There is some strange issue with bsdinstall (and with gpart, maybe).

But I don't understand why you think the EFI partition is needed. I think the problem has more to do with how gpart creates the GPT table, as opposed to how gnu parted does it. For example, if I type [cmd=]parted /dev/sdc[/cmd] and then type [cmd=]mklabel gpt[/cmd] my BIOS doesn't crash when I reboot and I can add any freebsd FreeBSD partition to it. But if I type [cmd=]gpart create -s gpt /dev/ada2[/cmd] the BIOS crashes when I reboot.
 
Now that's interesting. The EFI partition is guesswork, mainly because when it was present, the machine worked.

Compare the two partition tables. Create a blank GPT with with parted/mklabel, then display the partition table information. (I'd use mfsBSD and gpart show but parted print might also be good.) Then erase it and create a GPT setup with gpart. Now use the same program as before to display the partition table information again and look for differences.
 
I am having similar issues
Code: 
gptboot: invalid GPT backup header
Auto failed
Manual MBF /BSD with Auto GPT Partition failed

Just about to try my luck doing it manually in the shell again but last time it froze on asking for root password. Any other method so far booting it just showed - then | then stopped dead in its tracks. 8.2-Release and 9-Current installed fine but 9.0 RC2 memstick, that's another question also tried installing via sysinstall. With no luck in the installer knowing where the files were.

*edit*

Drive was wiped Completely via both DD and LLF and used Auto option with 9.0 RC2 installer
3 times now the built in partition tool has caused some kind of boot failour on a completly zero'd HDD

I performed low level Format on HDD and retied 9.0 RC2 it did it again I then went to 8.2-Release and it refused to write changes to HDD , Re Low level Formatted HDD and 8.2-Release installed onto it

I am just about to try and install 9.0 RC2 into the created partitions 8.2 did

9-Current installed and booted ( with the backup header nag as 64k boot )last weekend

*edit*

8.2-release did them as MBR and BSD Slices

when I tried this manually even in 9.0 RC2 it still would not boot it would just show a - then 2 sec later halt on a |
( worked out this only happens if I do not zero out the drive after a GPT has been created





also noticed 9-current has MPS enabled but RC2 does not

I can not use any other partitioning tools after 9 has partitioned as GPT
( 8.2-releases complains about not being able to find nodes and fdisk has issues as well )

the only way to change anything is to dd zero out the start of the drive , the disk is an 500 gig usb GoFlex




I found that if I leave the MBR that 8.2 made and make a BSD partition in 9 RC2 it works

but if I use 9 RC2 to make a MBR and then a BSD partition it will not work
( only if a GPT had been created with out dd zeroing the drive if it is zero'd out 9 RC2 will boot fine after manually creating them )

I am going to do Trial and error on a thumb drive later on when I have time as I have plenty spare I can kill

maybe not being marked as bootable ?




I think its because the 9.0 RC2 is using 64k boot size I recreated it as 256k and it booted
how ever the gptboot: invalid GPT backup header is still their but at least it kept booting


I have now forgotten what I did but I am pretty sure I used Auto full disk then manually re edited the GPT partition to have 128k boot in GPT style and it booted
( but can not rermber if it was MBR or not now )
because
Code: 
gptboot: invalid GPT backup header
still displayed and was annoying me I manually made it an MBR with BSD slice's and the install went fine ( how ever I still had to zero out the drive before that would work after the GPT was made what ever it is doing in AUTO mode is preventing something from working

the other thing would be if using GPT partitions and mount paths in the installer menu has the option to make labels why does it not use them I had to manually change the fstab file after I enabled MPS so the rootfs could be found after drive positions changed

I was going to pastebin the HDD boot sectors for comparison as HEX code but it only saved as garbled data
if someone knows of a program that will let me copy and paste / export the offset hex and code I am all ears ( I was using WinHEX )
 
oleglelchuk said:
tingo, no, if I use the standard approach for installing FreeBSD, that question never gets asked.
Click to expand...

That's odd. It sure gets asked here when I install from a FreeBSD 9.0-RC2 image.
When you say "standard approach" do you mean using the installer (as in selecting "Install" from the menu)?
 
tingo, yes. If I select "Install", then select "Guided" method for partitioning, and hit "Finish", that question never gets asked.

wblock, parted print displays the same information in both cases, except that, of course, I need to disconnect and then reconnect the data cable to the hard drive after the BIOS loads and before the kernel boots if the GPT table was created with gpart. As I mentioned in post #1, I get the same problems if I use gpart to create the MBR/slicing scheme on the hard drive. For example, the BIOS doesn't crash if I create the MBR table with the command gpart create -s mbr /dev/ada2, but it crashes if I add slice 1 to the disk by typing gpart add -t freebsd /dev/ada2. Fdisk and bsdlabel don't give me the same problems if I use them for the same purpose.
 
If the partition sizes and locations are identical, then it's either the contents of those partitions, or maybe the "magic values" used to identify the partition types.
 
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