 10 HDD/SSD in NTFS format. Double click on the zip file to decompress it. There should be a few folders after unzipping it.
Is there a folder "Appendix"? If so, there should be some instructions in the folder on how to flash the BIOS. Be sure to follow that step by step.
If successfully flashed the BIOS, I don't think there are other special settings needed ( other than what you have already known).

I use separate HDD/SSD in my PC to boot Windows 10 and different Linux versions (Manjaro and RoboLinux). Both Win 10 and Linux HDD/SSD can be connected to your PC at the same time ( though Win 10 cannot see the Linux drive as if the Linux drive does not exist).If you succeed in installing a Linux to one HDD/SSD, you can choose to boot from Windows 10 or Linux HDD/SSD with F12 key during boot up. No dual booting needed.

BTW, are you still using spinning HDD? Is there any RST or AHCI option under the "Integrated Peripheral' and SATA Device section in the BIOS. I understand my PC's BIOS should be different from yours.

( I should reply to your new thread instead of the old one)

ttttt said:

tfmeier

Seems the P11.B4L is the BIOS version you will use. Normally I'll download the latest BIOS file to my existing Windows 10 HDD/SSD in NTFS format. Double click on the zip file to decompress it. There should be a few folders after unzipping it.
Is there a folder "Appendix"? If so, there should be some instructions in the folder on how to flash the BIOS. Be sure to follow that step by step.
If successfully flashed the BIOS, I don't think there are other special settings needed ( other than what you have already known).

I use separate HDD/SSD in my PC to boot Windows 10 and different Linux versions (Manjaro and RoboLinux). Both Win 10 and Linux HDD/SSD can be connected to your PC at the same time ( though Win 10 cannot see the Linux drive as if the Linux drive does not exist).If you succeed in installing a Linux to one HDD/SSD, you can choose to boot from Windows 10 or Linux HDD/SSD with F12 key during boot up. No dual booting needed.

BTW, are you still using spinning HDD? Is there any RST or AHCI option under the "Integrated Peripheral' and SATA Device section in the BIOS. I understand my PC's BIOS should be different from yours.

( I should reply to your new thread instead of the old one)

Yes, I did see the "appendix" folder from P11.B4L BIOS and followed the instructions. The thing that's not clear is the USB drive format whether it has to be NTFS or FAT32 format. Mine is FAT32. The instructions say to boot to the USB drive (via F12) which I do but then the following error message comes up about a missing GRLDR which I'm lost at

Try (hd0.0): FAT32: No GRLDR

Try (hdo, 1): invalid or null

Try (hd0, 2): invalid or null

Try (hd0,3): invalid or null

Try (hd 1,0): non-MS: skip

Try (hd1, 1): invalid or null

Try (hd1,2): invalid or null

Try (hd1,3): invalid or null

BIOS: Drive=0x0, H=1, S=18

Try (fd0): non-MS: skip

Cannot find grldr

Press space bar to hold the screen, any the Timeout: 11

so I get a feeling that this BIOS wasn't correctly installed onto the USB drive

@tfmeier

I have not tried updated BIOS with FAT32 format, I believe it is probably the problem. See if NTFS will do it . How many methods are in the appendix folder? Just the USB flash drive method?

ttttt said:

@tfmeier

I have not tried updated BIOS with FAT32 format, I believe it is probably the problem. See if NTFS will do it . How many methods are in the appendix folder? Just the USB flash drive method?

Tried an NTFS formatted USB drive. After copying the BIOS zip file contents I couldn't see the USB drive via the F12 boot menu so that doesn't seem to work either. On the zip file the instructions only mention USB.

I'm getting a bit frustrated by this - especially as I understand there are XC-603 computers that run Linux.

With a FAT32 formated USB drive I get the above message "Cannot find grldr" which I understand to be GRUB loader but again have no knowledge of what that means let alone make sure this exists on the USB drive.

Wonder if anyone has directly experienced this and can point me in the right direction.

@tfmeier,
Here is a link you may find the info useful:
https://neosmart.net/wiki/cannot-find-grldr/
Good Luck!

Which Fedora version are you trying to install? That latest or one that's older? The latest should have no issue booting in a Windows UEFI environment.

billsey said:

Which Fedora version are you trying to install? That latest or one that's older? The latest should have no issue booting in a Windows UEFI environment.

Latest Fedora 32 workstation

With Windows booted does the drive you wish to install Linux on show up in Disk Management as either foreign partitions or unallocated? What you want to have happen is for the Linux partitions to be created there with an UEFI entry in the EFI partition on your Windows boot disk for the Linux mount point. Then you can use F12 at boot time to choose between the two OSes. If you do a full UEFI install of Linux it might replace the Windows mount points with GRUB and that will no longer allow Windows to boot.

billsey said:

With Windows booted does the drive you wish to install Linux on show up in Disk Management as either foreign partitions or unallocated? What you want to have happen is for the Linux partitions to be created there with an UEFI entry in the EFI partition on your Windows boot disk for the Linux mount point. Then you can use F12 at boot time to choose between the two OSes. If you do a full UEFI install of Linux it might replace the Windows mount points with GRUB and that will no longer allow Windows to boot.

Maybe I didn't explain myself well enough earlier on as I'm not a Linux expert

I have two disks: Disk A with Win10 on it (boots up) and a new empty disk - disk B. I want to install Fedora 32 onto disk B and make this a dedicated (headless) Fedora system. I can complete the whole process (booting Fedora live from DVD, install to hdd, finish). But then when I boot I get the above message "Can't find any boot media".

So the first question I had here was whether I need to run BIOS P11.B4L (or any other BIOS for that matter) or I can remain with the current BIOS P11.B4?
If I have to switch to P11.B4L then the Acer instructions are incomplete as they don't create a bootable USB drive
If the current BIOS is ok why can't I boot Fedora32 (secure boot is disabled and Launch CSM is set to always)?

I'll continue down this path unless someone tell me that I can't turn this box into a Linux machine

How is disk B connected to the system? Is it on a SATA port off the motherboard, in an external case using USB, or some other way? When you see the "Can't find any boot media" message is disk A still connected, or only disk B?

billsey said:

How is disk B connected to the system? Is it on a SATA port off the motherboard, in an external case using USB, or some other way? When you see the "Can't find any boot media" message is disk A still connected, or only disk B?

Disk A is no longer connected. I just mentioned it for the purpose of BIOS; i.e. with the current BIOS I can boot into the Win10 disk A.

I then remove disk A, install disk B, boot and install Fedora and upon rebooting get the "Can't find boot media. The disks are connect on a SATA off the motherboard.

That could be the system still looking for Disk A in order to load the EFI portion of the BIOS, assuming Disk A was still in place when you installed Linux in disk B.

@tfmeier
Since you mentioned you want someone has "Direct Experienced", which I don't have in concerning your case, so I kept quiet.
However, if you can make use of some "Indirect Experience ", you can read my thread when I encountered problem with BIOS trying to read a no longer existing Linux OS.
Try this link:
https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/608362/how-to-delete-unwanted-os-from-uefi-bios#latest

billsey said:

That could be the system still looking for Disk A in order to load the EFI portion of the BIOS, assuming Disk A was still in place when you installed Linux in disk B.

No unfortunately disk A was replaced with disk B, then I booted a Linux ISO and installed Linux onto disk B. So at the time I booted the ISO the BIOS should have picked up disk B...
I'm still wondering whether I need P11.B4L as opposed to P11.B4 which I currently have. Problem is I can't install that BIOS as the Acer instructions are not clear... Have you ever used used an "L" version BIOS?

@tfmeier,
Then try it with P11.B4 instead of the "L" version. Maybe the "L" version is meant for running under the Linux environment.

ttttt said:

@tfmeier,
Then try it with P11.B4 instead of the "L" version. Maybe the "L" version is meant for running under the Linux environment.

Well the whole idea is for me to build a Linux only machine, no dual boot. Just a single Linux computer. I can't get any clear explanation for the purpose of the "L" BIOS versions but at the moment I can't boot a Fedora instance which I have installed on the same machine from Linux Live DVD and I'm wondering whether it's because of the BIOS.

If anyone has had success in flashing P11.B4L please let me know how you did that as I can't get the USB stick with P11.B4L to work as described above

tfmeier

I can see you are frustrated and start several threads about your problems. Too bad that I do not own a XC-603 and don't have direct experience on it. I read your threads again carefully and see if I can help you further within my knowledge.
The last time I installed Fedora to my PC was close to a decade. I did not like Fedora as it crashed my PC during updates. So, the Fedora installation process must be different now. I wonder is it the problem between UEFI and Legacy modes. It will help if you can tell what selection that you made when installing Fedora. Do you have UEFI or Legacy BIOS with your XC-603?

About the BIOS, I think it should not be the problem, as you were able to boot to Fedora live DVD. It should be compatible with Fedora. It is "L" version or not should not matter.

You seemed to make the proper BIOS settings, but you have not mentioned you have ever tried to set BIOS to default. How about set the BIOS to default? I had a similar problem when I installed one Linux version to a M.2 NVMe SSD, and setting BIOS back to default solved the problem.

Good Luck!

ttttt said:

tfmeier

I can see you are frustrated and start several threads about your problems. Too bad that I do not own a XC-603 and don't have direct experience on it. I read your threads again carefully and see if I can help you further within my knowledge.
The last time I installed Fedora to my PC was close to a decade. I did not like Fedora as it crashed my PC during updates. So, the Fedora installation process must be different now. I wonder is it the problem between UEFI and Legacy modes. It will help if you can tell what selection that you made when installing Fedora. Do you have UEFI or Legacy BIOS with your XC-603?

About the BIOS, I think it should not be the problem, as you were able to boot to Fedora live DVD. It should be compatible with Fedora. It is "L" version or not should not matter.

You seemed to make the proper BIOS settings, but you have not mentioned you have ever tried to set BIOS to default. How about set the BIOS to default? I had a similar problem when I installed one Linux version to a M.2 NVMe SSD, and setting BIOS back to default solved the problem.

Good Luck!

Thanks for the ongoing support. Yes there is a level of frustration

No-one has told me it can't be done so I try to push on

and yes, I tried to have different angles to this hence the different posts - hope I don't violate any community protocols.

When I booted the live DVD I believe I chose legacy not the UEFI option. Also re the BIOS settings I did not use default.

So I'll try that and report back on the outcome...