[linux-lvm] Can't start LVM root fs

[Heinz J . Mauelshagen]

On Sun, Sep 15, 2002 at 11:53:47PM +0100, Arie Bant at mail.com wrote:
> Hello Heinz,
> 
> Thanks for LVM.  I have been using it on HP-UX and AIX and provided one can
> control the placing of the LV's over the disk so as to avoid excessive head
> movement it saves a few problems here and there.
> 
> Hint: On AIX and HP-UX one can, but does not have to, control in which area
> of the disk an LV is placed, or even which PV's will be part of it.  This
> allows leaving spaces between LV's which later can be used to grow them.
> The advantage over just making the LV bigger in the first place is that the
> intermediate space can be used for growing either LV at a time when one does
> not know which LV is going to need more space.
> 
> But now my problem:
> 
> I have installed LVM 1.0.1 on my Mandrake 8.0 Linux box (PIII 550Mhz, 512
> MB) from the Mandrake 8.2 DVDROM.  No problems.

Arie,

first of all: why are you using an older version of LVM1?
You should upgrade to 1.0.5.

> After creating boot partition, PV, VG and root/usr/var LV's on an extra disk
> (/dev/sdb) added to the system,
> I have copied the content of the boot directory to the bootpart on the new
> disk,
> root/usr/var to the new LV's,
> used lvmcreate _initrd to create a new boot image,
> copied that to the new bootpart,
> modified lilo.conf as suggested in the man page for lvmcreate _initrd and
> ran lilo and
> rebooted from the new FS.
> First time vgscan complained that LVM was not installed and suggested
> checking the module stuff.
> 
> Indeed I could not find where in the new boot image the lvm module got
> loaded.  I then modified modules.conf to load the LVM module on the
> appropriate devices ( 54 & 109 ), added the module in the appropriate place
> in the "lib"directory tree and tried again.

Should not be needed, because a modprobe is inserted into /linuxrc by
lvmcreate_initrd. Strange.

> The system now boots a little further, vgscan has created /etc/lvmtab and
> /etc/lvmtab.d, until vgchange says it can not find any volume groups.

This could be caused by missing /dev entries for the disks failing vgscan
to find some/any PVs.
Did lvmcreate_initrd show any errors?

> 
> When I reboot from the existing system it is fine and all the logical
> volumes are accessible.
> 
> Any suggestions how to proceed?
> 
> Note: There is a third disk in the system (/dev/sdc/, containing the swap
> file system.  This used to be /dev/sdb before I added  the new disk.  I have
> changed all references to the "old" /dev/sdb into /dev/sdc in /etc/fstab of
> the current root FS.
> I have also taken care that the /etc/fstab in the new root LV  resembles the
> current situation seen from the point of view when that becomes the current
> root FS and that lilo.conf in the new boot/root FS is correct for the
> situation when in all works and the new disk becomes /dev/sda (I am taking
> the old drive out)
> 
> Best Regards,
> 
> Arie Bant.
> *******************************
> Maes,  Llandrillo
> Corwen,  LL21 0TE
> United Kingdom
> tel.: +44 (0)1490 440 487/370
> e-mail: abant at mail.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> *******************************
> Maes,  Llandrillo
> Corwen,  LL21 0TE
> United Kingdom
> tel.: +44 (0)1490 440 487/370
> fax.: +44 (0)870 284 1575 (via e-mail)
> e-mail: abant at mail.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> linux-lvm mailing list
> linux-lvm at sistina.com
> http://lists.sistina.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-lvm
> read the LVM HOW-TO at http://www.sistina.com/lvm/Pages/howto.html

-- 

Regards,
Heinz    -- The LVM Guy --

*** Software bugs are stupid.
    Nevertheless it needs not so stupid people to solve them ***

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Heinz Mauelshagen                                 Sistina Software Inc.
Senior Consultant/Developer                       Am Sonnenhang 11
                                                  56242 Marienrachdorf
                                                  Germany
Mauelshagen at Sistina.com                           +49 2626 141200
                                                       FAX 924446
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