In this latest version of Fedora distribution, developers decided to format disk using GPT label on it. The problem is that many BIOS can’t recognize disk as bootable after the installation, so that you cannot access to your new system.
After hours spent trying to fix my installation (without success), I noticed that on the knowing bugs page there was the real solution to the problem, even if, in my opinion, it’s not well explained.
Anyway, if you want to install Fedora 16 without spend time later fixing the boot problem or re-installing it, the solution is to force the installation procedure to use the normal partitioning system, so you can let Fedora decide how to format your disk (as usual, that is my preferred installation way: decide all after).
Add the nogpt property to anaconda before starting the installation procedure. To do this you should see in your DVD menu (just after the boot) a voice saying something mike “add properties” or “change properties”. You have just to select it, write nogpg and startup the installation. Then you can install your Fedora normally.
Don’t know why the Fedora team decided to use this system in the latest version, but in any case, I think wasn’t a good idea. Many users, that don’t want to lose time around problems like this, or don’t know linux very well to try to fix the problem manually, simply run away from this distribution: Ubuntu it’s simple to install and to manage after installation.
In my opinion this is absolutely the worst decision dev team could take!
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Adam Williamson
30/11/2011 at 03:41 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
Fedora doesn’t have exactly the same goals as Ubuntu. We don’t necessarily need to provide something that works perfectly out of the box for everything. Fedora’s job is to drive the development of the Linux and F/OSS ecosystem: GPT disk labels are flat better than MS-DOS disk labels, they’re The Future, and someone’s going to have to start using them at some point. It may as well be Fedora. When a ‘real’ OS starts using a new technology, that exposes the hardware which doesn’t support it properly and creates pressure on the manufacturers to remedy the situation. That’s part of what Fedora is actually meant to achieve. So really, this is just a case of Fedora doing its job…
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foo Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 05:58
Its one thing to push the boundaries, its completely another to not even anticipate the possibility that your new stuff will not work with the non-free binary blob software that is different on every machine and may or may not work with your new stuff. I would at least expect some warnings on systems where the BIOS is not whitelisted. Also the BIOS is not hardware.
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Ben Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 06:38
If they didn’t anticipate any problems, there probably wouldn’t be an installer boot option (‘nogpt’) to force the old behavior.
You should read the known issues page before upgrading or installing any distribution (or Windows, for that matter). Having done such, you should be able to weigh the risks and benefits of installing/upgrading, waiting for the issues to be resolved, or purchasing a new system.
The BIOS is not hardware, but it’s the hardware manufacturers (more specifically, the ones who put the motherboards together) who fiddle with the BIOS before burning it into memory. It is they who have to fix whatever bugs are present in the BIOS, and they won’t fix the bugs if nobody (Fedora, etc.) is using the features that expose them.
I apologize if this came across gruff–I haven’t really figured out how to soften my tone on the net.
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Marco Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 10:28
Adam, I’m agreed with you. Ubuntu was an example. But, in my opinion, you can’t create a distribution that has install problems without give information about it to the user (and I mean information during the installation process).
It’s true that there are all things you want on fedora website, but some users just download iso (maybe from an external website, or they found iso with a magazine) and try to install it. If it does not work simply delete the distribution to pass to another one.
So, it’s not a good thing if you want to expand the number of fedora users!
And then, you say hardware constructors will follow the os evolutions. It’s true, but you really think that the GTP label used just by fedora could make hw constructors to change stuffs? Maybe if it’s windows to do the same thing yes, but fedora (and just fedora) I don’t think so.
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Fred
30/11/2011 at 03:58 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
@Adam
Man I hated what you just said. Well more of a sinking feeling inside I guess. Of course I believe what you said, you are Adam Williamson for goodness sake. And of course this has been Fedora’s mission all along ( Or a public beta of RHEL as someone recently pointed out). I guess I’ve always known this but never wanted to admit it. I’ve been on Fedora since the beginning and my acceptance of what you just said, and Fedora’s decision with Gnome 3, I think I’m going to finally leave after F14 loses support. Please don’t let the door hit me on the way out
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Matt
16/12/2011 at 09:31 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
I agree with the wasting of time. I am relatively new to unix, Ubuntu, Fedora 12-16 and I wish I spent as much time studying my univeristy related issues as I do trying to unfsck my distro, and lose the countless hours I had spent previously trying to get my system dialed in.
I get it, make people use the terminal. I agree, or else they never would, and it would turn into a whiney bunch of Microsof ex-pats complaining that thier free distro doesn’t work.
Seriously, This should not take this much time. I’m not even sure if I said I spent a thousand hours and had nothing to show for it since I tried to dual boot my way in before committing myself to using a distro that LInus Torvals himself is rumored to hate (15 not 16) but I could see why.
Instead of writing a 10 page paper, I have sudoed my way to oblivion.
Nothing personal towards your comment, I just wish this could be done in 3 hours instead of the unknown variable that is honestly worse in the MS camp but mostly works most of the time.
Fedora- its works great, some of the time, if it works any of the time.
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Matt
16/12/2011 at 09:40 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
I don’t agree with wasting time, and I know it’s Torvalds, and someone is going to say thousand hours and you should be LRHEL certified.. save it. It seems like an eternity when you are on a deadline and your machine simply wont work no matter how relentless you google and cut and paste, or manually input commands only to find them often send you back to your live ISO screaming bloodly murder, contemplating the satisfaction of destroying your entire machine, when it never dawns on you that you could just as easily destroy any evidence of Fedora post 14 having existed.
You need to be extremely talented, patient and well versed in fedora to use such a deceptively appealing GUI OS. But that’s obviously what they want, an excluse members only OS where seasoned novices either keep at it and earn the respect of the community, or turn to your other computer station in your office and go back to the sluggishly overpowered and bloated Microsoft machine that sent me here in the first place.
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jAMES wHITE
16/01/2012 at 03:07 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
Hello my name is noob. Unfortunately I am posting from ms7 town. I just spent all weekend getting fedora 16 running with ms7 on Vbox. It took hrs and hrs due to the fact that i am very green in linux. I turned it off and that was it. went to fire her back up to find that she will not boot. I am suprized that i am not angry. That is not part of the game (it is the game). I am in it to learn. thats it. If I can get good with linux i will be super stoaked……….I am actually starting with fedora….no ubuntu or mint for this noob.
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Earnest
18/01/2012 at 03:20 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
Thanks soo much!
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M.F
28/01/2012 at 19:26 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
I’m just downloaded the fedora 16, it took me 1 month i was in middle of exams so i let the torrent do the download few hours every few days and after all this i can’t boot it,
the boot menu didn’t even appeared?? and it 2days now and the same problem i decided to change from xp to ubuntu but i didn’t like it and a heard about fedora ,the dev team should consider the easy at least during the installation becuase if one like me still trying this problem will make him hate fedora for the rest of his life they should consider that next distros.
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JRW
13/03/2012 at 14:12 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
I agree with the original post. Fedora 16 install process has been a very, very bad experience for me thus far, which make me gun shy to try newer releases.
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alex
13/04/2012 at 19:45 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
I think I understand the difference in missions between fedora and ubuntu. I love fedora, and have been using it since core 1 (since redhat 1 in fact). But recently, the gnome 3 transition and the nogpt thing *forced* me to move to ubuntu (which I like much less). I just don’t have time to fiddle that much with a non-starter installation. I’m still trying to get back (I’m typing this from a Vaio Z with Fedora/Cinnamon). But my other machine is still on the blocks, waiting for me to fix the installation. The fedora people are good – but I think they are beginning to live in their own, disconnected world. Makes me wonder where the difference between the being in front and falling off the ridge is….
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S
07/08/2012 at 12:30 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
GPT is a crap. It troubled me a lot. After installing all the necessary software sitting hours together finally I find that if you boot the system will not identify any partition on the system (thanks to F16) we will be left in no other way to reinstall F16 again,
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Deal Dash
21/09/2012 at 17:59 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
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Maverick
03/11/2012 at 19:28 (UTC 2) Link to this comment
These people are so right ! I don’t know who Adam Williamson is but I do better understand now that Fedora is not here to make a great open-source OS, they appear to be here as a testing ground for RedHat OS, that’s why it’s free and all us stupid followers are just test dummies for them,
No more Fedora for me, making me a gnome3 crash dummy was enough !
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