[closed]HD Disk label or something... ?

[soul...]

[root@vector/home/vl]# cfdisk /dev/hda
     FATAL ERROR: Bad primary partition 2: Partition ends after end-of-disk
                          Press any key to exit cfdisk

[root@vector/home/vl]# fdisk /dev/hda
The number of cylinders for this disk is set to 9729.
There is nothing wrong with that, but this is larger than 1024,
and could in certain setups cause problems with:
1) software that runs at boot time (e.g., old versions of LILO)
2) booting and partitioning software from other OSs
   (e.g., DOS FDISK, OS/2 FDISK)

[root@vector/home/vl]# sfdisk /dev/hda
Checking that no-one is using this disk right now ...
BLKRRPART: Device or resource busy

This disk is currently in use - repartitioning is probably a bad idea.
Umount all file systems, and swapoff all swap partitions on this disk.
Use the --no-reread flag to suppress this check.
Use the --force flag to overrule all checks.
[root@vector/home/vl]# fdisk /dev/hda

The number of cylinders for this disk is set to 9729.
There is nothing wrong with that, but this is larger than 1024,
and could in certain setups cause problems with:
1) software that runs at boot time (e.g., old versions of LILO)
2) booting and partitioning software from other OSs
   (e.g., DOS FDISK, OS/2 FDISK)
                                                   
[root@vector/home/vl]# fdisk -l     
Disk /dev/hda: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
    Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1   *           1        3178    25527253+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda2            3179        3382     1638598+  83  Linux
/dev/hda3            3766        9730    47913862+   f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/hda5   *        3766        9282    44315271    c  W95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/hda6   *        9283        9308      208813+  82  Linux swap
/dev/hda7   *        9309        9730     3389683+   b  W95 FAT32]
(linked to gparted picture)

Hi, people.
Have 2hds(linked to secondhd pict), as u can see problem is with first only - i canot do any partitioning at all.
Tryed manualy pointing to /dev/hda2 (free earlier prealocated partition for lin system) - it instaled but it canot bot from hem (says canot mount mount there is no such a place, but i checked filesa are instaled corectly and didnt exeedet 1gb). Btw i can mount any partition on hda and access files. Swap is mounted by this vectorlive session.
And one problem - xp is gone (ok its not important) but i need get back those 3gb (by joining them to /hda2).
I can't do backups, hd's almost full.
Help is needed, badly i have no clue...

*ps thats how it looked before installing (and after install windows throw-ed some it cannot run chfs and bsod..so i mounted normlay from my rescue live cd and copied all winxp needed files; now partition is deleted)
and then there was winxp it trowed some similar:
[root@vector/home/vl]# cdisk /dev/hda
     FATAL ERROR: Bad primary partition 3(now it refers to 2): Partition ends after end-of-disk
                          Press any key to exit cfdisk
[root@vector/home/vl]# fdisk -l
Disk /dev/hda: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 9729 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
    Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1   *           1        3178    25527253+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda2            3179        3382     1638598+  83  Linux
/dev/hda3            3383        3765     3127253+   7  HPFS/NTFS (winxp-compresion enabled)
/dev/hda4            3766        9730    47913862+   f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/hda5           3766        9282    44315271    c  W95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/hda6           9283        9308      208813+  82  Linux swap
/dev/hda7           9309        9730     3389683+   b  W95 FAT32

Offtopic:
Hei, hope there is no problem with jfs on vectors ?

[lagagnon]

There is something seriously wrong with the partitioning of /dev/hda (the 80GB drive). You have more than 135GB partitioned on an 80GB drive, which is obviously impossible and no wonder you are getting those errors.

The only way that could have happened (in my humble experience) is that the BIOS was set to some funny CHS value (a "User" value, rather than an "Auto") from some other drive, the 80G drive was inserted, the BIOS was not reconfigured and then an attempt was made to partition the drive and it got all confused.

I don't know what you have on that drive but, I'm afraid to say this, you might have to back up all your data and start over again. I can see no other option. If you run any Live Linux CD it should attempt to mount any partition it possibly can, you can then download the files from those partitions onto an external device.

Then you should go into your BIOS setup, change the config to Auto for all drives, run a Live CD, remove all those bad partitions and re-partition.

If anyone else can come up with a less destructive method to solve this I really want to know about it!

Good luck....

[soul...]

hmn, first thank you for replay

hmn those ~1.5gb its almost as same sizes (saved) using ntfs compresion ability on ntfs partitions (all deleted win xp was using that hmn but don't remember if i applied it before or later that bad unlucky day) can it mess up things (hmn windows stated"things" was normal..damn) ?

well with this state, pc are working almost second year...
i cannot do any backup..i have no place.. and ...i don't wanna(heh)

mmm back two years ...i accidentally started formating /hda5 but i managed to stop and lost only couple gigs info (:/) i don't know what it was used to recover all other info but as i know friend say-ed it was my luck that i interupted formation and mostly there was only partition table rewritten ..so he managed it somehove repair/restore ..and then gained files.. and i lived fine till i try-ed yesterday do some partitioning :/

[soul...]

You have more than 135GB partitioned on an 80GB drive

Good luck....

i have no clue from where did u get this (i have two hds 80gb and 40gb connected)

mm how exactly do you count or with part is wrong on that disk can plz tel me more easily need to know its obvious that partition table have bad number then but need to know (i don't know exactly to with number to look or with tels what.. sorry) plz explain me ..i need to anderstand before trying something(even find another 70gb for backup..) BTW counting all total space i have on all partitions its about ~74gb so its normal... and only one mind coming is to try dig deeper and fix partitions table

For good wishes thank you, but i need more.
(files are personal pictures, and graphic works..cad corel ..oth so i cannot just delete them...)
but i know one thing if know what I'm doing i will do it fine ..but w.o. understanding...

hmn is there can bre some use off smartmontools or smart-notifier....?

[lagagnon]

Sorry, I was wrong about my post as I was counting the extended partition /dev/hda3. From your fdisk -l output there does not seem to be anything wrong, but obviously there is with the cfdisk errors you are getting.

I still cannot figure out which is the new partition scheme for the 80GB hard drive, the one in the middle of your post or the one at the end of your post?? In the first instance you have an extended partiton (/dev/hda3) - however that is labelled W95 Ext'd (LBA). I don't know but that does not appear to be the normal situation - it should really just be labelled extended. For instance here is my partition table:

Disk /dev/hda: 120.0 GB, 120034123776 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 14593 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1   *           1        6374    51199123+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda2            6375       14593    66019117+   5  Extended
/dev/hda5            6375        7138     6136798+  83  Linux
/dev/hda6            7139        7201      506016   82  Linux swap
/dev/hda7            7202       14593    59376208+  83  Linux


Note how the /dev/hda2 extended partition is just labelled "Extended". I wonder whether that has something to do with your problem? Otherwise I don't really have any suggestions...

[soul...]

current is middle (all linked to pict) and bottom that was before installing (with fine working winxp, after install it cannot boot..so i dropped away it, at all;)

hmn that extended, was, a long time ago created using windows integrated disk management utility :/
maybe hmn thats why its labeled different.. heh ?
(well still i felt easier having here some contact w. 'u, at all...  sometimes thats brings new ideas)

[GrannyGeek]

In the first instance you have an extended partiton (/dev/hda3) - however that is labelled W95 Ext'd (LBA). I don't know but that does not appear to be the normal situation - it should really just be labelled extended.

I don't think there's anything abnormal about the way the extended partition is labeled. I've seen that a lot--maybe on all my computers--but I have just one on now so I can't check the others. Here are the results of fdisk -l on my Turion laptop:

Disk /dev/hda: 160.0 GB, 160041885696 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 19457 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1               1        1365    10964331    7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda2   *        1366       13209    95136930    7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda3           13210       19458    50187264    f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/hda5           13211       17351    33262582+   b  W95 FAT32
/dev/hda6           17352       19391    16386268+  83  Linux
/dev/hda7           19392       19457      530113+  82  Linux swap

Everything is working fine on this computer.
--GrannyGeek

[lagagnon]

I don't think there's anything abnormal about the way the extended partition is labeled. I've seen that a lot--maybe on all my computers--but I have just one on now so I can't check the others.

Thanks for that GrannyGeek - I learn something every day. Well then, so much for that idea - I really don't know how soul is getting those partition errors, but there is still something funny about the partition table. Note how hda2 ends at Block 3382 and hda3 (which should be contiguous) starts at Block 3766. Partition 3 should start at 3383.

Personally I can see no option other than to use gparted to try to fix that difference, if that is possible I really don't know.

[soul...]

hda2 ends at Block 3382 and hda3 (which should be contiguous) starts at Block 3766. Partition 3 should start at 3383.

thats because it was there winxp (i deleted partition,i wished to join that free space to hda2...) old view:
    Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1   *           1        3178    25527253+   7  HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda2            3179        3382     1638598+  83  Linux
/dev/hda3            3383        3765     3127253+   7  HPFS/NTFS (winxp-compresion enabled)
/dev/hda4            3766        9730    47913862+   f  W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/hda5           3766        9282    44315271    c  W95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/hda6           9283        9308      208813+  82  Linux swap
/dev/hda7           9309        9730     3389683+   b  W95 FAT32

[soul...]

Hello - again. Found problem. I didt know where to look..but i kept trying about 7 different partitioning tools...

all sayed different problem is on my hd some even didn't started because off some errors with suggestions correct something (i was afraid to do those corrections..) like wrong bytes..wrong partition table that didn't mach disk table (or something like...) and other disk ends out of partition table..  well it is one  problem no one using Linux live, partitioning tools didn't described exact problem location..
so i used ultimate boot CD :/ and started trying all tools xD

one of those mm if i remember Ranish PM2.4 noticed exactly with partitions looks weird and i used disk surface test on that what i found that last disks cylinders at extended partition is +1  and is 9729 cylinders but real size is 9728  (how it hapened, i gues maybe that friend then recovered all hd info fdid some manual fixing and just have typo mistake) !!  i just lucky that last partitions  was just for some file copy's.. i deleted/recreated them hoping that ranish will rewrite partition table according to disk it was lucky guess...worked from second try but it worked now all looks OK and all partitioning tools inside Linux have no problems so.

Hju i didn't lost any files just..couple days (hrr).
Ok byebye.