Solved primary linux drive stopped showing up in boot menu

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GoonMaster

GoonMaster

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my primary nvme drive with arch installed stopped showing up in the bios boot menu after installing windows onto my second nvme. i can still view both drives on the windows disk management thing but i can't boot back into my main drive to update grub. i tried loading up an arch iso and using chroot to update grub but that did nothing and rebooting just boots me back into windows. i also tried removing the windows nvme entirely but that just gave me an error telling my that my thing is corrupt. is there a way for me to fix this without having to completely reinstall.
 


you may fix it but your underlying issue will not go away. I put them on different drives and I use a switch system to keep them that way and choose which I want to boot up on. never have issues like yours with grub that way. If you are using a laptop then you are screwed, if it is a desktop that you can install expansion cards in, then I can help you avoid it in the future.
 
APTI said:
you may fix it but your underlying issue will not go away. I put them on different drives and I use a switch system to keep them that way and choose which I want to boot up on. never have issues like yours with grub that way. If you are using a laptop then you are screwed, if it is a desktop that you can install expansion cards in, then I can help you avoid it in the future.
Click to expand...
so you're saying that there is nothing i can do to access my main drive
 
GoonMaster said:
so you're saying that there is nothing i can do to access my main drive
Click to expand...
there are many grub and boot repair options that may work. but the underlying issue will not go away. That being 2 totally different systems that have to share grub. They usually do not do well. Windows especially will try to act like it lives alone and trash grub. multi boot systems are full of problems that always need addressing. I use a switch system installed in the desktop which eliminates the entire issue.
I am not saying you have lost it all, I am saying you can recover but you will need to rebuild grub and possibly other boot areas and the problem will reoccur. I love multi boot but you have to do it right or do it over and learn from the mistakes.

or

I use these and once set up you can update upgrade and do anything else without fear of corrupting grub.
My suggestion is save the time and trouble and get one of these then install what you like on separate drives and select what you want to boot using the buttons on the back. You will spend less time setting things up correctly from the start rather than messing with it endlessly. You should be able to get the data if you use a usb live boot. You will not be able to use M.2 chips tho. Not found anything for that. You may also look into the specs on the motherboard you may find that the M.2 overrides sata as many will and this can be part of your issue.
I am sure you will have a few people come around after this and give you specifics to try to recover.
I admire your attempts to do this on a laptop, just remember that this will be a learning experience as everything is.
 
APTI said:
there are many grub and boot repair options that may work. but the underlying issue will not go away. That being 2 totally different systems that have to share grub. They usually do not do well. Windows especially will try to act like it lives alone and trash grub. multi boot systems are full of problems that always need addressing. I use a switch system installed in the desktop which eliminates the entire issue.
I am not saying you have lost it all, I am saying you can recover but you will need to rebuild grub and possibly other boot areas and the problem will reoccur. I love multi boot but you have to do it right or do it over and learn from the mistakes.

or

I use these and once set up you can update upgrade and do anything else without fear of corrupting grub.
My suggestion is save the time and trouble and get one of these then install what you like on separate drives and select what you want to boot using the buttons on the back. You will spend less time setting things up correctly from the start rather than messing with it endlessly. You should be able to get the data if you use a usb live boot. You will not be able to use M.2 chips tho. Not found anything for that. You may also look into the specs on the motherboard you may find that the M.2 overrides sata as many will and this can be part of your issue.
I am sure you will have a few people come around after this and give you specifics to try to recover.
I admire your attempts to do this on a laptop, just remember that this will be a learning experience as everything is.
Click to expand...
alr thanks
 
APTI said:
there are many grub and boot repair options that may work. but the underlying issue will not go away. That being 2 totally different systems that have to share grub. They usually do not do well. Windows especially will try to act like it lives alone and trash grub. multi boot systems are full of problems that always need addressing. I use a switch system installed in the desktop which eliminates the entire issue.
I am not saying you have lost it all, I am saying you can recover but you will need to rebuild grub and possibly other boot areas and the problem will reoccur. I love multi boot but you have to do it right or do it over and learn from the mistakes.

or

I use these and once set up you can update upgrade and do anything else without fear of corrupting grub.
My suggestion is save the time and trouble and get one of these then install what you like on separate drives and select what you want to boot using the buttons on the back. You will spend less time setting things up correctly from the start rather than messing with it endlessly. You should be able to get the data if you use a usb live boot. You will not be able to use M.2 chips tho. Not found anything for that. You may also look into the specs on the motherboard you may find that the M.2 overrides sata as many will and this can be part of your issue.
I am sure you will have a few people come around after this and give you specifics to try to recover.
I admire your attempts to do this on a laptop, just remember that this will be a learning experience as everything is.
Click to expand...
i used to dual boot off a single drive with no problems, it was only after i installed windows onto the second drive that i began getting issues
 
windows is always the last thing you hear crashing during dual boots. I would make sure you can actually use the M.2 and sata at the same time. Specs on that laptop board should have it. Many in that situation are one or the other not both with one having a priority. At least at boot up then corrupting grub is easy with windows in the mix. That's all I got to say about that, but hopefully somebody else with more knowledge on fixing it will come up next.
 
@GoonMaster :-

Welcome to Linux.org.

We've moved on a long way from the days of Ballmer & Co ("Linux is a cancer...") to the current set-up ("We LOVE Linux!"......yeah, RIGHT; hah!!), but Windows is now, always has been, and doubtless will continue to be like the playground bully.....wants everything its own way. Hell, it doesn't like sharing disk space with older versions of itself, let alone other operating systems that MUST be "beyond the pale"..! :p

This is STILL the best description of the Redmond behemoth that I've ever come across (OK, it's from around 20 years ago, at the time of Win'98/Win2000/WinME/Win XP):-

“32 bit extensions and a graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company that can't stand the slightest bit of competition.....”
Click to expand...
(Not my personal opinion; I'm just quoting what was all over the web a couple of decades ago.)

This is largely the reason behind the advice we so often give people; at the very least, if you're going to run more than one type of OS, keep 'em on separate drives. Better still, keep 'em on completely separate machines; that way, "issues" with either won't in any way affect t'other.

MacOS is much more closely related to the whole Unix/Linux paradigm than Windows will ever be, but Apple are even more bothered about giving its users the freedom of choice to make their own decisions and choose for themselves......which is why they keep the Apple ecsystem locked-down as tight as they do. It's got nowt to do wi' "security", or any of the other tired old clichés they keep trotting-out for consumption by "the faithful"........it's ALL about maintaining a captive market. Believe it.

Just sayin'..!
rofl-small.gif



Mike. :p
 
Last edited:
MikeWalsh said:
@GoonMaster :-

Welcome to Linux.org.

We've moved on a long way from the days of Ballmer & Co ("Linux is a cancer...") to the current set-up ("We LOVE Linux!"......yeah, RIGHT; hah!!), but Windows is now, always has been, and doubtless will continue to be like the playground bully.....wants everything its own way. Hell, it doesn't like sharing disk space with older versions of itself, let alone other operating systems that MUST be "beyond the pale"..! :p

This is STILL the best description of the Redmond behemoth that I've ever come across (OK, it's from around 20 years ago, at the time of Win'98/Win2000/WinME/Win XP):-


(Not my personal opinion; I'm just quoting what was all over the web a couple of decades ago.)

This is largely the reason behind the advice we so often give people; at the very least, if you're going to run more than one type of OS, keep 'em on separate drives. Better still, keep 'em on completely separate machines; that way, "issues" with either won't in any way affect t'other.

MacOS is much more closely related to the whole Unix/Linux paradigm than Windows will ever be, but Apple are even more bothered about giving its users the freedom of choice to make their own decisions and choose for themselves......which is why they keep the Apple ecsystem locked-down as tight as they do.

Just sayin'..!
rofl-small.gif



Mike. :p
Click to expand...
i kinda have no choice. there are certain programs that only run on windows that i need to use. if it were up to me, i'd ditch it entirely but then again i have no other option but to try and at least make the two operating systems "usable".
 
Have you explored using a VM for one of the OS's ?

There are people here who use them extensively.
 
Is this so much a case of literally no equivalent software that would do the job.......or is it more a case of you've got so used to a particular workflow that you can't see yourself learning a somewhat different one from scratch?

Might we know what software you're talking about? Perhaps we can suggest a way round it....


Mike. ;)
 
i've already been through my vm "phase" and since im using a gaming laptop with switchable graphics, i figured it would be much less of a hassle if i just dual booted and it was indeed much easier to manage. it was only up until i decided to install windows onto a second drive that i began to get issues, up until now i've been running windows and arch off the same drive.
 
MikeWalsh said:
Is this so much a case of literally no equivalent software that would do the job.......or is it more a case of you've got so used to a particular workflow that you can't see yourself learning a somewhat different one from scratch?

Might we know what software you're talking about? Perhaps we can suggest a way round it....


Mike.
Click to expand...
i have a bunch of these guitar addons for my daw that are .ddl files which only work on windows. i also play a bunch of shooters with kernel level anticheats
 
How about taking the second nvme out of the laptop and putting it in an enclosure? They connect via usb

(shows Amazon Australia, but you get the idea....there many types fro differing nvme's)
 
Condobloke said:
How about taking the second nvme out of the laptop and putting it in an enclosure? They connect via usb

(shows Amazon Australia, but you get the idea....there many types fro differing nvme's)
Click to expand...
i was thinking of doing this but i really don't have the money rn. although i did stupidly remove the nvme thinking my computer would automatically boot into my main one, which just gave me an error saying my system was corrupt
 
GoonMaster said:
i was thinking of doing this but i really don't have the money rn. although i did stupidly remove the nvme thinking my computer would automatically boot into my main one, which just gave me an error saying my system was corrupt
Click to expand...
rn im looking at a tutorial on fixing grub and i think im on the right tracks. i'll give an update once im done
 
G'day @GoonMaster and welcome to linux.org :)

GoonMaster said:
i'll give an update once im done
Click to expand...

Yes, please, if you have no joy we can look at the alternatives.

Take a look at the link in my signature on how many distros I run and why.

Q. Is it a vanilla Arch or an Arch derivative and if the latter, which?

In any event, I would look to introduce you to Timeshift to safeguard your Arch install.

Good luck and please keep us posted.

Chris Turner
wizardfromoz
 
wizardfromoz said:
G'day @GoonMaster and welcome to linux.org :)



Yes, please, if you have no joy we can look at the alternatives.

Take a look at the link in my signature on how many distros I run and why.

Q. Is it a vanilla Arch or an Arch derivative and if the latter, which?

In any event, I would look to introduce you to Timeshift to safeguard your Arch install.

Good luck and please keep us posted.

Chris Turner
wizardfromi
Click to expand...
i ended up doing a complete reinstall because i miraculously found a harddrive with most of my stuff backed into it. but to answer your question, i use vanilla arch
 
Good, news - I have flagged that at the other thread.

Wizard
 
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