Help with VirtualBox... when trying to install linux, fails to create swap partition

Mizugori

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Mar 25, 2004
Messages
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I am trying to use VirutalBox... I have easily been able to create Virutal PCs with windows xp, but when I tried to install Debian, and then Ubuntu, both failed. I picked "Linux 2.6" from the drop down menu when creating each Virtual PC, was that the wrong choice? What happens is, each time I create a virtual hard drive (.vdi) just like I did for the WinXP VPCs, and I make it 10gb. Everything goes fine until I get to the partition stage of the install, at which point I used the "guided" partitioning in both cases. When it tries to write these changes, however, it says that it cannot make the swap partition. I got the same error in Debian and Ubuntu. Any ideas??

thanks!
 
Odd??

I also use virtualbox and I have images for:
Ubuntu (latest)
Debian (latest)
FedoraCore (latest)
XP

and all created and installed fine.
can you provide a screenshot at that point
 
yup linux26

Here is a screenshot of all the relevant settings

Vbox.png
 
you know what, i wonder if its because i have an sata hard drive? should that matter? it says I/O error
 
shouldn't be.. both my drives are SATA (one for XP and one for native Linux)
I have virtualbox in both (with the linux one having an XP machine) and both run fine

This is really odd!!!

when you get the error do it lock up?


Can you try re-installing Ubuntu but this time tail the log file
get to teh liveCD desktop and open a terminal (from teh applications menu) and it it type


tail /var/log/messages -f
Drag the terminal tall (to get quite a few lines and maybe about 1/3 of the box screen (trying to get easy to read info)
Now start the install and when you get the fault take a screen-shot (ie free the keyboad with teh right CTRL and use PRINT-SCREEN in windows and paste into yr art package of choise

There is no reason for it to happen, but since it is need some more info
 
Jow much RAM did you reserve for the VM?

the debian installer needs 64meg. it can be installed with 32meg of real RAM and then the rest made up of swap (I have done this on a 32meg server recently). HOWEVER... until swap comes on the only memory is the physical.

IF you try to make SWAP too big and/or the root partition too big (when using <64meg or physical RAM) you will actually run out of memory and the installer with halt
 
i didnt get a chance to try yet... i tried win98se just for the hell of it and it installs but then it wont run; jesus is there some problem?? i will say one thing, i tried to install mandriva on this pc about a month ago and it gave me some weird error about my hard drive controller or something, i think maybe my mobo is not very friendly... :( its a foxconn p9657aa
 
Ahhh the dreaded jmicron controller!!!!
Now if you are using that (ie any PATA devices and/or a SATA connected to the Jmicron controller) then that is definitly responsible for yr failed attempt at installing natively and also prob for all the issues you are having virtually. Did you have to load the drivers from a floppy at windows install time?

Natively:
To install linux three things need to be supported (2 at the very least)
1) Network connection (only an issue at install-time for web-installs: Debian, Gentoo. others who update during install)
2) Display, need to see what you are doing (but even then can do headless). Every now and again a tech comes out (say when AGP first came out, when PCIe first came out) which comes out in the middle of a Linux install release
eg Distro-X gets released in May... PCIw starts appearing on hardware in July... New release of Distro-X in SEpt

Now between July and Sept if you bought a new board with PCIw on it then you would not be able to boot/install/see anything

3) ATA/SCSI/RAID controllers for the Optical drives (to read the install medium) and for hte mass-storage (to install to). If the ATA isn't supported then can't read install medium or cant write to disk

it is case #3 that is more then likely effecting you. I got bitten by that when I upgraded my machine 3months ago, Gentoo wouldn't boot/install. ended up going all SATA (ment to at some point). Most distro's are pushing out updated disks atm
Debian has, Ubuntu has, FedoraCore is due in a couple of weeks...


As to virtual case:
It is probably still downto the JMicron controller, the virtual program needs good disk access and if the driver is buggy then you will get issue's (issue that normal windows use & error-checking will fix). The windows JMicron drivers are crap! soo many complaints at the MSI forum's about MSI using that chip. Try updating the drivers
 
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