FreeBSD panics during first boot

V

vlast

Hey there,

I wasn't quite sure where to put this post since it includes both hardware issues and base system installing issues. But since iam I am not sure if it is really damaged hardware I decided to put it here.

So, some time ago I ran FreeBSD in VMWare on my Windows[ ]7 OS on my notebook. Recently I decided to get FreeBSD running parallel to Windows[ ]7 using dual boot. Because my DVD drive is kind of damaged I created a bootable USB Stick using the cmd on Windows[ ]7 creating a primary partition, formatting it with FAT32 and putting all files from the .iso onto it (I tried both, the memstick.iso and the Disc1.iso; both downloaded from the official FreeBSD FTPs).

So far so good, the whole thing boots, I get along to the classic FreeBSD boot menu and I select "1) boot". The kernel is loading but after some seconds I get the following error:


Some people told me that my hardware might be damaged but since Windows[ ]7 and any applications running without causing any problems most people told me that it is more realistic that the hardware isn't really physically damaged but just not supported by the FreeBSD kernel.

I've got a Asus notebook
  • Intel Core Duo 2x2,1[ ]GhZGHz
  • 4[ ]GB RAM
  • GeForce 9300M GS
  • 500[ ]GB SATA HDD
  • Nothing overclocked nor tuned in any[ ]way.
  • I[ ]am using FreeBSD 9.1 Release9.1-RELEASE.

Thanks in advance!
 
It's just the USB stick (the da1 line) -- I would try a different one (I use these for the practical design and durability), or at least run some tests on it.

However, you might want to try some other things before that:
  1. There are some AHCI options you can enable/disable (I'm not sure) in BIOS.
  2. You can try without the ACPI option (at the boot prompt), or try booting in the single user mode.
  3. If you know someone with an external DVD/CD drive, you can also use it to install from a DVD/CD, avoiding the USB install altogether.
 
Who told you that your hardware would be damaged? Don't listen to those people any more, for anything.

Please follow the instructions in the Handbook to create a memory stick. Because you did it a different way, it's impossible to tell whether the problem is due to the memstick creation process or something else.

Which version of FreeBSD did you download?
 
I downloaded FreeBSD9.1-RELEASE. At first I created the USB stick like it is described in the FreeBSD Handbook (with Win32DiskImager) but it didn't work either.
 
Okay, I don't think it is a problem with the USB stick. I tried another one and still the same error occurs. Additionally I am not really sure if da1 really is the stick.

A bit before the error which I posted above (in the picture) it says:
Code: 
da1: <Generic- Multi Card 1.00> Removable Direct Access SCSI-0 device
da1:40.000MB/s transfers
da1:Attemp to query device size failed: NOT READY, medium not present

While a bit above this it says:
Code: 
da0:<Intenso Rainbow Line> Removable Direct Access SCSI-4 device
da0:40.000MB/s transfers
da0:30400MB (62259200 512 byte sectors: 255N 635/T 38756)


Isn't it more a problem with the CPU, looking at the last lines of the error? I guess the ad1 is the Card Reader which FreeBSD is not ready to query the device size, because there isn't any SD Card plugged in.

So I tried both, using another USB Stick and using another USB Port. Both options end up with the same error as above.

Another suggestion I got is to try a FreeBSD snapshot, because it should be possible that FreeBSD isn't compatible with (my/many) notebook hardware. This could -according to the guy who suggested it- probably show if there is any bugfix for this already.

Thanks so far.
 
The name da is reserved for USB sticks and alike (removable cards, etc.). And no, the last line has nothing to do with the CPU. As for the hardware incompatibility/breakage, you're running on a fairly standard CPU and GPU which are both well supported (Core Duo is explicitly taken out, but people on this forum have confirmed successfully installing and running FreeBSD on it). I wouldn't say it's a hardware problem. Have you tried booting other operating systems via the USB stick, to confirm your motherboard supports it like it should?
 
Sorry for the triple post but I can't find the "Edit" button. [ then you haven't bothered to read the forum rules -- Mod. ]

Some online research showed up that the CPU internal timer error refers to (maybe) overheating hardware. Is that possible?
 
vlast said:
Sorry for the Triple Post but I can't find the "Edit" - Button.

Some online research showed up that the CPU internal timer error refers to (maybe) overheating hardware. Is that possible?
Click to expand...
Not in such a way (I mean, it's not like you're putting computer under any stress, you're just trying to boot), unless your laptop really needs cleaning ASAP (you have to know this yourself -- when is the last time you cleaned it, and what are the common temperatures).

I took a look at your original post, and there are some indeed some CPU errors. However, the first entry says there is no hard drive (that your USB stick is unplugged), so it's hard to say if that error is not due to the da1 error.

By the way, in the previous post, I gave a link about ISOs. I noticed that it dealt with Intel Core 2 Duo. If you have just Intel Core Duo (so no number 2 in it) see this: try an i386 architecture version of FreeBSD to rule out the CPU issue, if you're indeed using the amd64 image.
 
jozze said:
The name da is reserved for USB sticks and alike (removable cards, etc.). And no, the last line has nothing to do with the CPU. As for the hardware incompatibility/breakage, you're running on a fairly standard CPU and GPU which are both well supported (Core Duo is explicitly taken out, but the error message doesn't mention CPU at all). I wouldn't say it's a hardware problem. Have you tried booting other operating systems via the USB stick, to confirm your motherboard supports it like it should?
Click to expand...

Well, I tought the lines
Code: 
MCA: CPU 1 UNCOR PCC BUSL0 Source ERR Memory
.
.
.
MCA:CPU 1 UNCOR PCC internal timer error
refer to the CPU. Because some people tell that the internal timer error may hint to overheating hardware for example. Sorry for my misunderstanding.
 
No, I apologize for not looking at the error more clearly :r, you were right, those are related to CPUs. But the first error goes to the missing "hard drive" (da1) so it's hard to say if the errors after that are just consequences of the first one.

Like I said in the later post, (so my previous one) try with the i386 architecture, as Intel Core Duo/Solo is a 32-bit processor (Intel Core 2 Duo is a 64-bit).

As for the editing: you'll be able to edit your posts after you post 10 messages, and after one week since have you joined these forums. After that you'll be added to the group "regulars", and you'll be able to edit your posts.
 
jozze said:
The name da is reserved for USB sticks and alike (removable cards, etc.).
Click to expand...
Not exactly. It's for SCSI disks actually. Memory sticks and removable hard drives just happen to be "detected" as SCSI. da(4).
 
jozze said:
As for the editing: you'll be able to edit your posts after you post 10 messages, and after one week since have you joined these forums.
Click to expand...
Actually, it's ten days: see this link. For what it's worth: this is mostly an anti-spam measure. It's a common spamming technique to first post a seemingly innocuous message and then come back to edit that message, adding the spam crap.
 
vlast said:
Well, I tought the lines
Code: 
MCA: CPU 1 UNCOR PCC BUSL0 Source ERR Memory
.
.
.
MCA:CPU 1 UNCOR PCC internal timer error
refer to the CPU. Because some people tell that the internal timer error may hint to overheating hardware for example. Sorry for my misunderstanding.
Click to expand...
The first one indicates it could be main memory (as opposed to cache memory on the CPU). I'd suggest running MemTest86+ for at least a few hours (and preferably overnight) to see if it detects anything.

If that comes up clean, check with your system/motherboard manufacturer to see if there's a BIOS update available and install that. Many times, this sort of error is caused by a misconfiguration of something during the chipset initialization by the BIOS.
 
I already checked for BIOS updates but it seems mine is up to date. I am going to place the DVD drive of my girlfriend in my notebook today and try to boot from a CD instead of the USB stick. Maybe this will help because liked @jozze said the errors might consequent from the stick.

Otherwise I think I am going to try a snapshot if installing doesn't work. After that I will try Memtest86+.

Because some research showed that the internal timer error might come from a overheating CPU I bought new thermal paste. My notebook will get some intense hardware cleaning plus new paste today.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Although I checked and cleaned the hardware (and added new thermal paste) I still get the same error. Is there any way to get the FreeBSD-9.1-RELEASE-i386-disc1.iso working with a USB stick (bootable I mean)? I want to try if I just got a problem with the FreeBSD-9.1-RELEASE-i386-memstick.img, maybe.
 
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