Problem with some data types

[kilaueabart]

I first turned on my AmigaOneX5000 on Oct 7 2017 and reported that I was impressed with how fast Workbench came up. It is fairly clear that my OnTheLake computer came with OS4 on an already installed hard drive. I would have added the Linux stuff later. Right now I'm replying from my Windows laptop. I'll need to get back on the Amiga and relearn MediaToolbox and carry on this discussion later.

[kilaueabart]

Here is what Media Toolbox has to say, abbreviated, under "Editing partitions for disk INTEL SS PHDV6.33501E7750M":
AltBoot 2.107 G, SSDApps 21.755 G, SSDInternet 21.089 G, SSDData 40.384 G, SSDWorkbench 6.217 G.

I don't know whether it came that way or I figured out how to set it up myself. I did mention on Hyperion that I had reinstalled Workbench the day I first turned it on.

Nor is it clear to me yet how this effects the current discussion about reinstalling OS4.1 somewhere.

[kilaueabart]

Another important question. MediaToolbox opens with three devices to choose from, vsata.device, p50x0sata.device, and usbdisk.device. That usbdisk.device opens as SanDisk Ultra; version 1.26; id, LUN: 0,0; Removable hard disk; Not installed. Huh??

If I select the p50x0sata.device it recommends updating my disk configuration to reflect disk changes. I suspect the p50... one is no longer there, but I'm afraid to accept the recommendation yet. "Unit 0 (INTEL SS PHDV6.33501E7750M), is no longer last unit."
It gets listed as the first of three!

[nbache]

First of all, from what you tell there it looks like your drive was set up with Media Toolbox initially, and that means it would have an RDB, Amiga-style.

That's good news.

If we add up the five volumes you mention, they occupy a bit over 90 GB - how big is that disk altogether? Presumably there is unallocated space at the end of it, does that show up in Media Toolbox?

Then again, I don't see you listing any partitions which would be used for Linux; I'd expect an EXT3 or EXT4 partition, at least, or possibly FAT32 or NTFS. Are you sure your Linux is installed on that same drive?

*If* we can end up concluding that you do have unallocated space on the disk (neither used by AmigaOS or by Linux, then a new system partition ("WorkbenchNew" or whatever you'd end up calling it) could be created on the disk, and a fresh install of OS4.1FE etc. could be made on it from the CD. But we're not sure enough about that yet.

About the devices: For some reason, there's a vsata.device as well as a p50x0sata.device which both represent the same physical connections. Don't let that confuse you. I always select the p50x0sata one, but it probably doesn't matter which one.

The usbdisk.device may be listing the micro-SD card which contains UBoot and AmigaBoot etc. It is not formatted normally, and it should not be touched. It is used by the early startup stuff.

The recommendation about updating the system's conception of what is the last disk/unit is normally sound advice to follow - unless you have temporarily connected an extra disk (and even then, it's just a matter of letting it update again when you have removed it). I have never seen any harm by accepting that requester, only more correct behaviour.

Best regards,

Niels

[kilaueabart]

Here is what GParted lists for my hard drive (I omit the "/dev/"s):

sda1 ! unknown 4.05 GiB --- boot
sda2 ! unknown 40.04 GiB ---
sda3 ! unknown 32.53 GiB ---
sda4 ! unknown 36.15 GiB ---
sda5 ^ ext4 /media/fie... MATE 151.70 GiB 50.16 GiB boot
sda6 ^ ext4 / FIENIX6 97.39 GiB 24.45 GiB
sda7 ^ ext4 /media/fie... FIENIX-2 100.95 GiB 24.45 GiB
sda8 ^ ext4 /media/fie... void 102.36 GiB 55.13 GiB boot
sda9 ^ ext4 /media/fie... FIENIX-DISK 98.18 GiB 8.55 GiB
unallocated 1.99 GiB ---
sda10 ^ ext4 /media/fie... void2 124.43 GiB 35.10 GiB
unallocated 141.17 GiB ---

I give the Size and Used figures but leave out Unused. The "^"s stand for a little mark that could be a keyhole or a doll.

Not a very neat hard disk.

Media Toolbox doesn't show any of that Linux stuff. Only a gray rectangle. If I select it, I am told "Lower cyl.: 3999973, Higher cyl.: 6105140."
I'm not sure whether I set up any or all the Amiga partitions. I'm sure I did all the linux with GParted.

[nbache]

I'm going to have little time or opportunity the coming weeks, but just a short reply:

I was half expecting to see some unknown (to Linux) partitions, but I'm a bit puzzled that their sizes don't seem to match the Amiga partitions you listed earlier. Are you quite sure there's only one HDD in your machine?

Other than that, it does look like there's unallocated space at the end, but I'd want to make sure it is also shown as unallocated in Media Toolbox before trying to create a new partition in it.

Maybe you could create a small (1-2 GiB) FAT32 or NTFS partition close to the end of that area and see if Media Toolbox could then see it from the Amiga side, FAT32 and NTFS should be recognizable there (EXT3 as well, but try the others to be sure).

If that works, you could change that partiton - or make another one just before it - to NGFS or SFS, depending on what you're using on the other Amiga partitions, and use that to install a fresh AmigaOS on.

Just some ideas - hope Raziel or others can help you further. Also consider asking the question on the Linux sub-forums, I'd guess some of the people there have experience running both AmigaOS and Linux together, I know at least Skateman does.

Best regards,

Niels

[Raziel]

I'd still go with the "hard cut" solution and rather *not* tamper with your installed hdd...you might break something that kills both the linux and amigaos side.

new hdd -> amigaos4 install CD -> install the OS -> once you can boot and work from your new installment -> re-add your former hdd -> re-install the stuff you need or want (from os4depot.net...not from your old hdd, or you might copy the bugs over too - that does not comply to data files, like pictures, music etc.)

[kilaueabart]

New mystery: How in the world did I fail to compare the GParted and Media Toolbox results? Looking at the former again, I see that I also failed to list /sda11 after the unallocated space at the end. /sda11 is "! unknown 2.57 GiB ___ boot"!

That gives a small 5th "unknown" to match the five partitions Media Toolbox lists, but totally out of order and position.

I guess I will have to come up with a new hard drive. I hope there is really place to put in my Amiga-on-the-lake box. I suppose I should drag the box out of its narrow niche under my desk and check, but I can't leave it out and open until I get the new drive. I need it operational to read my email. My windows laptop usually can't find gmail.hawaii.edu, where I do email. My phone finds it all right, but it's too small for this decrepit old man.

[kilaueabart]

Back on May 19 I noted "when I boot I get a screen that has this on it:
"choose a configuration to boot:
"AmigaOS 4.1 Final Edition Stable (Volume AltBoot)
"AmigaOS 4.1 Final Edition (Volume SSDWorkbench)"

I thought there would be no way to choose and the screen quickly moved up out of sight as it booted.

But today as it was going by I hit the Space bar and got this:

"... choose a configuration to boot:
"1: AmigaOS 4.1 Final Edition Stable (Volume AltBoot)
"2: AmigaOS 4.1 Final Edition (Volume SSDWorkbench)
"[RETURN] Boot default [SPACE] Stop Countdown
"Move default [UP] or [DOWN] with arrows
"[12] Boot appropriate config" (That is where it stopped.)

I doubted there was such a thing as Volume AltBoot, but had a go at booting the "Stable" edition anyway, and it booted!
The screen was orange, not the misty sky I usually get. There was a "Workbench" icon and a "Workbench2" icon with different contents. I was looking at something in Workbench2 and got a message that there was an error in it someplace.

I checked to see if OS4.1 Final Edition Stable on volume AltBoot had the same problem of hanging if I clicked a graphics file. It does. So here I am on volume SSDWorkbench as usual.

[kilaueabart]

I finally got around to crawling under my desk and getting the computer box out to check for second hard drive possibility. There is no place to put one like the current hard drive, but I was surprised to find a tiny thing labeled Intel SSD DC S3520 150GB installed on a sort of shelf near my hard drive. I was even more astonished later when GParted revealed that that SSD had five partitions of the sizes that Media Toolbox had reported. It is now obvious that OS4 runs from a separate miniscule HD that the nice Amiga expert who repaired my X5000 installed.

So it looks like if I could obtain an Install CD I could go ahead and install a new OS4 right over the old one. According to my faltering memory, I originally installed OS4 from the internet, and probably don't have such a CD. It would probably be too old anyway. But in the meantime I'll try copying the stuff I want to save over to a thumb drive or USB memory chip to be ready.