Bug 145737

Summary: Install repair tools not available if system too damaged
Product: [openSUSE] SUSE Linux 10.1 Reporter: Forgotten User 3Fef81aWgP <forgotten_3Fef81aWgP>
Component: InstallationAssignee: Steffen Winterfeldt <snwint>
Status: RESOLVED WONTFIX QA Contact: Klaus Kämpf <kkaempf>
Severity: Enhancement    
Priority: P5 - None    
Version: Beta 1   
Target Milestone: ---   
Hardware: x86   
OS: All   
Whiteboard:
Found By: Customer Services Priority:
Business Priority: Blocker: ---
Marketing QA Status: --- IT Deployment: ---

Description Forgotten User 3Fef81aWgP 2006-01-26 05:19:54 UTC 
In the event of a SuSe install being so damaged that the Yast installer that the installer for any recent version of SuSE (at least 9.3 10.0 and 10.1 beta1), can not detect it, the repair tools can not be accessed. If the root SuSe partition was accidently deleted for example, the expert repair tool to recover the partition would not be available to recover it. Accessing the expert repair tools should always be an option during installation if no valid SuSe install is found.

Sometimes people would be able to use the live DVD to repair their SuSe install, but there are a few problems with this.
1. The live DVD does not have all the expert repair tools like the partition recovery tool.
2. Not everyone has a DVD drive.
3. Not everyone has the live DVD available in emergencies.

Furthermore the SuSe expert repair tools would be useful on systems not running SuSe.

Thus please make the expert repair tools available all the time in the 10.1 install.

To recreate, take a system without an identifiable SuSe install, start up the install system optical disc or presumably any other source, using the normal installation option from the menu or presumably other options. After the time zone and media check, when you would normally have the option of accessing the repair tools, YaST will go directly to the new install menus.
Comment 1 Martin Lasarsch 2006-01-26 11:10:43 UTC 
i'm not sure if i understand what you want ...

you can access the repair mode with repair=1 as bootparameter when you boot from cd/dvd
Comment 2 Forgotten User 3Fef81aWgP 2006-01-26 16:59:41 UTC 
The repair=1 parameter is exactly how to get to what is needed. Unfortunately this is extremely hard to find out about, and a way to go into the repair mode needs to be obvious for users in emergencies. Furthermore, the start-up documentation states in section 1.5 that the repair mode can only be accessed if SuSE is installed, and thus suggests to more knowledgeable users (like me) that it has to be able to be found for the repair tools to work.

So to state exactly what I want (for other users at this point, not myself anymore), I believe that there should be an obvious way of accessing the repair mode from the installer (usually install CD/DVD) in the case of a SuSe install being so damaged that it can not be detected. An example of this would be if someone used a partitioning utility and accidentally deleted their root ( / ) SuSe partition. I'm sure there are other exact situations too such as when the filesystem is horribly corrupted. Without easy access to the repair tools, they are more likely to call up support, have a negative experience with SuSe, etc.
Comment 3 Michael Gross 2006-01-31 10:11:19 UTC 
So maby we should just add an option to GRUB?
It would of course be nice to have a page somewhere within GRUB that shows and shortly explains at least the more suse-spefific parameters... or is there alreadty something like that what I have missed?
Comment 4 Torsten Duwe 2006-03-14 15:16:12 UTC 
Note that I am not maintaining the grub menus, only the grub code itself.
Comment 5 Michael Gross 2006-03-15 16:54:34 UTC 
Reassignint to Stefan.
Comment 6 Steffen Winterfeldt 2006-03-16 11:30:22 UTC 
I don't understand it. According to Michael, yast doesn't offer the
repair mode if the system is too damaged. Why would repair=1 help, then?

In any case, it's fine with me to offer a repair mode somewhere in the boot
menu, provided it doesn't get more crowded than it already is.

Suggestions how to fit that in?
Comment 7 Stephan Kulow 2008-06-25 09:35:02 UTC 
mass reopening all SuSE Linux bugs that are set to REMIND+LATER to change the resolution to WONTFIX (adapting to new policy)
Comment 8 Stephan Kulow 2008-06-25 09:37:05 UTC 
mass reopening all SuSE Linux bugs that are set to REMIND+LATER to change the resolution to WONTFIX (adapting to new policy)
Comment 9 Stephan Kulow 2008-06-25 09:41:59 UTC 
mass reopening all SuSE Linux bugs that are set to REMIND+LATER to change the resolution to WONTFIX (adapting to new policy)
Comment 10 Stephan Kulow 2008-06-25 09:53:22 UTC 
Closing old LATER+REMIND bugs as WONTFIX - if you still plan to work on it, feel free to reopen and set to ASSIGNED.

In case the report saw repeated reopen comments, it's due to bugzilla timing out on the huge request ;(