Installation Issues

[heavenmetal]

I was very excited to try LinuxMCE, but ran into problems.. and none of the answers I could google-up solved them..
I set my machine to boot from CD (SATA DVD-RW) and I've tried the amd64 dvd (single-layer disc), x86 dvd, and I've tried to just load Kubuntu 7.10 (in order to then load LinuxMCE from the 2CD ISOs), but everytime, the installation has failed.. Each of these were downloaded from official torrents, so the checksum should be good.. and I've tried multiple burns at the lowest speeds.. something else is wrong here.. With each of these installation methods, I've been able to get to the Kubuntu splash screen and to select 'install' but then after seeing "Loading Linux Kernel 100%" and the "kernel alive" "kernel direct mapping tables..." the screen goes dead and soon after the machine reboots, only to fail at this install again..
I've tried F6 and setting different installation parameters: remove quiet, insert "noapic" "pci=acpioff" "all_generic_ide" "debug_locks_verbose=1" "ignore_loglimit" and whatever the others are.. I'm using an NVIDIA 9600GT, a Gigabyte P45 board, Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 (2.8GHz), 4GB DDR2 800Mhz (2x2GB) and a SATA HDD, which is properly detected by BIOS and everything else. I tried to use the DVI output from my videocard, which works great with other systems, inluding Ubuntu.. using a DVI/HDMI cable going to a 1080P HDTV.. I've tried using a DVI-to-VGA adapter and connecting to the 'PC' input on the HDTV, but with the same exact results.. I have an ATI 4870 1GB in another computer I could try to use, but I doubt that would be a good use of time.. Is there some weird incompatibility with my hardware? It seems that the problem is still this ACPI, which I don't quite understand as I've tried many options in BIOS.. using a USB wired keyboard and I tried with a wireless PS2 keyboard.. the computer isn't networked currently.. The system didn't fail to install Mythbuntu and Vista x64.. Please help, I'd very much like to try your OS..

[ivanp]

Try installing with PATA (IDE) DVD drive. I have read on wiki several ppl complained about install failing, they switched to PATA all the troubles went away.
Also, You might have to load Nvidia drivers, since You are using newer VGA (LMCE works OOB with 6xxx,7xxx, and 8100/8200, not sure for newer ones).
If You can try to switch Your VGA for one of these which work OOB, You will save YOurself a lot of trouble if You use recommended hardware.
Also, take a look here http://wiki.linuxmce.org/index.php/Display_Drivers and here http://wiki.linuxmce.org/index.php/Display_Drivers
And try to read the FAQ, i am sure You will find Your answer(s) there.

[pigdog]

Hi heavenmetal.

Quote... "Each of these were downloaded from official torrents, so the checksum should be good."

Did you md5sum the CD downloads?

If you have not... please do and we can continue from there.

Thanks.

[colinjones]

hmmm you say the screen goes blank, then reboots only to fail at this install again...

The process should be that it completes dumping the image on your pc (takes 20-30 mins maybe) then it asks you to remove the DVD and hit enter to reboot. If you are actually hitting a key, and that causes it to reboot (but didn't see the message to remove the DVD because the screen was blank) then you are possibly re-running the install every time. If this sounds like what is happening, then you need to remove the DVD before hitting the key to reboot.

[heavenmetal]

Dear Sirs,
I've never tried to md5sum check something before, so I tried with a windows tool called MD5 Checker 2.31.. I opened an MD5 file for one of the CDs from the AMD64 2CD torrent with a text-editor and copied the code, not including the file-name (later I included the file-name in this copy/paste, as well) and basically, it failed.. but I really don't know how to properly checksum, so if there's a method I should be following for that, please let me know so I can try once again. The DVD ISOs I downloaded don't seem to have corresponding MD5 files.. the download only seems to include an ISO.. I don't know what to do about the checksum, I'm sorry. Please advise. I'm using uTorrent in windows vista.. I don't see an MD5 belonging to the DVD torrents.. only the LinuxMCE 2CD torrent, WHICH I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO TRY SINCE THE KUBUNTU CD-INSTALL FAILED IN JUST THE SAME WAY, so I'm not quite sure if that even means anything (that the 2CD md5 check failed).

About the install/reboot/dead-screen issue.. Here's what happens.. I try to install from CD (Kubuntu 7.10, not LinuxMCE, but same exact issue) or DVD (LinuxMCE, i386 and AMD64 - I have an Intel C2D E7400.. should I use the 64-bit version? I don't quite understand this and why one is called AMD, but I tried running it anyway..). So, basically.. hit INSTALL at the splash screen.. and only a moment later (after seeing "Loading Linux Kernel 100%" and the "kernel alive" "kernel direct mapping tables..." [when 'quiet' is enabled]) the screen goes dead and soon after the machine reboots).. So what I'm saying is - it's NOT spending 20-30 minutes dumping the image; it's just failing at something and rebooting AUTOMATICALLY almost right away. It goes back to BIOS, obviously can't boot from the HDD I've installed especially for LinuxMCE and tries the CD/DVD install method via splash screen once again..

If I disable "quiet" -F6 at Kubuntu/LinuxMCE install-boot splash- it seems to pause around the point of something-something ACPI and then again at something-something "checking image" something or other.. I can't exactly read what the screen says at this point as it all flashes by so fucking quickly and then the machine restarts.. Does the installation for 7.10 have a built-in checker? According to the software I used to MD5, which I don't exactly trust because I'm not sure if I'm using it properly, it doesn't match.. How can I be sure to download properly? Everything but bittorrent was ridiculously slow, but I'll try again from those sources if necessary. It looks like the problem is related to 7.10, for which I was laughed at in #kubuntu "the fuck is the reason you're using something that old?" they say, while providing no advice whatever- as I was easily able to load Mythbuntu 9.xx.. Now, I'm excited for LinuxMCE 8.xx.. I honestly can't see how this install is being so picky. I also have absolutely no idea how to install NVIDIA's drivers to a system without an operating-system.. It seemed to me -from reading others' posts about their working LinuxMCE systems- the 9600 GT should be fine as I saw that quite a few of you are using it.. I'm absolutely don't want to downgrade the system to a 6xxx/7xxx or 81xx/82xx - it's a multi-boot machine (games and all that in Vista). If necessary, I'll just wait for 8.04/8.10.. hopefully it works for me.

I have PATA HDDs and DVD-RWs, which I can pick-up a bit later, to try again (and again), etc. Is this ideal to run everything from IDE?

[colinjones]

AMD64 just means 64 bit, it will work with either Intel or AMD chips. i386 just means 32 bit and will work with either chip as well. Use i386 as this seems to be the most stable. If you are seeing the same problems even trying to install just a vanila Kubuntu 0710 CD, then you may simply have hardware compatibility issues. You do need a motherboard that is at least compatible with Kubuntu 0710 to get anywhere at all. Try downloading Kubuntu 0810 and see if that gets any further. If it does then you will either need to get a different motherboard or wait until 0810 LMCE is released...

[heavenmetal]

Yeah, 8.10s (Ubuntu, Kubuntu) are fine, so.. I guess I'll just have to wait for LinuxMCE 8.xx..

[colinjones]

Plenty of people have had the same issues - the reality is, 0710 (specifically the kernel - 2.6.22-14) is now quite old. If you buy newer/current hardware that hasn't been confirmed as working, or at least compatible with 2.6.22-14, you run the risk of it being incompatible. The same is true of any operating system. One of the complicating factors is that under LMCE 0710 the auto-updating system needed to be disabled so that dependencies within LMCE were not broken, and this increases the difficulties around incompatible hardware. Although it wouldn't have helped you anyway as you can't even install. The dev team is working day-and-night to get us onto 0810 which will improve matters enormously, and from there the autoupdate system should be functioning as well. When will the first 'beta' be released? That's the 6 million dollar question, but it seems that we are very close indeed, so you perhaps will not have to wait very long at all!

[heavenmetal]

Well, I'm still excited.. I'm more than happy to wait for a beta to begin my lmce experience. Brilliant work, from what I've seen.. Cheers

[pigdog]

Hi heavenmetal.

Quote "The DVD ISOs I downloaded don't seem to have corresponding MD5 files.. the download only seems to include an ISO.."

An MD5 sum is an overall check value computed against a block of data, or in this case a file/disk.

Each .iso disk (CD or DVD) for LMCE has a generated MD5sum value. 

These values are listed in the download wiki release announcement. http://www.linuxmce.org/news.php?id=25

When you download a LMCE .iso you use an MD5sum program to compare your downloaded .iso md5sum value against the original (md5sum value listed on the wiki).

Normally for windows you start the md5sum program, browse to the .iso file you downloaded and click some start/run button.

It might take a couple of minutes to complete but it will supply the md5sum value for the .iso.

If the value for the LMCE .iso on your hard disk drive does not match the original md5sum value don't even bother to try to burn a disk image.

It will not work.

You will need to download the original .iso file until the md5sum values match.

Then you can burn an image file to a CD or DVD to run the LMCE software.

Sorry, to reiterate but...

1) download .iso with matching md5sum value
2) then burn an image disk for each .iso disk.

Hope this helps.