What gave it away was lsmod showed 'sg' and 'ata_piix' modules.
Sigh...
Thanks for the prompters.
This message has been posted, courtesy of a Gentoo system running off my new SATA drive.

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sda1 xp
sda2 boot
sda3 swap
sda4 extended
sda5 root Code: Select all
default 0
timeout 30
splashimage=(hd0,1)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title=Gentoo Linux 2.6.21-r4
root (hd0,4)
kernel /boot/kernel-genkernel-x86_64-2.6.21-gentoo-r4 root=/dev/ram0 init=/linuxrc ramdisk=8192 real_root=/dev/sda5 udev
initrd /boot/initramfs-genkernel-x86_64-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
# Only in case you want to dual-boot
title=Windows XP
rootnoverify (hd0,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1 
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splashimage=(hd0,1)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gzCode: Select all
Gentoo Linux 2.6.21-r4
Windows XPCode: Select all
boot -> .Code: Select all
cd /boot
ln -s . boot
Boot is formatted as a ext2 partition of 32 mb.What filesystem is /boot ?
I don't know what a symbolic link isDo you have a symbolic link of boot pointing to itself like this ?
Code:
boot -> .
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# chroot /mnt/gentoo /bin/bash
# env-update
>> Regenerating /etc/ld.so.cache...
# source /etc/profile
# export PS1="(chroot) $PS1"

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$ ls -l /boot
total 21346
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1618552 May 27 17:33 2.6.21-gentoo-r2
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1618904 Jun 16 10:27 2.6.21-gentoo-r3
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1644664 Jul 19 19:53 2.6.22-gentoo-r1
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 1 Dec 14 2004 boot -> .
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 1024 Oct 6 2006 grub
drwx------ 2 root root 12288 Dec 14 2004 lost+found
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grub-install /dev/sda
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grub-install --root-directory=/mnt/new/boot /dev/sda
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# <fs> <mountpoint> <type> <opts> <dump/pass>
LABEL=boot /boot xfs defaults,noatime 1 1
LABEL=root / xfs defaults,noatime 1 2
/dev/hda6 none swap sw 0 0
LABEL=usr /usr xfs defaults,noatime 1 3
LABEL=var /var xfs defaults,noatime 1 4
LABEL=home /home xfs defaults,noatime 1 5
LABEL=tmp /tmp xfs defaults,noatime 1 6
LABEL=usr/local /usr/local xfs defaults,noatime 1 7
LABEL=opt /opt xfs defaults,noatime 1 8
LABEL=portage /portage xfs defaults,noatime 1 9
/dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom auto noauto,ro,user,gid=cdrom 0 0
#/dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy auto noauto 0 0
/dev/sda2 /mnt/new xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 10
/dev/sda1 /mnt/new/boot xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 11
/dev/vg/swap none swap sw
/dev/vg/home /mnt/new/home xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 12
/dev/vg/opt /mnt/new/opt xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 13
/dev/vg/portage /mnt/new/portage xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 14
/dev/vg/tmp /mnt/new/tmp xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 15
/dev/vg/usr /mnt/new/usr xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 16
/dev/vg/usr_local /mnt/new/usr/local xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 17
/dev/vg/var /mnt/new/var xfs auto,defaults,noatime 1 18
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/dev/vg/swap none swap sw
/dev/sda2 / xfs defaults,noatime 1 10
/dev/sda1 /boot xfs defaults,noatime 1 11
/dev/vg/home /home xfs defaults,noatime 1 12
/dev/vg/opt /opt xfs defaults,noatime 1 13
/dev/vg/portage /portage xfs defaults,noatime 1 14
/dev/vg/tmp /tmp xfs defaults,noatime 1 15
/dev/vg/usr /usr xfs defaults,noatime 1 16
/dev/vg/usr_local /usr/local xfs defaults,noatime 1 17
/dev/vg/var /var xfs defaults,noatime 1 18
/dev/hda5 /mnt/old/ xfs defaults,noatime 1 20
/dev/hda1 /mnt/old/boot xfs defaults,noatime 1 21
/dev/hda7 /mnt/old/usr xfs defaults,noatime 1 22
/dev/hda8 /mnt/old/var xfs defaults,noatime 1 23
/dev/hda9 /mnt/old/home xfs defaults,noatime 1 24
/dev/hda10 /mnt/old/tmp xfs defaults,noatime 1 25
/dev/hda11 /mnt/old/usr/local xfs defaults,noatime 1 26
/dev/hda12 /mnt/old/opt xfs defaults,noatime 1 27
/dev/hda14 /mnt/old/portage xfs defaults,noatime 1 28
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# Boot automatically after 10 secs.
timeout 10
# By default, boot the first entry.
default 0
# Fallback to the second entry
fallback 1
# Display initial image
#splashimage=(hd0,0)/grub/splash.xpm.gz
# For booting Windows NT or Windows95
title Windows XP - with SATA plugged in
map (hd0) (hd2)
map (hd2) (hd0)
rootnoverify (hd2,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1
title Gentoo Linux - IDE Disk
root (hd0,0)
kernel /vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - SATA Disk
root (hd1,0)
kernel (hd1,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda2 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - previous IDE
root (hd0,0)
kernel /vmlinuz.old root=/dev/hda5 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - previous SATA
root (hd1,0)
kernel /vmlinuz.old root=/dev/sda2 vga=306
title Windows XP - Without SATA
map (hd0) (hd1)
map (hd1) (hd0)
rootnoverify (hd1,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1
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# Boot automatically after 10 secs.
timeout 10
# By default, boot the first entry.
default 0
# Fallback to the second entry
fallback 1
# Display initial image
#splashimage=(hd0,0)/grub/splash.xpm.gz
# For booting Windows NT or Windows95
title Windows XP - with SATA plugged in
map (hd0) (hd2)
map (hd2) (hd0)
rootnoverify (hd2,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1
title Gentoo Linux - SATA Disk
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda2 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - IDE Disk
root (hd1,0)
kernel (hd1,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - previous IDE
root (hd0,0)
kernel /vmlinuz.old root=/dev/hda5 vga=306
title Gentoo Linux - previous SATA
root (hd1,0)
kernel /vmlinuz.old root=/dev/sda2 vga=306
title Windows XP - Without SATA
map (hd0) (hd1)
map (hd1) (hd0)
rootnoverify (hd1,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1
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(fd0) /dev/fd0
(hd0) /dev/hda
(hd1) /dev/sda
(hd2) /dev/hdb
(hd3) /dev/hdd
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(fd0) /dev/fd0
(hd0) /dev/sda
(hd1) /dev/hda
(hd2) /dev/hdb
(hd3) /dev/hdd

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Booting 'gentoo 2.6.21...'
root (hd0,4)
filesystem type is ext2fs, partition type 0X83
kernel /boot/kernel[]genkernel[]x86_64[]r4 root=/dev/ram0
init= /linuxrc ramdisk=8192 real root=/dev/sda5 udev
error15:file not foundCode: Select all
/boot:
used 5932 available 20888
drwxr-xr-x 3 root root 4096 Aug 4 00:21 .
drwxr-xr-x 22 root root 4096 Aug 3 23:56 ..
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 0 Aug 25 2005 .keep
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 27 Aug 4 00:21 System.map -> System.map-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 981354 Aug 4 00:21 System.map-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 978246 Aug 4 00:10 System.map-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 31 Aug 4 00:21 System.map.old -> System.map-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 1 Aug 4 00:21 boot -> .
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 23 Aug 4 00:21 config -> config-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 43194 Aug 4 00:21 config-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 43194 Aug 4 00:10 config-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 27 Aug 4 00:21 config.old -> config-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 4096 Aug 5 19:44 grub
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 24 Aug 4 00:21 vmlinuz -> vmlinuz-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2007704 Aug 4 00:21 vmlinuz-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1995288 Aug 4 00:10 vmlinuz-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 28 Aug 4 00:21 vmlinuz.old -> vmlinuz-2.6.21-gentoo-r4.old


Code: Select all
root (hdCode: Select all
root (hd0, Code: Select all
title Gentoo Linux
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda2 vga=306


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sata hd:
sda1 xp
sda2 boot
sda3 swap
sda4 -extended-
sda5 linux
sda6 data
sda7 movies
sda8 photos
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default 0
timeout 10
splashimage=(hd0,1)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title=Gentoo Linux 2.6.21-gentoo-r4
root (hd0,1)
kernel (hd0,1)/kernel-genkernel-x86_64-2.6.21-gentoo-r4 root=/dev/sda5 udev
initrd (hd0,1)/initramfs-genkernel-x86_64-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
# Only in case you want to dual-boot
title=Windows XP
rootnoverify (hd0,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1

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mount /dev/sda5 /mnt/gentoo
mount /dev/sda2 /mnt/gentoo/bootCode: Select all
ls -l /mnt/gentoo/boot
ls -l /mnt/gentoo/boot/grub

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default 0
timeout 30
splashimage=(hd1,1)/boot/grub/splash.xpm.gz
title=Gentoo Linux 2.6.21-r4
root (hd1,1)
kernel /boot/kernel-genkernel-x86-2.6.21-gentoo-r4 root=/dev/ram0 init=/linuxrc ramdisk=8192 real_root=/dev/sdb4 udev
initrd /boot/initramfs-genkernel-x86-2.6.21-gentoo-r4
# Only in case you want to dual-boot
title=Windows XP
rootnoverify (hd0,0)
makeactive
chainloader +1Code: Select all
grep -v rootfs /proc/mounts > /etc/mtabCode: Select all
grub-install --no-floppy /dev/sdb
awesome, that worked... to a point... i saw the message GRUB then it switched over to an all black screen with a blinky white _ at the top left and nothing else.lyallp wrote:Sounds like your BIOS is booting sda first!

Changing boot order may change your GRUB drive specifications (according to the GRUB manual) - it depends on your BIOS.wangzilla wrote:awesome, that worked... to a point... i saw the message GRUB then it switched over to an all black screen with a blinky white _ at the top left and nothing else.lyallp wrote:Sounds like your BIOS is booting sda first!
since i switched the order of my boot... need i edit my grub to take into account the boot as hd0,1 instead of how it was with hd1,1 ?

that was what i was thinking but i'm stuck in hell (work) and will have to give it a whirl when i get home.lyallp wrote:Changing boot order may change your GRUB drive specifications (according to the GRUB manual) - it depends on your BIOS.wangzilla wrote:awesome, that worked... to a point... i saw the message GRUB then it switched over to an all black screen with a blinky white _ at the top left and nothing else.lyallp wrote:Sounds like your BIOS is booting sda first!
since i switched the order of my boot... need i edit my grub to take into account the boot as hd0,1 instead of how it was with hd1,1 ?
Sounds like you need to swap your drive numbers around now.

from the handbook it lists init=/linuxrc where you have init=/bin/bb so not sure why it'd point to /bin/bb in the first place.Chris McGee wrote:kernel /boot/kernel-2.6.19-gentoo-r5 root=/dev/hda3 init=/bin/bb

I hadn't noticed that. In the handbook it lists 'init=/linuxrc' for genkernel users but 'init=/bin/bb' for non-genkernel users. As I wasn't using genkernel I put in 'init=/bin/bb'.wangzilla wrote:from the handbook it lists init=/linuxrc where you have init=/bin/bb so not sure why it'd point to /bin/bb in the first place.Chris McGee wrote:kernel /boot/kernel-2.6.19-gentoo-r5 root=/dev/hda3 init=/bin/bb
then again, i'm new to it all and just posting an observationlol.

ahh, ya, i was thinking genkernel, my badChris McGee wrote:I hadn't noticed that. In the handbook it lists 'init=/linuxrc' for genkernel users but 'init=/bin/bb' for non-genkernel users. As I wasn't using genkernel I put in 'init=/bin/bb'.wangzilla wrote:from the handbook it lists init=/linuxrc where you have init=/bin/bb so not sure why it'd point to /bin/bb in the first place.Chris McGee wrote:kernel /boot/kernel-2.6.19-gentoo-r5 root=/dev/hda3 init=/bin/bb
then again, i'm new to it all and just posting an observationlol.
Handbook page
Thanks, i'll try putting init=/linuxrc and see if that works.